Dear Stephen,
Hi Stephen! Hope this finds you happy and well! I have heard that low ferritin levels prohibit a person from effectively utilizing artemisinin in the body. I have babesia but do not herx at all on artemisinin. I thought my low ferritin level (23) might be why. What do you think? I have tried supplementing with iron but my levels don’t rise. What could be causing this and what can I do about it? Thanks a bunch!



Stephen’s response:
I would use cryptolepis tincture rather than artemisinin for babesia in this case, see other queries on this site for more info.

I would suggest using herbs rather than a supplement: try an infusion (a strong, overnight steeped tea basically) of alfalfa, green oats, nettle and yellow dock. 3 parts nettle leaf, 1 part oats and alfalfa, 1/2 part yellow dock root (i.e. 1 ounce oats and alfalfa, 3 ounces nettle, 1/2 ounce yellow dock root). Drink 3 cups or so during the day for a couple of weeks. That should help your iron levels rise. Other help: vitamin c, tofu regularly, miso soup. All will help iron/ferritin levels rise.

I have not heard that low ferritin levels interfere with artemisinin.

Stephen

Author

  • Stephen Harrod Buhner

    Stephen Harrod Buhner was an Earth poet and an award-winning author of twenty-four books on nature, indigenous cultures, the environment, and herbal medicine including the acclaimed book Healing Lyme: Natural Healing & Prevention of Lyme Borreliosis & Its Co-infections.

    Stephen came from a long line of healers including Leroy Burney, Surgeon General of the United States under Eisenhower and Kennedy, and Elizabeth Lusterheide, a midwife and herbalist who worked in rural Indiana in the early nineteenth century. The greatest influence on his work, however, was his great-grandfather C.G. Harrod who primarily used botanical medicines, also in rural Indiana, when he began his work as a physician in 1911.

    Stephen’s work has appeared or been profiled in publications throughout North America and Europe including Common Boundary, Apotheosis, Shaman’s Drum, The New York Times, CNN, and Good Morning America. Stephen lectured yearly throughout the United States on herbal medicine, the sacredness of plants, the intelligence of Nature, and the states of mind necessary for successful habitation of Earth.

    He was a tireless advocate for the reincorporation of the exploratory artist, independent scholar, amateur naturalist, and citizen scientist in American society – especially as a counterweight to the influence of corporate science and technology.

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This protocol was incredible. After only a few weeks most of my symptoms were gone. After six months all my symptoms were gone… it has given me my life back.

– Amazon review by Joseph

Please note:

Stephen Buhner is no longer living and this Q + A column on Planet Thrive is closed to new questions. It will be kept on our website so readers can access vital information in the archives, communicate with each other in the comments section, and find herbs, books + lyme adjuncts in our directory. If you want to read more of Stephen’s writings, please see his website at: stephenharrodbuhner.com.



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