New Nutrient-Based Approach Shows Promise Against Deadly Bird Flu Symptoms
(Los Altos, CA, PRWEB, 6/6/06)

Dr. Tim Guilford, a researcher-clinician, is investigating a nutrient-based treatment to increase the survival rate of bird flu patients by boosting their frontline defenses, while blocking damage from potentially overwhelming releases of cytokines, the white blood cell proteins that carry chemical messages between cells. He notes that half of the known cases of bird flu, the H5N1 Avian Influenza, have ended in death, apparently from Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) brought on by an immune system overreaction called a “cytokine storm.” The "storm" is characterized by an overproduction of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) that  kills not only the virus, but lung cells as well. Guilford theorizes that supplementation with reduced-glutathione will help maintain normal levels of the antioxidant, glutathione, in lung tissue; which will help control the cytokine response.