Vitamin C: Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin that is not made or stored naturally in the body. Processes that depend on an adequate supply of vitamin C include the growth and repair of skin, tendons, ligaments, blood vessel walls, cartilage, bones, and teeth.
A veritable mountain of evidence over the last 80 years has revealed the efficacy of vitamin C in high doses. From mild and severe infections to cancer, the evidence of its effectiveness when administered intravenously, in doses much too high for oral intake, is astonishing. And a special beauty of vitamin C is that it is entirely non-toxic, even in very large doses.
Our Myers Cocktail (see below) contains 5,000 mg of vitamin C, and our Immune Booster has 25,000 mg of non-corn, preservative-free vitamin C in the form of ascorbic acid.
High-dose vitamin C is used for adjunctive cancer therapy, fatigue, fibromyalgia, immune dysfunction, pre- and post-mercury amalgam removals, and many other medical challenges. It is particularly useful for knocking out the viruses of the common cold, flu, and sore throats. Patients often start feeling better within minutes of administration.
Magnesium: Many people are deficient in this essential mineral. IV magnesium is an excellent therapy for patients with heart disease and respiratory problems such as asthma. It helps with cardiac arrhythmias and can arrest an acute asthma attack within seconds of IV administration. IV magnesium is also beneficial in treating diabetes, as it improves insulin sensitivity and helps control blood sugar.
Magnesium can also reduce the frequency and severity of migraine headaches, help prevent kidney stones, boost immune function, and protect DNA from carcinogens.
Not the least among magnesium’s effects is that it promotes relaxation – something we can all benefit from in these high-stress times. Magnesium can even help you sleep. It not only relaxes the muscles but increases the length of restorative slow-wave sleep. Magnesium added to high-dose IV vitamin C formulas helps balance electrolytes and is used in almost every other formula at Pacific Naturopathic.
Calcium: Calcium (with Vitamin D) plays a major role in bone health. Although a mere 1 percent of the calcium in the body is found outside of bone, this tiny amount is critical for many bodily functions.
Calcium plays an essential role in blood clotting, helps stabilize blood pressure, plays a huge role in normal brain function, is critical for communicating essential information among cells, and assists the movement of sperm into an egg to fertilize the egg. Calcium is also required for proper heart muscle contraction.
Calcium is added to high-dose IV vitamin C formulas to help balance electrolytes, and is used in almost every other formula at Pacific Naturopathic.
Potassium: Potassium play a critical part in the proper function of all cells, tissues, and organs in the human body. It is an electrolyte, a substance that conducts electricity in the body, along with sodium, chloride, calcium, and magnesium.
Potassium is crucial to heart function. It plays a key role in skeletal and smooth muscle contraction, making it important for normal digestive and muscular function. Potassium also plays a major role in preventing osteoporosis, helping to regulate blood pressure, and preventing heart disease and stroke. IV potassium is especially effective for helping people with inflammatory bowel disease, since they cannot absorb minerals through their intestines. Potassium is added to high-dose IV vitamin C formulas to help balance electrolytes.
Glutathione (GSH): Glutathione is our body’s most important antioxidant. It is found in abundance in the brain and liver, where its main role is to prevent damage to important cellular components by protecting against reactive oxygen species such as free radicals and peroxides. Glutathione is severely depleted by mercury and toxic chemicals.
Glutathione helps transport proteins and other nutrients into the cells. For example, if you take a multivitamin pill, drink fruit juice, or eat an egg, it opens the receptor sites for the nutrients to pass through to the cells. With low glutathione, a person may suffer malnutrition, even if their diet is exemplary.
When given intravenously, glutathione improves liver and brain function. It is often used for memory enhancement, and to treat dementia, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, neuropathy, and liver disease. It has been shown to be helpful in autism.
Researchers have linked glutathione deficiency to approximately 70 medical conditions, including fatigue, immune system compromise, various cancers, heart disease, stroke, and other chronic illnesses. Glutathione’s benefits include longevity, better quality of life, improved sports performance, slowed aging, and increased energy. At Pacific Naturopathic, we offer various IV glutathione dosages up to 2000 mg per infusion.
Phosphatidylcholine (PTC): Ninety percent of Americans are estimated to be deficient in this vital nutrient. The three most prominent benefits of phosphatidylcholine supplementation are related to brain health and memory improvements, fat metabolism, and liver health. Phosphatidylcholine is the most abundant phospholipid component in all cells. These fatty acids are useful in fat metabolism and the transportation of various nutrients into the cells.
Phosphatidylcholine is necessary for the creation and repair of cell membranes and is vital for normal liver function. PTC protects liver cells from viral damage, reduces fibrosis, and prevents cell death from drugs, alcohol, and other chemical toxins.
