I have question about Lysine, viral infections, and

Question

Hello. I have question about Lysine, viral infections, and lecithin.
I have read that the herpes virus likes lysine so to speak. I have been trying
to develop a nutritional regimen for a person that has several health issues and
wanted to get some information.
This person wanted to start making a vegetable drink in the morning mainly
because he believes himself to be insulin resistant. So he is going to blend
water, vegetable juice, protein powder, flax, and lecithin in the morning for
breakfast. His other major health concern right now is herpes. He has tested
positive for a high herpes viral load, but didn't get tested to differentiate
between hsv1 and 2. He normally doesn't have obvious outbreaks in the genital
area.
So can you tell me a little about the process of producing the lecithin that you
purchase at the store? If he wants to stay away from soy, would taking soy
lecithin kind of be like consuming soy? Or is isolated in the production that
you don't see the estrogen that you would ingest if you consumed regular soy?
What about lecithin made from sunflower seeds? Would there be a high amount of
lysine in that product? Would there be any other alternative to those two
sources?

Dr. David · Accepted Answer

drzeoli :

Hello, I would like to help you with your questions about Lysine, viral
infections, and lecithin. Also I have some information that I would like to
share with you concerning the dietary advice for someone with insulin
resistance. May I ask for more information? What particular signs and symptoms
lead the person to believe that he had insulin resistance? Was there any
laboratory testing performed for this? Dr. Zeoli

Customer: Thanks for getting back to me.
Customer: Ok well, he had been reading an article about diabetes and thought
that he had the majority of the symptoms. So he had an A1c done and it came back
5.7.
Customer: His main complaints were dry mouth, constant thirst, excessive
urination- fluid just runs right through him, bruising that takes quite a long
time to heal, physical weakness.
drzeoli :

I see. Thanks for the additional information. He could very well indeed have
insulin resistance from the signs and symptoms that you mentioned. The ones that
seem most important to me are easy weight gain, high blood pressure, high
cholesterol and high triglycerides, and the presence of "skin tags" around the
neck line.

Customer: He has been eating mostly a low glycemic diet off an on since he has
gotten the a1c results. If he sticks to the diet and exercises regularly-mostly
long walks- he can bring his weight down to about 155 rather easily in about 2-3
weeks. If he eats normally - including breads, some pasta, some potatoes, some
beer- but still rather healthy- no junk food, no processed food, hardly any
sugar aside from the obvious starch and beer- he will go up to 175 in about 1
week.
Customer: What are skin tags?
drzeoli :

Skin tags are small bits of flesh that hang off the skin, kind of like a wart or
mole only they are flesh colored and soft.

Customer: Indeed he has that! It has bothered him for quite some time
Customer: You are the first physician to mention anything of the sort regarding
that, and they have seen him in person!
drzeoli :

Yes, I know that most doctors do not know how to diagnose insulin resistance.
The way that I treat people with insulin resistance at my clinic is to ask them
to reduce and eliminate all starchy foods including breads, pasta, potatoes,
beer, and so on from their diet. Instead of these food items, I ask people to
increase their intake of proteins and fats. There is a diet called the
"Paleolithic diet" or caveman diet which is quite helpful. Other folks tend
towards an "Atkins" type diet which also works well. Regular exercise is also an
important part of the treatment plan. This is the best way to prevent insulin
resistance turning into diabetes.

drzeoli :

Next I would like to talk about Lysine and the herpes virus. The herpes virus
actually does not like Lysine. Rather herpes likes the amino acid Arginine, and
this is the one that needs to be limited during an outbreak. Lysine is actually
helpful in preventing a herpes outbreak. The dose is one or two grams per day.

drzeoli :

In regards ***** ***** there are several sources for this dietary supplement.
The vast majority of lecithin is made from soy, and you can assume that it is
from soy unless the package says otherwise. Eating this type of lecithin is not
the same as eating soy, but it is still a product derived from soy and can
contain remnants of soy. I think that the sunflower seed lecithin is probably a
better choice. The best dietary source of lecithin is eggs.

drzeoli :

I hope that this information is helpful for you. Please let me know if you would
like additional information. If not, please hit the Accept button so that I can
receive my fee.

Customer: Interesting. I was aware of arginine being the bad one. I mixed the
two up when writing the question.
Customer: With respect to the diet, what is your opinion regarding the work of
dr Gabrielle Cousins? In one of his books he states that some foods will raise
blood sugar and some foods will raise insulin? Meat being an example of
something that will not raise blood sugar but will spike insulin, and therefore
leading to too much insulin in the system.
drzeoli :

Yes, you may have read that food items such as chocolate and peanuts are
detrimental to a herpes outbreak and should be limited. This is because they are
high in arginine. Here is a link:
http://herpes-coldsores.com/diet_and_nutrition_with_herpes.htm
[http://herpes-coldsores.com/diet_and_nutrition_with_herpes.htm]

drzeoli :

I do not agree with the statement that some foods can raise insulin but not
raise blood sugar. In the body, insulin is produced in response to rises in
blood sugar levels. Even in a person with insulin resistance or type 2 diabetes,
insulin levels will not rise unless there is an increase in the level of blood
glucose. Meat does not raise blood sugar levels significantly, but also it will
not raise blood insulin levels.

Customer: Are you familiar with the work of a dr Ali out of the new York metro
area? He's on the radio. He is an integrative dr with a background in pathology.
He argues that type 2 can largely be attributed to "cellular grease" build-up.
Where insulin is not able to make it's way into the cell because of this
blockage.
drzeoli :

I'm sorry to say that I am not familiar with Dr. Ali and his work. It doesn't
make sense to me that fat would block the passage of insulin into a cell. The
cell membrane itself is made out of fat. Cells become resistant to the effects
of insulin for several reasons. Probably the greatest reason is continued
exposure to insulin. People with type 2 diabetes have extremely high blood
insulin levels which are chronic in nature. After years of this exposure, the
cells become "resistant" to insulin. The body habituates to the constant
signaling of the insulin and eventually stops responding.

Customer: Ok. Good to know What type of dr would you recommend he see regularly
for this? By the way, does a high uric acid level ring any bells with this type
of condition? High as in like 75.
Customer: Thanks a bunch for your help. I'm going to do a bit more research into
that bit on foods that raise insulin in comparison with blood sugar and shoot
the info if I find it
Customer: I mean shoot you the info
drzeoli :

Sometimes we see an increased uric acid level due to kidney problems, alcohol
intake or genetic factors. This isn't a common sign of insulin resistance or
diabetes. You may want to consider seeing a naturopathic physician or some other
professional who specializes in dietary therapies and supplements. I will look
forward to reading any information that you may be shooting over.

drzeoli :

I meant, your friend may want to consider seeing a naturopathic physician...

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