As though tick bites didn’t cause enough trouble, now cases of Alpha-gal syndrome (AGS) are on the rise.
What is Alpha-gal syndrome?
Haven’t heard of it yet? Well, the press is starting to jump on board,1,2 so you’ll probably be hearing more about it this summer.
The Alpha-gal syndrome is caused by the bite of the Lone Star tick. It’s basically an acquired allergic reaction that causes a food intolerance to products made from mammals, such as beef, lamb, pork, venison, and even milk and gelatin.
For the curious among you — and as you know, I’m hoping all my readers remain curious — the seemingly odd name of this syndrome derives from the molecule involved in this allergic reaction: galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose. But let’s not get stuck in the weeds of molecular science.
Symptoms can include bloating, vomiting, stomach pain, shortness of breath, wheezing, itching, hives, and swelling of the lips or face.
All because of a hamburger. Sounds miserable, doesn’t it?
So, what’s a carnivore to do?
The currently accepted conventional treatment for alpha-gal is simply avoidance of all mammalian food products. I, for one, would be sunk if I couldn’t eat meat, as it is a staple of my Weston A. Price carnivore diet.
Adding insult to injury, if a triggering meat product is ingested, conventional procedure suggests that emergency room treatment with epinephrine may be required. Yet, once the sufferer hops on the medical conveyor belt, who knows what else will be thrust upon them.
Homeopathy for Alpha-gal syndrome: a two-pronged approach
The first time I consulted on an alpha-gal case was so long ago that I had never heard of it. In fact, there was very little public information on the condition, but that did not deter us. In Practical Homeopathy®, we can often rely on symptoms alone to determine the appropriate homeopathic medicines.
The way we successfully approached this condition was two-pronged, and I would still use a two-pronged approach today.
First, we would go after the cause. A tick bite was the original trigger, and now there are ailments from meat. So, we would first address the tick bite. Then, the second prong is the condition itself, and what's presenting. What symptoms are being experienced? What are the most prominent and bothersome symptoms?
Alpha-gal is a tick-borne disease
So, first and foremost, because it’s a tick-borne disease, we would address the underlying cause with Ledum palustre 200C. I detail Ledum’s use for Lyme disease in Lyme, Lyme, Lyme: Just Making Sure You Know What to Do, and also in Protocol for Lyme Disease Using Homeopathy. In that protocol, Ledum is generally taken twice daily for a week. After that, Ledum is only employed twice weekly for the next month, then once per week for another month.
Important: If this is an older bite that went unnoticed until the alpha-gal condition erupted, we would not begin with several doses on the first day treatment begins. Instead, Ledum 200 may be considered twice daily for one week to start. After that, twice weekly for a month, and then reduced to one dose a week for another month (while considering the remedies detailed below to ameliorate the specific symptoms).
These distinctions are important, my friends. An older bite does not require multiple doses in a single day.
This is where more education can come into play. The length of time one might continue using Ledum often depends on severity.
A fuller understanding of the foundational aspects of homeopathy can help one make an informed, individualized decision. The Academy of Practical Homeopathy® offers a profound, well-rounded education in these essential homeopathic principles, case management, and much more, for those who value the ultimate in health freedom.
This lesson reflects what I offer in my other forums. There's so much to teach you and so little time. Two of my Protocol Courses contain information covering some of the symptoms of alpha-gal: Good Gut, Bad Gut and Allergic?! Of course, these courses are included in The Academy, but they can also be purchased individually if one is not quite ready to commit to my year-long Academy.
Specific homeopathic medicines for ailments from meat and the resulting symptoms
Next, we would consider the more precise etiology of the condition: an allergic reaction to ingesting meat. When I head to my copy of Robin Murphy’s MetaRepertory and look up “ailments from meat” or “meat aggravates,” a few of the most powerful remedies to be considered are Arsenicum album, Carbo vegetabilis, and Nux vomica. There are others, but let’s look at the primary symptoms of alpha-gal to determine which we might choose.