Perhaps the most important fact to know about PTC is that its levels in the brain cell membranes decline with age, contributing to memory loss. PTC plays an important role in the maintenance of healthy neurons and can help prevent or repair damage to brain cells. Neurologists are investigating PTC’s potential in the treatment of Alzheimer’s, and the possibility of using it to protect against cognitive decline in the elderly. Some startling new evidence suggests that PTC supplementation may be used to help stimulate the growth of new brain cells and neural connections.
Lipoic Acid: Alpha-lipoic acid is an antioxidant manufactured by the body that helps turn glucose into energy within the cells. Antioxidants are substances that attack “free radicals,” waste products created when the body turns food into energy. Free radicals cause harmful chemical reactions that can damage cells in the body, making it more difficult for the body to fight infections. Free radicals also damage cells in organs and tissues.
Unlike other antioxidants, which work only in water (such as vitamin C) or fatty tissues (such as vitamin E), alpha-lipoic acid is both fat- and water-soluble. This means that it can work throughout the body.
An IV alpha lipoic acid compound may help those suffering from diabetes, by improving insulin sensitivity and lowering blood sugar levels.
Poly MVA: Poly-MVA is a uniquely formulated combination of minerals, vitamins, and amino acids designed to support cellular energy production and promote overall health.
Poly-MVA also replaces specific nutrients that may be depleted during certain aggressive medical therapies. Multiple studies have shown its effectiveness in helping to combat many cancer cell lines, with NO harm to normal cells. Poly-MVA is an effective, safe, and very intriguing new way of targeting cancer.
Amino Acids: IV amino acid infusions are used in the treatment of malnutrition due to malabsorption. Amino acids can also help relieve depression and help treat addictive disorders. Research has shown that athletes, body builders, and others with a physically demanding lifestyle can experience better performance and stamina when they are infused with amino acids.
Amino acids can help speed recovery in those who have experienced physical trauma or who have undergone surgery. People with conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, dementia, HIV/AIDS, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, adrenal fatigue, and liver disease can benefit from amino acid infusions.
Vegetarians (and especially vegans) may find it difficult to obtain an adequate variety of amino acids from their diet. While it’s true that vegetables, grains, pulses, legumes, and nuts contain protein, a large variety of food must be consumed in order to provide adequate amounts of all the essential amino acids.
Artesunate: Artemesia annua is native to China and has been used for centuries in Chinese medicine. The artemisinin molecule has an affinity for cancer cells and for iron. It is known that cancer cells concentrate iron and iron-containing compounds. Artemisinin can combine with the intercellular iron to create Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) that precipitate cancer cell death. In addition, terpenoids and flavonoids derived from Artemisia annua are cytotoxic to several human tumor cell lines. Artemisinin has been shown to have an anti-proliferative effect on medullary thyroid carcinoma cells and to induce cancer cell death in lung cancer. Recent studies show its efficacy in treating breast cancer.
Silibinin: Silybum marianum has been studied extensively in the laboratory for the treatment of short-term and chronic liver diseases, and also for some types of cancer. Some research indicates that silymarin may be useful for treating certain liver diseases, particularly those caused by exposure to toxins. Commission E (Germany’s regulatory agency for herbs) has approved the use of milk thistle fruit (the part of the plant that contains silymarin) as a treatment for toxic liver disease, and as a supportive treatment for chronic inflammatory liver disease and cirrhosis of the liver.
Several studies have suggested that silymarin may enhance the effectiveness of some chemotherapy drugs. Preliminary clinical studies in cancer patients indicate that silymarin does not cause serious side effects.
Curcumin: Curcuma longa, an active ingredient in turmeric, is a potent antioxidant. Laboratory studies have shown that curcumin interferes with several important molecular pathways involved in cancer development, growth, and spread. Curcumin can kill cancer cells in the laboratory, and can slow the growth of surviving cancer cells. In animals, curcumin has been shown to inhibit the formation of cancer-causing enzymes and the development of several forms of cancer, thus shrinking tumors. Curcumin is also a very powerful anti-inflammatory.
Human studies of curcumin in cancer prevention and treatment are in the early stages. Because curcumin is not well absorbed orally, large doses must be taken to cause even small amounts to circulate actively in the blood. Intravenous curcumin bypasses the digestive tract and goes to work in the body immediately.
Other nutrients used in IV therapy at Pacific Naturopathic: We have successfully used a long list of IV nutrients in varied formulations for specific effects. These nutrients include all of the B vitamins, individually and as a B-complex, as well as zinc, selenium, trace elements, germanium, Taurine, proline, manganese, molybdenum, and others.
Myers Cocktail: The Myers cocktail is a mixture of vitamins and minerals, including magnesium, calcium, selenium, zinc, B vitamins, and vitamin C. It is administered as an intravenous drip and is extremely beneficial in addressing a variety of acute and chronic health problems. The “cocktail” is indicated for chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, depression, muscle spasms, asthma, hives, infections, senile dementia, and a host of other conditions. Please visit the Q & A page on this site for more on the Myers Cocktail.