Miracle Mineral Suppliment [MMS] snake oil or Miracle??

[expat-n-thailand]

Hi, I'm back again after 3 yrs of denial with a [possible] miracle cure for everything..................At 60+, with geno 1a viral load of 900k  , I've told myself that I will not go for Tx because of cost, cure rate and misery. 
So, I've been holding out for a breakthru and/or a miracle and have been taking milk thistle suppliments and surviving in denial.
recently, a friend passed the following info along to me and I'm sharing it with you guys, while researching on google the pros and cons.  By it's name[MMS], it does sound like a hoax and after skimming thru the book, it sounds too good to be true, but my preleminary research has found some hope from positive testimonials from people on other health sites.

for the basic sales pitch go to www.miraclemineral.org and they offer the 1st instalment of the book for free and for a small charge they offer the 2nd instalment. 

in the 2nd installment they mention hep c.....
"In the case of a liver condition such as
hepatitis, one almost always gets nauseous. The reason for this is that
the liver begins to expel the poisons as the chlorine dioxide begins to
destroy them. But it also cures the condition in record time.
One lady with hepatitis C did just what I told her not to do. Instead of
taking two drops at first, she wanted to be certain that she killed it. She
took 30 drops, added the vinegar, waited three minutes and added it to
apple juice. It made her sick for three days. She then put the MMS aside
and did not touch it for eight months. She thought because it made her
so sick that it didn’t work, but when she finally decided to go to the
doctor he could find no hepatitis in her body. Both were amazed. I have
given it to many people with one of the hepatitis diseases A, B, or C. I
can guarantee that 30 drops will make any hepatitis patient feel very
sick, but it will also cure them. However, that is not the way to do it. A
hepatitis patient should never start out with more than two drops. In that
case, normally they will not feel any nausea, and if they keep slowly
increasing the drops until they can take 15 drops twice a day without
nausea, they will check negative to hepatitis of all kinds."

As you can read this exerpt, it's not too scientific , so I'm still researching and hoping.  I am long over due for a check-up and will go in and see how my liver is doing and get another baseline, and if I convince myself that this is at least not harmful, then I will go for their treatment and report results after.

Meanwhile, I'll continue to google for info.

youtube has some info on it, testimonials and a dr from Tiajuana, as well as the 'inventor' type in MMS in search field.

If other's out there have tried this, or know of any success/failure then please share here.....

[countrygirl]

Hi ex-pat....

I'm pretty much in the same place as you, though I won't go as far as to say I'm in denial....just waiting for better odds for us 1's. I do some supps and have for the past four years. I've spent hours...years it seems,  researching them, but more as a way to stave off further progression than an all out "cure" .

My best guess is that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. That's not merely a case of being pessimistic, it's just that this virus is more cagey than we realize. If it was a done deal, they'd ( and we'd) be proclaiming its virtues from the rafters. And making someone gazillions in the doing!

Like you, I will be having further liver tests run in the near future to give me a better feel of where I sit...and then make further decisons based on those tests.

Wishing you the best .....Pam

[expat-n-thailand]

I am a skeptic too and take this all with a big grain of salt, but will give it a try if it's at least not harmful to me. 
So, if I do go in for my long overdue baseline test, what tests would be the most conclusive [short of another biopsy, ouch].  would the best indicators be viral load, liver enzymes, ultrasound??
Cost being a big factor, as I'm paying out of pocket with no insurance.

[countrygirl]

I was without insurance for many years, paying out of pocket, as you are....so after the first rash of testing that took me a LONG time to pay off, I stuck with the standard LFT's (liver function tests).

I believe there's mixed opinions on just how deifinitive they are as far as liver damage, specificially the ALT's and AST's... people can run just high of normal limits and still have significant damage, but very high levels would certainly indicate a problem. I watch my protein levels and platelets as I in under the impression that these take a nosedive with liver deterioration. You've had a biopsy, so you have a better feel of what liver damage you have. I have only done a Fibrosure as it was more affordable, but will have a biopsy when my risk insurance kicks in for the preexisting this fall to really see where I stand.


Are medical tests very expensive in Thailand? Is there a NHS that you could qualify for?

[Tom_K]

I'm a big fan of supplements to improve one's health with liver disease, but when they begin to peddle claims of curing hepatitis, cancer, HIV or whatever, raises a red flag for me.

I'd pass on this one,

Tom

[Rainbow]

I have given it to many people with one of the hepatitis diseases A, B, or C. I can guarantee that 30 drops will make any hepatitis patient feel very sick, but it will also cure them.

"

Making claims about a supplement being able to CURE hepatitis is illegal and violates FDA guidelines.  Plus....you don't need anything to "cure" Hepatitis A.  Hepatitis A goes away by itself and once you've had it,  you can never catch it again. 

So they are obviously lying about what this product can do. 

Don't waste your money. 

[expat-n-thailand]

I'm not claiming that it works and still skeptical.....but I am skeptical [maybe even more so] of the FDA and the AMA.  It is a fact that both are governed by corporate interests and it wouldn't surprise me that if some ordinary guy accidentally stumbles onto a cure for anything they would clamp down on it.....simply because the AMA makes money on 'treatment' and not 'cures'

[expat-n-thailand]

"Are medical tests very expensive in Thailand? Is there a NHS that you could qualify for?"