If there’s vomiting and nausea (or other Arsenicum album symptoms), that would shore up our choice of Arsenicum album 30C, twice daily, until very much better. It perfectly matches both the etiology and the predominant symptoms.
If there is stomach pain, we might alternatively consider Nux vomica 30, twice daily, until very much better. Nux covers both the etiology of “ailments from meat” and the symptom of stomach pain. Again, we consider the keynotes of this medicine to build our commitment to its use.
If, however, the predominant symptoms are shortness of breath and wheezing, we might instead turn to Carbo veg 30C or 200C (depending on severity), twice daily, until very much better.
Now, if there are hives and itching or swelling of the lips, face, tongue, throat, eyes, etc., that’s a call for Apis mellifica 30C. While it’s not a primary consideration for a food intolerance to meat, it is a primary consideration in allergic reactions that cause hives or swelling. The frequency would depend on the severity. (See Edematous Swelling and Apis and Hives. Apis or Urtica urens? for more information.)
This condition can be a bit more complex than the more general conditions that I usually discuss here on the blog. Because we don’t have a specific protocol, I am not offering a definitive Remedy Card for Alpha-gal syndrome. This condition can present differently in different sufferers, so this article and the other articles I linked to are general guidelines to get one started in the right direction.
Should the assistance of a professional Practical Homeopath™ be required, you may locate one at FindAPracticalHomeopath.com. These homeopaths have graduated from The Academy, and some have also graduated from Mastery. Some are even members of my continuing Mastermind group. Choose the one who seems right for you.
An alpha-gal success story
Plus, in this week’s upcoming Memo to Mighty Members, I will share an Alpha-gal syndrome success story submitted by one of my students. They approached the condition with well-thought-out, albeit slightly different medicines, proving once again that in homeopathy, there is more than one way to darn a sock.
If you are not yet one of my Mighty Members, what are you waiting for? The extra, weekly blog post I create for my Mighties is just one of the benefits. Mighties also receive semi-monthly videos, additional private time with me after each Monday Night Live for questions, an archive of all past Monday Night Lives with a searchable index, a private discussion forum away from the prying eyes of public social media, discounts on Protocol Courses, and so much more. I can’t imagine a more valuable subscription.
Pass on the good news of Practical Homeopathy®!
Warmly,
Thank you for sharing this, as you say, “Knowledge is power.” This post may prove invaluable for many.
Thank you for addressing AGS and all that you do. Unfortunately, the Lone Star Tick isn’t the only thing that can give one the problems. Chiggers are known to cause it. Australia doesn’t have Lone Star ticks, but they do have other ticks whose bites result in AGS. There is also speculation that other insects may possess the same demonic attributes.
Ledum was my first remedy protocol after I found a tick feasting on my abdomen, but it didn’t help. I was bitten a second time four months later and started with Ledum again which resulted in the bites finally dissolving. After chasing symptoms and being diagnosed with AGS seven months later (it wasn’t part of the “tick panel” testing), I found an “AG” remedy. The relief was what we homeopaths have come to love and expect – amazing and quick. There have been individual follow-up remedies that now work to give me back my life after almost a year and a half of being sidelined, in excruciating pain and useless. Homeopathy was my way out and I thank everyone who cares enough to share so that others may find relief.
What was your remedy? Thanks!
What did u use
What is the “AG” remedy, as you called it?
TAt this time there is no one specific remedy that I’m aware of. There are considerations depending on the symptoms.
Ah, Alpha-gal syndrome. I dealt with this briefly after moving to Kentucky from the North, when I was hit with a wave of tick bites during my first two summers. I tend to avoid conventional doctors, so I started researching on my own to understand why I was suddenly getting sick from eating meat. Everything I found suggested that Alpha-gal was “permanent.”
I wasn’t about to let a condition dictate my lifestyle and going vegetarian wasn’t something I was willing to accept without a fight. So I decided to abstain from meat while trying some homeopathic remedies for a couple of weeks. When I finally felt ready, I cautiously gave bacon another try.
