For the sake of forgiveness, I wont take offense to your comments. But seriously Mike did you read the whole blog of the excerpt or did you just land on the badly marketed sales pitch? While I may not agree with the method Dr. Blaylock has chosen in order to receive compensation for his work, I do think his work should not be painted with such a wide brush as to be completely disregarded and labeled as a snake oil salesman.

I'm not a doctor, a scientist nor an academic. I am however a patient like many here who has been failed by modern medicine as it is currently being practiced by the majority of physicians. I have not read any of Dr Blaylock's work on statins so I can not comment on his research methods, nor do I think that is relevant to the topic at hand, that is rsd, and what is the underlying reason some of us are predisposed to this disease?

What I believe is more relevant to the conversation is that Dr. Blaylock has done some very important research on the effects of excitotoxins on the human body. This work should not be dismissed so easily, especially for those of us with rsd who are hypersensitive to many chemicals. Case in point an article of his that has been published in JANA the Journal of American Nutraceutical Association, a peer-reviewed journal on nutraceuticals and nutrition discusses an extensive review of literature on neurodegeneration in his article titled "New Developments in the Prevention and Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases Using Nutraceuticals and Metabolic Stimulants". Have a look at the section that discusses Inflammation, Cytokines and Autoimmunity where he describes " As we see, glutamate itself can act as a trigger for microglia activation leading to the release of numerous inflammatory cytokines, or some other event may trigger the process, such as a viral infection, Lymes disease organism invasion, or even heavy metal exposure." http://www.ana-jana.org/reprints/JAN...ockarticle.pdf

Personally I would never sign up and pay for a newsletter advertised in such a manner. I see where you are coming from with your comments. Upon further research into Dr. Blaylocks published accomplishments I see that he has taken a position on many conditions that fly in the face of most of modern medicines mainstream beliefs. I suspect he has been ostracised and ridiculed from the medical profession much like Dr. Barry Marshall and Dr. Robin Warren were for taking the views that he does. In my mind however and especially after reading the attached newsletter (no I did not pay for it)titled "Inflammation: The Real Cause of Diseases", I admire and applaud his courage and commitment to speaking his mind on this very subject. http://w3.newsmax.com/newsletters/bl...une2008_48.pdf

"CRPS/RSD is characterized in the acute stage by symptoms of regional
inflammation. This inflammatory response is also seen in the rodent chronic
nerve constriction injury model that is produced by loose ligation of the
sciatic nerve. Inflammation could be caused by cellular hypoxia and
diminished oxygen utilization. In the chronic stage, CRPS/RSD is manifested
as a more neuropathy-like disorder. It has been hypothesized that this
alteration results from the development of sensitization or plasticity during
the early inflammation phase of the disorder." http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/...AS-03-120.html

Yes perhaps I too am stringing things together here, for the past few months now, since my surgery I have been researching the role of inflammation and how it affects my rsd. I have implemented and now follow an anti-inflammatory diet, introduced neutraceuticals, improved my exercise regime, and done much of what Dr Blaylock has recommended in his newsletter on Inflammation prior to reading it yesterday. I for one feel much better since I have changed my lifestyle, my rsd symptoms have decreased substantially. Personally I believe there is good value in what he has researched and written about here. Many of his recommendations make good sense to me and I think much of it can help to improve the lives of those of us inflicted by this nasty monster. If I have stepped up to the front of the line of the snake oil salesman than so be it!

MsL

HI MIKE,

"DR. ROZ" IS OBVIOUSLY CONCERNED AND CARES DEEPLY ABOUT YOU. BECAUSE OF THIS, SHE WANTS TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE NOT MISSING ANYTHING ... AND NOW IT IS MY TURN. I EXTRACTED THIS FROM THE QUOTE I POSTED IN THE BEGINNING OF THIS POST:

[Tiny "pleomorphic" bacteria have been photographed living within the cells of the immune system of sarcoidosis patients. Emil and Barbara Wirostko produced stunning electron microscope photographs of immune phagocytes each containing hundreds of tiny bacterial forms, around 0.01 to 0.025 microns in diameter, living in colonies within the very cells (phagocytes) which are supposed to kill these bacterial parasites. One of the Wirostko photographs can be found at http://www.autoimmunityresearch.org/wirostko-fig3.jpg It is important to understand that these bacteria are "coccoid" (round, and very, very small), 10 to 100 times smaller than the shapes these same pleomorphic bacteria will take when they enter the bloodstream.]

[We found that you can measure a hormone (in the blood) resulting from the Th1 inflammation produced by these tiny bacteria, and that it is elevated in Sarcoidosis patients. It is also often elevated in CFS patients, indicating that the inflammation of CFS is often very similar to that of Sarcoidosis.]

MIKE, I KNOW THAT YOUR SARCOIDOSIS IS IN REMISSION, BUT COULD IT POSSIBLY BE THAT THE BACTERIA DESCRIBED ABOVE ARE STILL PRESENT IN THE CELLS OF YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM? IT IS ALSO INTERESTING THAT THERE IS A SIMILAR HORMONE LINK IN CFS PATIENTS. I REALIZE THAT YOUR DIAGNOSIS IS RSD; BUT IT IS AMAZING HOW MANY SYMPTOMS OVERLAP IN CHRONIC FATIGUE, FIBROMYALGIA, RSD, AND LYMES.

JUST SHARING BECAUSE I CARE.

JEANNE