Yes, the medical system here is a lot more affordable.  Diagnostics and most lab work are western quality at most private hospitals, but 'the cure' comes from the US and the standard 48 week treatment for geno 1a was $10,000 [three years ago] and I'm sure more now.
What would that cost [out of pocket] with no insurance in the US now??

[Rainbow]

I looked it up.  Chlorine Dioxide is a potent desinfectant agent used in water treatment and in bleaching.  It's used to bleach flour, paper and wood.  Eating or drinking it can cause irritation in the mouth, esophagus, or stomach and it can be toxic in certain amounts.

http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts160.html#bookmark05


The website you gave the link to says.....

"MMS was discovered in 1996 by humanitarian, Jim Humble, while working in the jungles of South America."

But chlorine dioxide has been used for drinking water treatment since 1944.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorine_dioxide

[expat-n-thailand]

I'm still reading and researching about the MMS and altho chlorine dioxide has been around and common usage is bleaching and disinfecting[in a gaseous form, it was used to disinfect after the anthrax scares, post 9/11], the inventor simply added ascorbic acid to chlorine dioxide and you dose yourself with a dilute solution starting with 2 drops 2X a day and increasing daily until you get up to 25 drops/day or become nauseus.  I still admit that it sounds to good to be true, but what about other simple discoveries like ascorbic acid to cure scurvy or pasteurization, or basic sanitation for surgery and other simple breakthrus that saved millions of lives??  not to mention the accidental discovery of viagra!!....so discoveries are still out there and I am hopeful!!

With geno 1a at 61yrs old, I've often told myself that I would be a gunnea pig for any new emerging or alternative cures rather than go thru a year of hell for less than a 50% chance of beating the monster [hvc].

[countrygirl]

What would that cost [out of pocket] with no insurance in the US now??

I don't know what the cost would run today. A couple years back I was told about $3000.00 oer month for SOC though one possibly could qualify for financial aid through the med companies. However any rescue drugs were out of pocket as well as ongoing medical tests. No doubt it's much costlier now. I now have medical insurance, but with a high monthly premium with the pre-existing and a $3000.00 annual deductible. OUCH! However, after that, all meds and medical tests, visits, whathave you, are covered 100%. The challenge would be to be able to work through tx to maintain the coverage.

[expat-n-thailand]

 Admittedly and understandably there are lots of profiteers out there now trying to make a fast buck on a substance that can be purchased in a chemical supply house by the kilo...that's human nature and internet business.  And it is a relatively new discovery, that's yet to be accepted......

And lots of skeptics will be and are turned off by the inventor's name of the product [Miracle] and his amateurish presentation [I'm laboring thou the 1st installment].  He is not a doctor and has little scientific [medical] background, but that's not to say that he could have [accidentally] stumbled onto an important breakthrough.  Sometimes major breakthroughs take simple people and simple solutions.  look at pasteurization and the 'discovery' of sanitation in operating rooms, CH.  Not to mention my all time favorite the discovery of side effects of a heart medication which led to Viagra.

I have a liver condition  [hep c] that medical science can't offer me a cure for with more than a 50% chance of recovery after an expensive year long miserable treatment of interferon and other nasty anti cancer drugs, I will try to have an open mind to some alternative treatments and this one [so far] holds the most hope. 
I've almost convinced myself to go in for a round of baseline tests, then go for the MMS treatment and follow treatment up with another round of tests to see if I have cleared and I will share my findings on this forum and other health related forums as well as my aggressive doctor that wants me to spend 10's of thousands of $'s for a 50% chance of recovery.

FYI....here is another link that simplifies the MMS and it looks like they are taking a little more scientific approach   http://www.healingcancernaturally.com/mms-chlorine-dioxide-treatment.html

[countrygirl]

I believe the treatment angle of HCV is in transition right now. If you look at the active and upcoming trials, you will see both pharmaceutical approaches as well as some alternatives.. My guess is that for the foreseeable future, there will be some of both.

Some of us may be at the point where where we have to act sooner rather than later, dependent upon liver status. Some may be able to assume a wait and see approach.  My concern, right now, is that I am a "guinea pig" for either option. I guess it all boils down to doing what is right for us at the time. And I have the utmost respect for whatever direction someone takes when it is based on research and personal introspection.

This is a learning arena and I hope you post your progress in whatever direction you take. I will do the same.

Pam

[expat-n-thailand]

country girl,
I assume that you are going with the mainstream tx?  If I was in the US and had the insurance and/or $'s, i still would be reluctant to go for traditional tx with the odds given. 
But, I'm in Thailand, no insurance, little $'s and trying something 'cutting edge' or experimental is a viable option.  I wish you the best of luck and let's both post results.

[countrygirl]

No, not txing at this time. Still on alts.- an anti-fibrotic regimen for now.

But I don't rule it out. I will have a bx when my insurance kicks in this September, that much I know.

Who's to say, certainly not me! If I'm a 1-2 with the bx I will wait, a 3, a grey-er area...a 4, well, the choice is already made, right?

For now, I will continue to live a healthy lifestyle and embrace life to the fullest.

Remaining present and accounted...Pam