I don’t remember exactly which remedies I used, but something must have helped, because I didn’t experience any more Alpha-gal symptoms after that.
As for the ticks, I got guinea fowl, and they’ve done a great job keeping the tick population around the house under control.
I hate guinea fowl but greatly appreciate their tick eating! Sadly I’ve watched them take off with kittens. Besides attacking us…
One even dropped a kitten high up as it was too heavy but either way the kitten were eaten.
I don’t have any kittens, but that sounds awful. I sometimes wonder how guinea fowl have managed to survive for millenia considering that they are probably the stupidest creatures on earth. Thanks for the warning about guineas.
Joette, if there is swelling as you spoke of, would you also consider Apis in higher potencies?
It’s suprising how effective these medicines can be in low, medium or high potencies. Its a matter of frequency.
Severe cases also need remedies for clotting. And need remedies made with sucrose not lactose.
Great reminder to avoid the lactose based remedies!
Thank you for sharing – this is such important information! I imagine this is similar to Lyme in the 1980’s – more information will become available as the communities of people affected begin to share notes and have their stories shared by the media.
Our family has been affected by this terrible effect of Lone Star tick bites! One member of our family has terrible rashes and Urtica urens 30, taken as quickly as possible at onset and then as needed, has been incredibly effective with reaction management. Another member of our family has gastrointestinal symptoms and they have been very scary to try to treat. Arsenicum seemed to help but it also seemed like it was keeping something in that needed to be expelled – does that make sense? I was at a loss to know how to proceed and am thankful that we made it through as I read recently about a similar reaction that ended tragically. If you have any recommendations on what else to try, I would be eager to hear them.
Could I pass along information that we have found to be important? We live in Central Virginia, which is a hot spot for this allergy. There is an acupuncture protocol that can help mediate the effects long term. It has helped my urticaria sufferer rarely need assistance and we have seen numbers go down for our GI sufferer (though still too traumatized to test it by ingesting beef). The Harbour Clinic offers the SAAT treatment and it is so effective that even my allopathic friends who refuse to consider alternative options say that it is recommended by their colleagues.
Thank you for addressing this important topic!
Joette, I’ve had alpha-gal for about 15 years. (Lyme & Co. for 40 years, undiagnosed and untreated for most of that.) About 1 1/2 years ago, I suddenly became far more reactive and decided I wanted to pursue treatment. I went to an acupuncturist who had success in treating AGS. Of course I understood there was no guarantee. I’d tried several remedies for histamine during reactions, including those listed above, but they didn’t help me. I did 6 treatments with needles and became FAR more reactive. It was scary! The acupuncturist called a colleague in a different state who had also had good success. He told him to quit the needles and for me to try a homeopathic remedy called Natrum Carbonicum. I ordered 3 vials and took 3 tablets 3x/day until the vials were empty.
That was almost a year ago. I have had two mild reactions since. I’ve tried cheese and sour cream a couple of times since then, and I didn’t react at all! I ate out at a restaurant two days ago and got cheese pizza. I asked them to change their gloves so there wasn’t beef or pork cross-contamination. I’m ok! A year ago I wouldn’t have dared risk it.
I’m thrilled to say that although I am not completely healed of this horrible allergy, the Nat Carb helped my body’s over-reactions enough to be able to not live in fear. I still react to touching mammal meat (my last mild reaction was after the kids had cooked beef and didn’t clean up enough, and I wiped the remaining grease splatters off the stovetop. I got hives from that. So I’m not going to go eat steak or anything dangerous like that…I’m just thankful that my immune system has calmed down enough to handle mild cross-contamination and a tiny bit of dairy! Incidentally, some of my other histamine-related issues have calmed down since taking Nat Carb. I’m very happy and hope this helps someone else.
