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Anyone Use[d] Bacteriophage Supplements?

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Posted 12/6/2020 8:40 AM (GMT 0)
Howdy. I'm looking for anyone with experience using bacteriophage (phage) supplements.

* Which phage supplement(s) have you tried?
* How long did you use it/them?
* Were there any benefits?
* Were there any problems?
* Can you share anything else, whether good, bad, or indifferent?

Currently, based on the phage supplements I've reviewed, they all seem to use the same bacteriophages and in the same dose. Some supplements have probiotics added to the formula, while others do not.
Posted 12/6/2020 9:49 AM (GMT 0)
interesting technology this - been used and still extensively used for all sorts of bacterial infections in Russia and ex eastern block countries for over 50 years.

i have no direct experience im afraid,
from what I recall reading - it seems there are very bacteria-specific bacteriophages that each parasitize very specific hosts.

In my past reading, i saw very little mention of it in western medicine as i think antibiotics were seen as the way forward in the west. perhaps with the rise of antibiotic resistance the interest in this technology has been rekindled as i do see a resurgence of research on it in the last few years.
i gather the supplement type products are targetted at modifying gut bacteria composition - but very little seems to be known of Commencal virus components of the human gut microbiome and how they interact with human health.

Post Edited (Garzie) : 12/6/2020 2:54:26 AM (GMT-7)

Posted 12/6/2020 10:28 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for your comments, Garzie. We discussed bacteriophages a bit, almost three years ago exactly, in the post: Phage Therapy - Virus Kills Bacteria.
Posted 12/6/2020 12:01 PM (GMT 0)
I was reading about this a few months ago. It’s very intriguing technology, and I was surprised I couldn’t find more about it. I believe there is a research center that was set up at UCLA or one of the CA schools to research this stuff, as it’s seen a potential solution to the rise of antibiotic resistant microbes. Unfortunately western medicine is much slower than I used to imagine.

I did order a probiotic w phage technology by life extension (seemed to be well reviewed and I like the company). Haven’t started it yet but it is on my list of supplements to try. I only like to make one change at a time, but will get to it and update you when I do.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/b06y1fp7c2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_fabc_dpmzfbjh9e6ch?_encoding=utf8&psc=1
Posted 12/6/2020 12:25 PM (GMT 0)
Hey, dcd2103:

Funny enough, I almost bought that same probiotic/phage supplement. However, given some of the negative reviews about the capsules being sticky and/or missing the liquid they're supposed to contain, I opted to look elsewhere. The negative reviews were only 4% of all reviews, but some of them were recent. Chances are good that you'll have a better experience. I hope to hear how they work for you.

Here are some other phage supplements, in case you're interested: https://www.toxinless.com/bacteriophages

I'm guessing you're probably familiar with Tom Patterson. In March 2016, he was the first known person in the United States to successfully undergo IV phage therapy.

https://health.ucsd.edu/news/topics/phage-therapy/pages/default.aspx
https://www.statnews.com/2018/06/21/first-phage-therapy-center-in-us

Anyway, good luck with your probiotic/phage supplement!
Posted 12/6/2020 12:36 PM (GMT 0)

Breezzy said...
I researched/contacted a few phage clinics in the Republic of Georgia and they would not commit to treating chronic lyme with one or 2 responses admitting it would not be effective(others want you to spend money to get and out). I'm not sure if this is due to biofilms but it would be interesting to see it as support in a protocol.

Here's one place that specifically states Lyme isn't treated:

https://www.phagetherapycenter.com/pii/patientservlet?command=static_clinicfaq#nottreated

"What infections / conditions are not treatable with phage therapy?

There are a number of pathogens for which there are currently no therapeutic phage preparations available; the list includes:

* Mycobacterium (all species, including tuberculosis)
* Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme Disease) and coinfections (Babesia, Bartonella, Ehrlichia, Mycoplasma, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Anaplasma, and Tularemia)

In the case of Chronic Lyme Disease, in many cases there can be a false positive for these species, with other treatable bacteria causing the symptoms."

At least they were clear about it.
Posted 12/6/2020 12:42 PM (GMT 0)

The Dude Abides said...
Hey, dcd2103:

Funny enough, I almost bought that same probiotic/phage supplement. However, given some of the negative reviews about the capsules being sticky and/or missing the liquid they're supposed to contain, I opted to look elsewhere. The negative reviews were only 4% of all reviews, but some of them were recent. Chances are good that you'll have a better experience. I hope to hear how they work for you.

Here are some other phage supplements, in case you're interested: https://www.toxinless.com/bacteriophages

I'm guessing you're probably familiar with Tom Patterson. In March 2016, he was the first known person in the United States to successfully undergo IV phage therapy.

https://health.ucsd.edu/news/topics/phage-therapy/pages/default.aspx
https://www.statnews.com/2018/06/21/first-phage-therapy-center-in-us

Anyway, good luck with your probiotic/phage supplement!


Ah, quite interesting dude. I had explored Phaves a few months ago, but didn’t know the Patterson story.

Wrt your earlier comment about how they all seem to use the same phages, I was wondering about that was well when I looked into it. I’m assuming it’s because at this point there are very few trusted phages, and these go after some of the most common types of opportunistic gut bacteria? Anyone know?

