This section will always be under construction. There are so many supplements, treatments, and strategies that are beneficial to many, harmful to some, harmful to many, miraculous to some.

Please advise a doctor before prescribing yourself. If you are like me, you are a fearless guinea pig, but experimenting with supplements can have consequences, such as allergic reactions, adverse drug reactions, or toxicity. Practice prudence and patience. Even in desperate times.

Supplements are expensive. I’m guilty of shopping on Amazon, as you’ll see in my product links below. If you are deal-savvy and you have go-to supplements that you know you could always use more of that check out BULKSUPPLEMENTS.COM — you’ll get 5% off with this affiliate link, too.

My TOP 20 Supplements

I have chosen to only provide links to the brands I use and trust, so if you see a product that does not have a link, it’s because I couldn’t find my brand.

Manuka honey has a high content of methylgloxyl (MGO), which is a natural, hydrogen-peroxide-producing antimicrobial. This brand, in particular, standardizes it’s products MGO levels, so you know it has at least the amount of MGO that it says on the bottle. A side benefit of honey is that it’s a sugar – and since Lyme diets are commonly low carb, a lot of patients end up without the required energy they need for proper thyroid function, metabolism, body temperature, and other important cellular processes. A tablespoon of honey, away from meals and liquids, ensures that the sugars are metabolized higher in the digestive tract, so small intestinal bacterial overgrowth doesn’t have to be a concern.

2. Grapefruit seed extract is the strongest antibacterial you can buy besides prescription antibiotics. Like antibiotics, I do not think this should be used for more than a few weeks. It’s effective and tasted like soap! Also good for cleaning fruit and vegetables.

3. Artemisinin is commonly used as an antimalarial and anti-parasitic.

4. Cloves are commonly used as a spice, so if you like the taste, by all means, incorporate it into your food.

5. Black Walnut is also anti-parasitic. I find the anti-parasitic combo of artemisinin, cloves, and black walnut, along with grapefruit seed extract, to be a highly effective combination for me personally. I’ll use this combo for a 10-day pulse, and then follow it with a pulse using…

6. Oregano is antimicrobial, a biofilm buster, good for immunity, and your gut.

7. Colloidal Silver is awesome. I find that, besides making you turn blue, there are zero side effects. And don’t worry, it’s highly unlikely that you will turn blue! Oregano and colloidal silver are two things I have paired together. Colloidal silver is also gentle in a nasal spray. I think a lot of people in general deal with chronic sinusitis. Why swallow an infection into your body, when there are already system issues to deal with?

8. Japanese Knotweed is something that I’ve used and although it isn’t an essential one for me, it’s gotten consistently positive reviews from patients I’ve talked to during coaching sessions.

9. Cat’s Claw (Have you tried Nutramedix? They have a herbal protocol catered to Lyme, an ethical company, and a lot of research behind them. If you’re up for it, here is an hour-long lecture from Cowden himself, discussing his philosophy and the Cowden protocol, which Nutramedix has jumped on.)

10. vitamin C for gentle chelation and immune support.

11. Glutamine is an amino acid good for immune support and digestive repair – particularly to the stomach and intestinal lining. Assuming you’ve done your fair share of abx, glutamine is a healing supplement that might just be one of those lifesavers. And in powder form, it tastes subtly sweet.

12. Sarsaparilla for lymph support. I think it’s cheating to get your dose in root beer, but it’s my excuse!

13. Melatonin, 14. B6, and 15. Magnesium for sleep or just NOW Melatonin with Cofactors.

16. B-complex, since a lot of chronically ill patients are deficient. Make sure to buy a brand with the bio-available form, for MTHFR mutations are not uncommon in Lyme Disease patients.

17. Tyrosine: I recommend this as a supplement for depression and thyroid support. Tyrosine is a precursor to dopamine, and I think it’s much healthier to start here before trying SSRI’s. Increasing serotonin helps for some, but has proven time and time again to make mental conditions worse, as well as cause extreme weight changes (most serotonin is created in the gut, not the brain!) so dopamine, another increasing dopamine might actually be what the doctor ordered.