Thank you for sharing your journey. Very grateful for Joette and her heart! So wish she still took cases because we tried another seasoned homeopath and she gave up on my kids because they would have flares/or new symptoms the last couple of remedies she tried and was too busy writing a book to try classical approaches. 🙁 Leanne, what potency of Nat Carb did you take 3x a day?
How weird the acupuncture did nothing AND made it worse. I’m so glad the homeopathy is working. Bless u.
Hi Leanne,
Nat carb was a good choice! The materia medica reads that Nat carb is good for “aversion to milk”, but another remedy to consider is calc carb since it is good for “aversion to meat”. It is a great choice for allergies/histamine reactions (I take it for seasonal allergies in conjunction with a couple of others and it works great). So both might be good to do! Histaminum 30c may also not be a bad choice to look into since it aids in histamine reactions.
Good luck and I hope you continue to heal.
We are building an home out on unimproved land that is a tick theme park. Our children have been bit and I’ve been bit a couple times, but no AGS symptoms yet. My husband (follows keto diet) is terrified because many people in our area have AGS. I can now tell him, nothing to fear, homeopathy is here!! Thanks so much for the confidence, Joette!
So far, Ledum as the 1st line of defense has not failed me.
My son got a nymph tick yesterday. Gave Ledum but only have 30C. Have given another dose today (two pillules). Do I need to get some 200C? He already has a paralysis tick allergy – anaphylaxis – from an incorrectly removed tick three years ago. I really don’t want him to get alpha-gal.
200c is the protocol.
Joette, if Ledum has not failed you, why these other remedies? In case Ledum fails? Or “They must be taken along side Ledum or Ledum will fail?” Or is the idea that “if you catch it right away, you only need Ledum; but, if the case is discovered only after digestive, etc., symptoms break out, you must take the other indicated remedies”? When you say, “Ledum has not failed me,” could you explain, what has Ledum done alone, all by itself, without taking anything else? Or do we just not have enough cases yet to know these things? Thank you.
Ledum is usually used when the injury is contracted. Most people don’t know they’ve been bitten until they discover they’re unable to eat red meat.
I might also add, as per my readings, AG is usually self-limiting. After many months, the symptoms often wane.
And now I know why Ledum didn’t work for my girls who were bitten at same time! 1 ended up w/severe Lyme & coinfxs.
We didn’t take enough! Not near enough times per day even tho I gave it for a week. And not near long enough days/mos! 😞
These are full sisters, not half nor adopted. One had no symptoms ever (bitten 13 yrs ago). That’s weird enough itself…
Saving ur protocol. Bless u for the life saving info! Alpha-gal is indeed evillll, no mammalian meat (or any milk!) leaves one with birds, pigs & other rodents & reptiles. Yuck
I’ve had Alpha gal for quite some time. I have gone to Homeopathic Alergist who uses a far eastern method of pressure points and desensitization. It worked ar first until the next tick bite. I finally rounded up as many different types of ticks as I could find. (Lone star being 1 of them) went through the same technique. Afraid to try test it.
Symptoms for me are severe hives of the skin starting in the feet, the moving up the body; legs waist, stomach, under arms. The places that gather the most sweat. At first I thought it was cholonurgic urticaria.
I am only affected by the cheap hamburger and steak. Once in a while cheap pork.
What would be the best protocol for this?
There is no specific protocol that I’m aware of. Use the remedies specific for urticaria. I’ve written about this on a few of my blogs.
Joette, can’t somebody make a remedy out of the tick itself? Has someone done it already?
I’m sure it’s been done, but given the positive results from the method used regardless of species, I’ve not found it necessary.
I believe my husband is experiencing alpha gal symptoms. We knew of a tick bite by a lone-star tick and began treating once or twice daily with Ledum for about a week but did not follow the full recommended protocol. It’s been about 3 weeks since the bite and his mild digestive upset has been consistent for the last two weeks and has been ramping up in the last couple of days. Would you recommend starting with the protocol for individuals who started treating after symptoms (not immediately after the bite occurred)?