It would be cool if they could create a phage that goes after lyme and bart, but something tells me that’s gonna take a long time

Edit: I guess the ones they use go after E. coli (and possibly some other opportunistic bacteria?)

Post Edited (dcd2103) : 12/6/2020 5:56:57 AM (GMT-7)

Posted 12/6/2020 4:32 PM (GMT 0)

dcd2103 said...
I was reading about this a few months ago. It’s very intriguing technology, and I was surprised I couldn’t find more about it. I believe there is a research center that was set up at UCLA or one of the CA schools to research this stuff, as it’s seen a potential solution to the rise of antibiotic resistant microbes. Unfortunately western medicine is much slower than I used to imagine.

I did order a probiotic w phage technology by life extension (seemed to be well reviewed and I like the company). Haven’t started it yet but it is on my list of supplements to try. I only like to make one change at a time, but will get to it and update you when I do.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/b06y1fp7c2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_fabc_dpmzfbjh9e6ch?_encoding=utf8&psc=1

It’s UCSD (San Diego) but they are not yet trying this on Lyme. This seems like a promising approach but I wonder if these phases are able to operate on biofilms?
Posted 12/6/2020 4:35 PM (GMT 0)
https://biologixcenter.com/our-method/induced-native-phage-therapy-inpt/

Apparently there is a center in Tennessee trying this for Lyme patients. (Linked above)


Also, this story covers one person who was treated outside the US (in Europe:Georgia) and reports remission.

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-06-virus-woman-experimental-treatment-debilitating.html
Posted 12/6/2020 4:37 PM (GMT 0)
Maybe RunningWild can chime in, I know he went to biologix center?
Posted 12/6/2020 4:52 PM (GMT 0)
I think the phages are naturally occurring rather than created in the lab - or at least thsi was how phages were developed originally ( who knows what they are up to now with genetic engineering ) - and as such the task is to discover and cultivate the required phages in sufficient quantity to be used theraputically.

it could be that some of these vector-borne organisms are not as viable hosts for opportunistic viruses - compared to bacteria that are free living in the environment
- as they exist only in these small mobile vector environments.
Posted 12/7/2020 11:16 AM (GMT 0)
been reading a bit more and some of the claims made by Biologix Centre are bold - and at the same time very intriguing

-they state that when we get Lyme infections we also acquire the specific phages that live in them and can kill them.
-they then state that their phage therapy does not introduce any new specific anti-spirochetal phages into the patient - instead with about 5 days or oral treatment they - "epigenetically induce" these naturally occurring phages to attack the Lyme spirochetes so vigorously that they kill 100% of them - so no relapse can occur.
-they also state there is little or no herx from this treatment as the immune system is not triggered in the same way as with antibiotics.

these are all quite radical statements and revolutionary in themselves.
this is very different from prior bacteriophage type treatments in the ex-eastern block.
if they are true and repeatable then this is indeed a very promising technology.

the issue that concerns me i that, to my knowledge, there are no other scientists or research groups who have replicated any of these findings.

i note also that they are using the Felix bacteriophage-based test for lyme as the measure of "infected" and "cured" - but again - i think they are the only place using this technology as far as i know.
Posted 12/7/2020 10:20 PM (GMT 0)
I took the Life Extension probiotic for many months. I never had a problem with the capsules or delivery etc. as some buyers have reported. I found it to be a really excellent probiotic, but beyond that I don't think it's powerful enough to be a cure. I had die off for a day or two and then everything was business as usual. I think if you want to really give phage technology a try, you will have to go for a more concentrated, expensive product.
Posted 12/7/2020 10:24 PM (GMT 0)
Very interesting, thank you for the insight seb! Are there any that you had in mind and that you could recommend? I don’t see too many phage products out there, especially not heavy duty ones

Post Edited (dcd2103) : 12/7/2020 5:42:03 PM (GMT-7)

Posted 12/8/2020 3:04 AM (GMT 0)

Garzie said...
been reading a bit more and some of the claims made by Biologix Centre are bold - and at the same time very intriguing

-they state that when we get Lyme infections we also acquire the specific phages that live in them and can kill them.
-they then state that their phage therapy does not introduce any new specific anti-spirochetal phages into the patient - instead with about 5 days or oral treatment they - "epigenetically induce" these naturally occurring phages to attack the Lyme spirochetes so vigorously that they kill 100% of them - so no relapse can occur.
-they also state there is little or no herx from this treatment as the immune system is not triggered in the same way as with antibiotics.

these are all quite radical statements and revolutionary in themselves.
this is very different from prior bacteriophage type treatments in the ex-eastern block.
if they are true and repeatable then this is indeed a very promising technology.

the issue that concerns me i that, to my knowledge, there are no other scientists or research groups who have replicated any of these findings.

i note also that they are using the Felix bacteriophage-based test for lyme as the measure of "infected" and "cured" - but again - i think they are the only place using this technology as far as i know.


This reeks of scam. Bacterial phage treatment is a valid, scientifically founded concept and they're just piggybacking a bunch of nonsense to it. Who knows what's in the pill they administer... maybe they're building patients' hopes up and counting on some kind of placebo effect.
Posted 12/8/2020 10:50 PM (GMT 0)
Hi dcd,

When I was researching all of this a while ago, there was a company online offering specifically targetted phages. They were really expensive, and so I am assuming the product was more powerful. When I look now, however, I can't find them. Sorry about that.
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