The word biofilm is relatively new in our vocabularies. Yet I think most laymen and women have understood the term, if not exactly the mechanism. What’s less well known is that biofilms can harbor viruses, as well as bacteria, fungi, molds and protozoa. A biofilm is a close-knit colony of pathogens—there may be several different organisms represented—covered in a protective muco-polysaccharide layer (slime to you and me).
Because of this protective film or layer, the immune system is handicapped in doing its job. It becomes difficult or impossible for host white cells to get at the intruders. Antibodies, cytokines and opsonins may not reach the effective site and so are powerless to intervene. This is a problem, if the pathogens are active. If something like MRSA is involved, then a biofilm can be very dangerous indeed.
When the colony of pathogens is large enough, it might be classified as a chronic pathogen colony or CPC. This is still localized but capable of spreading. The whole point is the idea of containment—hiding from the immune system—working damage covertly, like a guerilla army.
If the infection is body-wide, of course, then that really is an infectious disease process. Measles, influenza, tuberculosis, etc. But CPCs are not so widespread. They can hide, lurk, be sneaky. Virtually all chronic diseases work around some element of biofilm; that’s why they are chronic!
Biofilms can exist in quite small colonies, say a tooth abscess, around a catheter, or at the site of a cancer, at a blood clot, under a healing scar, in joints and even in the brains of dementia sufferers.
Harboring a colony of pathogens can have quite a negative impact on health. As Thomas Levy MD writes, “The negative health consequences of CPC end up being part of the chronically compromised health that is considered to be the ‘normal baseline’ of so many people.”
[Thomas E. Levy MD JD. Rapid Virus Recovery. MedFox Publishing, Henderson, Nevada, 2021, p. 86]
Don’t suppose that bacteria are the only players; biofilms or CPCs can harbor viruses, as well as bacteria, fungus, yeasts and molds. So this topic is of immense interest to anyone wanting to learn how to virus blitz! If you only get a percentage of the trouble-makers, you will not get a full resolution. The smoldering infection will continue, until cleared properly.
The whole point is that an established colony of pathogens doesn’t just sit there, idly. It constantly throws off free pathogens to migrate through the body and releases any number of toxins. These free pathogens travel around the body and can set up and start multiplying anywhere: liver, brain, kidneys, lungs, yes, even heart. The toxins contribute to the burden that the body has to carry and the detox enzyme pathways become constantly overloaded.
If you suffer from Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome you will certainly be debilitated, at least in part, due to the burden of hidden pathogens and the toxins they release. By definition almost, stealth pathogens function as biofilm colonies and CPCs. That’s what makes them so hard to shake off.
A good example, and one which everyone should know about, is the almost universal presence of CPCs in the mouth. Contrary to what you may suppose, the mouth is not very hygienic. It is a festering hot bed of hidden infections. Pathogens abound among the teeth, both as abscesses, dental caries and gum disease. The sinuses may be chronically infected (yellow snot).
The tonsils are especially bad reservoirs of pathogens and also the adenoids, alongside. You may have heard of one bacteria in particular, notoriously found in the mouth: Porphyromonas gingivalis. It has been implicated in a whole host of diseases, some as far away as the brain and heart. P. gigivalis has even been implicated in the development Alzheimer’s.
[J Alzheimers Dis Rep. 2020; 4(1): 501–511. Published online 2020 Dec 14. Prepublished online 2020 Dec 1. doi: 10.3233/ADR-200250]
An incredibly wide range of diseases have been pinned on infections coming from the mouth. In my 1999 book Virtual Medicine, now republished in expanded form as Medicine Beyond, I pointed out that right at the start of the 20th century, the single biggest risk factor for death due to heart disease was tooth and jaw infections.
This was in the days before antibiotics, of course, when just one infected tooth could lead to an early grave. But then, at the end of the 20th century, one of the very crucial predictors of death due to heart disease was… Infections in the mouth! Well, more exactly periodontal disease (gums). This one risk factor has been shown to be as important as smoking, obesity, blood pressure and a poor genetic history in whether you will die early.
[J. D. Beck, S. Offenbacher, R. Williams, P. Gibbs and R. Garcia, ‘Periodontitis: A Risk Factor for Coronary Heart Disease?’, Annals of Peri- odontology vol. 3, no. 1, July 1998: 127–41]
A tooth abscess is really just another kind of osteomyelitis—that is, a bone infection. We take the condition of our teeth far too lightly. No-one in his or her right mind would allow a hole to be drilled into a femur or other bone and have it left draining to the outside world; serious infectious complications would be bound to ensue. Yet that is what we do with our teeth; some people live with what is virtually an open wound.
The position is not helped by techniques such as the crowning of teeth. It may make them appear cosmetically attractive on the outside. But often these metal or plastic caps do nothing more than cover and hide a CPC or purulent biofilm.
Just because it is not visible does not mean there is nothing there. See, biofilms are not new, only the name and a more modern understanding.
In an address on ‘The Role of Sepsis and Antisepsis in Medicine’ to the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University, Montreal, in 1910, Dr William Hunter baited his colleagues by saying, ‘Knowing as we do the pathogenic qualities of staphylococci and streptococci, we have not the slightest excuse for allowing the mouth, so easily accessible to local measures, to remain the chief seat and a veritable hotbed for their development and propagation; on the contrary, it is a severe re?ection on our profession if we allow it.’
[Störtebecker P. Dental Caries as a Cause of Nervous Disorders, Bio-Probe Inc, Orlando, USA, 1986. P74]
What To Do?
I shall soon be offering a whole book of novel therapies, let me just say for now that 2 things come to mind:
- Nebulizing hydrogen peroxide. Dr Thomas Levy has written a whole book about that: Rapid Virus Recovery (MedFox Publishing, Henderson, NV, 2021)
- Xylitol
Xylitol, a non-glucose sugar substitute, reduces dental caries by about a third, which might surprise many. It’s not good for your microbiome, but it is good for oral hygiene! Hey, it’s a trade off! Xylitol also helps remineralization of tooth enamel, reduces middle ear infections, is better for you than any other sugars and is better for diabetics and may reduce osteoporosis (or brittle bone disease) in the elderly. A great list of benefits!
The main thing Xylitol can do is destroy infections entering by mouth. In the dose required to mildly sweeten morning drinks — 4mg a day in your breakfast tea or coffee — it seems to prevent colds from developing and stops influenza before it gets a hold.
Look out for my new book Virus Blitz (no cover image yet), late Jan 2023. It features dozens of therapies, including my famous “Top 10 Virus Blitz Remedies”.
And have a Happy New Year,
Prof. Keith Scott-Mumby
The Official Alternative Doctor