Tyrosine also combines with iodine to produce T3, which is why it acts as a mild (hypo)thyroid supplement. As you may have guessed, I like the AOR brand. I trust them, so I use AOR Tyrosine, 600mg a day.

18. Lysine is an amino acid commonly used for reducing viral infections. I just really like supplementing with amino acids, because they are already essential for our bodies [Read: Amino Acids for the Chronically Ill]. If you have issues with immunity, white blood cells, or viruses that flare because Lyme has run you down, try lysine.

19. For women with estrogen dominance only, try chaste tree (aka vitex) to boost progesterone. I’ve monitored my blood work obsessively for years, and my progesterone did increase while I was on this, and fell when I went off this. Of course, this isn’t solid evidence [Read: Research Methods 4 Lyme]. That said, there are few side effects and many possible benefits to taking this supplement, and treating estrogen dominance, which effects immunity, thyroid health, and metabolism. [Read: Adrenal Exhaustion and the Ovarian-Adrenal-Oat Axis].

20. Finally, this is the only probiotic I will use. After reading very mixed reviews about Dr. Ohhira’s probiotics, I gave it a try and it’s been easy on my stomach. I can stomach more foods now. Conveniently you do not have to refrigerate them. They’re expensive, and the process to make every capsule takes 3 years. This is the ONLY supplement I take where the list of ingredients goes on and on, and I’m unfamiliar with many of the ingredients, but I’m happy I gave this mystery probiotic a try. I know there is a lot of controversy with probiotics (if they work and/or are worth it or not) but if ever I am on antimicrobials, I always have this on hand.

PS this is the list of ingredients:

Capsule Ingredients:
Each capsule has a Proprietary Organic Acid Blend (1.27mg) made up of citric acid, lactic acid, formic acid and Proprietary Lactic Acid Bacteria Blend consisting of 900 million CFU’s. Note: When it comes to CFU’s (colony forming units) in probiotics, more is Not necessarily better. In addition to quantity, we need quality and synergy. Probiotics+Prebiotics = Synbiotics. What is important is how strong and beneficial are the strains. They need to incorporate many complementary strains versus just one or two isolated strains. In addition, they need to provide enzyme activity to aid digestion, reduce inflammation, alleviate toxins and help normalize pH balance in the colon. Dr.Ohhira’s probiotics incorporate all of the above and are the reason that these probiotics have won best supplement of the year 5 times in a row from Better Nutrition Magazine.

Six Wild Fruits:
Chinese matrimony (Lycium Chinese), Wild vine (Vitis coignetiae), Chinese bayberry (Myrica rubra), Mulberry (Morus Australis), Wild strawberry (Rubus buergeri), and Oleaster (Elaeagnus Montana).

Two Seaweeds:
Sea tangle (Laminaria japonica) and Brown seaweed (Hizikia fusiforme).

Two Herbs:
Mugwort (Aritemisia montana) and Broad-leafed plantain (Plantago asiatica).

Additional Ingredients:
A proprietary blend of 82 additional wild organic crops including herbs, fruits, and organic plants.

Includes 12 strains of live lactic acid bacteria:

• Bifidobacterium breve ss. breve
• Bifidobacterium infantis ss. infantis
• Bifidobacterium longum
• Enterococcus faecalis TH10
• Lactobacillus brevis
• Lactobacillus acidophilus
• Lactobacillus bulgaricus
• Lactobacillus casei ss. casei
• Lactobacillus fermentum
• Lactobacillus helveticus ss. jagurti
• Lactobacillus plantarum
• Streptcoccus thermophilus

** Ingredients are fermented in a Natural Temperature environment for three years.

The Best Things Are Free

Sunlight, laughter, adequate sleep, and nutrition, keeping your body temperature regulated, light to moderate exercise, love and support…these are all just as vital as what’s in your medicine cabinet, if not more.

I have also tried ozone IV blood irradiation and had a lot of success. I’ve heard of people finding relief with colloidal silver IV’s and bee venom therapy, as well. I think there are a LOT of options before opting for more risky treatments like hyperthermia, IV chelation, and long-term abx [Read: Dangers of Long-Term Antibiotic Usage]

Other Resources to Check Out: