​Alka-Seltzer Gold, Glutathione, and Lemon Juice for Lyme Disease Herxheimer Reactions

​Dr. Richard Horowitz, M.D., the co-founder of ILADS, and the author of the all-important books for those who can't get over chronic Lyme disease, "Why Can't I Get Better: Solving The Mystery of Lyme and Chronic Disease", and most recently, "How Can I Get Better? An Action Plan for Treating Resistant Lyme & Chronic Disease", gave a recipe, to greatly reduce an acute herxheimer reaction within hours, at a 2010 ILADS conference. This powerful bit of information was reported to the Lyme community by Scott Forsgren of betterhealthguy.com.

What's the Recipe and How Do I Take It?

Dr. Horowitz's herxheimer-reducing recipe consists of 1500mg of liposomal glutathione, the juice of 1 lemon, 2 Alka-Seltzer Gold tablets, and 8 ounces of water.

Important: If you need to be on a low potassium diet, consult with your treating physician before taking Alka-Seltzer Gold. Also, if you're sensitive to sulfur based products, you should avoid the liposomal glutathione.

Important: ​You should also avoid the liposomal glutathione if you're dealing with mercury toxicity, as it can redistribute mercury and cause nasty redistribution symptoms. It is possible to still feel an improvement in your herxheimer reaction by taking just the lemon water with the Alka-Seltzer Gold or just the liposomal glutathione. Some improvement is better than none.

​To take the products, first, grab your measuring cup and squeeze all the juice of either one lime or one lemon into it. You'll definitely get more juice out of your citrus fruit -- with less mess -- with a lemon squeezer. Now add water to the measuring cup until the total amount of lemon juice and water reaches 8 ounces. Add your lemon water to your cup, drop in 2 Alka-Seltzer Gold tablets, and stir gently with a spoon for a second or two. While your lemon water begins to fizz, take 1500mg of liposomal glutathione. Once the fizz in your lemon water has stopped rising, slowly begin to drink the lemon water over a period of 5 minutes.

How Does It Reduce a Herxheimer Reaction?

This recipe works to reduce a herxheimer reaction in a number of ways, but in short, the liposomal glutathione purges toxins and the Alka-Seltzer Gold and lemon juice help to alkalize the body.

Glutathione is the body's master detoxing agent and the highest concentration of it in the body can be found in the liver. The liver removes toxins from the body in a process known as phase 1 and phase 2 liver detoxification. During this process, fat based toxins are converted into less harmful water based toxins that allow for much more efficient removal via urine. Glutathione is needed for both of these detoxification phases to occur efficiently.

Alka-Seltzer Gold (i.e., sodium bicarbonate) greatly enhances lemon's natural ability to alkalize the body. The body impressively maintains a neutral pH of around 7.4, and if it becomes too acidic, alkaline reserves (i.e., sodium bicarbonate) produced by the pancreas will neutralize acid by-products, restoring proper pH balance.

​Chronic Lyme disease can leave the body on the acidic side, but with Alka-Seltzer Gold and lemon juice (though acidic tasting, the body converts it to alkaline ash), the body's alkaline reserves are temporarily restored.

By temporarily restoring the body's alkaline reserves (i.e., sodium bicarbonate), the methylation cycle works more efficiently, water-soluble antioxidants are increased to combat increased free radicals, and even enhance certain antibiotics in killing intracelluar bacteria.

How Long Does It Take to Work?

Feeling better from a herxheimer reaction after using this protocol usually happens in about 2 hours. For some people, they may notice an improvement in how they feel before 2 hours, but as the clock hits the 2 hour mark, most people begin to feel exponentially better, and as the next few hours pass, the trend will continue.

Even people who take just the Alka-Seltzer Gold with the lemon water, or just the liposomal glutathione, can experience this improvement trend as the hours pass.

Resources

• Forsgren, Scott. "ILADS 2010 Conference Takeaways." BetterHealthGuy.com. N.p., 23 Apr. 2013. Web. 05 Apr. 2017
• Ross, MD, Dr. Marty. "Glutathione: The Great Fixer." The Treat Lyme Book. N.p., 05 June 2016. Web. 05 Apr. 2017.
• "How Does the Pancreas Work?" National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 30 Dec. 2016. Web. 05 Apr. 2017.
• Grant, D. M., and Division of Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology. "Detoxification Pathways in the Liver." Journal of Inherited Metabolic Disease. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 05 Apr. 2017.
• Horowitz, MD, Dr. Richard. "Lyme and Pain." Why Can't I Get Better? Solving The Mystery of Lyme & Chronic Disease. New York: St. Martin's, 2013. 430-31. Print.
• Cutler, PhD, Dr. Andy. "Sulfur Foods: Foods High in Sulfur (Thiols)." Livingnetwork. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Apr. 2017.