Over the years, it has been observed in clinical practice that deficiency in certain nutrients resulted in the invasion of the body by various micro-organisms including bacterial, viral and fungal infections. This observation was the basis for the conclusion that the prevention of these infections is dependent on the inherent cellular and humoral immunity of the body which gets downgraded whenever these nutrients are no longer available in sufficient quantities in food and consequently in our bodies. The increase in body usage of these nutrients as is the case in stressful conditions, will automatically lead to a deficiency unless the supply is increased.

In the historical records of Dr. Lind, the British Sea Surgeon, we learn how a lack of fresh fruits and vegetables led to the loss of lives among sailors who succumbed to scurvy epidemics that characterised long sea voyages of the 15th – 18th centuries. We also learn how antioxidants like ascorbic acid, among others, played a vital role in the reversal of such us in the immunity to common bacterial and viral infections of those days. Those records indicate how respiratory infections like tuberculosis and viral infections of the upper respiratory tract, including common colds, became common causes of death and chronic febrile illness as characteristic of scurvy sufferers of those days. Many of the sailors also suffered from oral and skin infections very similar to present day oral candidiasis and mycotic skin infections seen in AIDS sufferers.

In our first research programme, we observed a similarity between scurvy and AIDS which convinced us that the two conditions have a lot in common clinically and an etiologically. This is not to deny the role of HIV in the aetiology of AIDS. The working hypothesis in our research was that in the presence of an intact immune system, the HIV virus like herpes simplex 1 & 2, an individual could continue leading a normal life without developing AIDS as we know it now. It is not until the immunity of an individual is downgraded by a febrile illness that one gets the manifestations of herpes simplex (HSV). Both retrovirus HIV and HSV could be kept under control by the power of the immune system for many years till a window of opportunity comes about through a change in the internal environment of our bodies. Changes in the internal environment of our bodies come about through changes in our diet or pollution and drug abuse.

A diet deficiency in essential nutrients like vitamins, minerals and amino acids will reduce the power of the immune system and its control on bacterial, viral and fungal infections lost.

Increased nutrient requirement is also created by factors like:

1. Smoking of cigarettes, cigars and Marijuana etc.

2. Infections of the body by viral, bacterial and fungal infections, which produce toxins that poison the body, must be got rid of by using nutrients.

3. Increased consumption of alcohol, drugs like cocaine or overuse of antibiotics may lead to a greater requirement of these essential nutrients among which are anti-oxidants and minerals, which are used up during the process of detoxification of these poisonous compounds. Artificial colours and sweeteners in fizzy drinks increase the burden on the body to find the essential detoxification factors needed. Water and air pollution by industrial wastes, herbicides and insecticides are an added burden. If the supply of theses essential nutrients cannot be maintained, then their essential functions cannot be maintained, then the immune system becomes compromised, leading to an invasion by bacterial and viral infections. The presence of a rapid replication organism like the HIV will create an added burden to the body, which must deal with the stressful situation and consequently the depletion of essential nutrients unless the supply is increased drastically. The structural damage to cellular organs like mitochondria, chromosomes, genes and cytoplasmic reticulum, enzymes by the toxic wastes which cannot be got rid of leads to the manifestations we find in AIDS including uncontrollable opportunistic infections and neoplasms like Kaposi Sarcoma.

The poor nutritional status in which AIDS victims are often found is not necessarily a result of a poor diet at the beginning of the syndrome. Evidence for that is the good nutritional status of other family members who do not have HIV. They are in almost every case well nourished without any significant signs of malnutrition. The HIV victims we found in most cases started off by a gradual loss of appetite and an increasing apathetic mood. The loss of appetite gets worse as the immune system gets compromised and opportunistic infections set in. They experience nausea at the sight of food. Oral candidiasis progressively gives the victim a worsening dysphagia and a reduction of food intake. Many of these patients abstain from solid food and just continue with fruit juices of fizzy drinks for weeks and months. It is during this state that the multiple vitamins and mineral deficiency is established as a typical characteristic of AIDS. It is often a starvation in the midst of plenty. The nutritional deficit manifests itself as multiple vitamin and mineral deficiency with their accompanying characteristic features.

With this background observation we concluded that ill health is very frequently related to bad nutrition. The healing of the body from disease should start off with the correction of the deficiency within the body caused by a poor diet, which weakens the natural immunity, which defends it against diseases. It is known that certain poisons like benzene, which when they get into the body concentrate in certain tissues like the thymus gland causing severe structural damage. We know that T-helper lymphocytes mature in the thymus which if damaged will deprive the body immunity of the most important single component of our defence against viral infections, the T-helper lymphocytes. Similarly, lack of elements like selenium or zinc will lead to a deficiency in essential antioxidants like glutathione peroxide and others, which detoxicate dangerous substances like free radicals. This is how AIDS starts. The liver that is responsible for the detoxification of such poisons lacks the necessary nutrients to make enzymes.

Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant and is obtained from fruits and vegetables. It serves many functions like bone tissue and collagen formation. It is a free radical scavenger and promotes absorption of nutrients like iron. It promotes growth of tissues. Biotin maintains skin, hair, sex glands and nerves in working condition. In conditions like AIDS, we see their deficiency leading to desquamation of the skin, lassitude, somnolence, muscle pain, hyperaesthesia seborrheic dermatitis.

Sweet corn, sweet potato, tomato, apple or avocado easily corrects the deficiency. Some of the required nutrients are up to now unknown to science but found in plant extracts or herbs.

Neuropathies found in AIDS are easily corrected with a supply of vitamins B2 & B6 (Pyridoxine) contained in foods like cereals and fruits. They are essential for the metabolism of protein, carbohydrates and fats. They maintain the functions of nerves and brains. These disorders are commonplace in AIDS. The pellagrous rashes seen in AIDS are nicotinic-acid-related and a good supply of foods rich in these essential nutrients prevents or stops it.

The proper functioning of islets of lamghans for insulin production and glucose tolerance depends on a good supply of chromium and manganese. Impaired glucose tolerance is associated with a deficiency in manganese and chromium. Our patients that had AIDS with associated insulin dependent diabetes responded well to Mariandina A by which we corrected the deficiency among other things. Burum K. M et al: in their experiments got significant decrease in CD4 cell numbers in participants who became vitamin B12 deficient. (Baum K. M et al: Micronutrients and HIV-1 Disease Progression AIDS 9: 1052 – 1056, 1995).

In the IX International Conference on AIDS in Vancouver, Tanga, A, et al reported in an abstract (Tang A et al: The role of Serum Micronutrient Level sin HIV -1 Disease Progression. The XI International Conference on AIDS, Vancouver 1996. Abstract No. C.320) that HIV-infected persons with low serum B12 levels had an approximate twofold increase in risk of progression into AIDS, while subjects with increased serum vitamin E levels had a greater than 30% decrease in risk progression into AIDS.

There are micronutrients that are found in roots, stems and leaves of many wild plants, which are used traditionally in Africa, Asia and Europe. These contain rare minerals and, so far, unidentified extracts which when made available to the human body produce beneficial effects on the immune system and other body functions. We identified some of these and included them in the formulation of Mariandina B & J. The inclusion of such extracts was aimed at the presence of HIV, HSV 1 & 2, HZ (Herpes Zoster) and Viral Kaposi among other cancer-causing viruses which could not respond to the original formula of Mariandina A.

Herpes Simplex Type 2:

Nine patients with genital herpes were selected for the pilot study. They were all HIV test reactive (Elisa) and on Mariandina A treatment. They all had persistent genital sores. Six (6) females, three (3) males.

All had been tested for VDRL and found non-reactive. The average duration of the sores was 4/12 months. They were all treated as outpatients by adding to their drug, 6 capsules a day of Mariandina J. Six of the patients reported improvement in 7 days. After 4 weeks all patients reported significant healing of the sores and improvement of their genital sores. They all remained free from attacks of common cold symptoms, which had been a problem for 4 of the patients for a long time. Treatment was continued for a total of 8 weeks. No recurrence was observed in all patients. There was one patient who chose to keep on with Mariandina J for longer, despite the healed sores.

Mariandina J has been used on 6 cases of Kaposi Sarcoma. These are patients who presented with lesions of Kaposi Sarcoma on the skin, oral cavity and pulmonary lesions that were characteristic with a cough, which did not respond to anti-tuberculosis treatment. One patient had severe bleeding from the lungs (haemoptysis).

Case – Lady with HIV:

This was a lady with HIV positive history at another hospital. She had been admitted for coughing blood (haemoptysis). The first diagnosis was tuberculosis, but anti-tuberculosis treatment failed to change the clinical progress of her cough with blood in the sputum (haemoptysis). X-rays of the chest later, together with the discovery of palatal and skin lesions of Kaposi Sarcoma, changed the diagnosis to Kaposi Sarcoma. She was brought to the Mariandina Clinic on 2nd July 1996. She became the first patient to use Mariandina J for Kaposi Sarcoma. She was given 3 capsules three times a day and allowed to go home 88 miles away. This was because nobody gave her any chance of surviving the haemoptysis (blood in the sputum) for long. Staying in hospital was thought to be a waste of her meagre financial resources. To our surprise she came back after one whole month and reported that she never had any more haemoptysis after starting on Mariandina J. A repeat x-ray of her chest showed a moderate improvement. Encouraged by her response, we gave her more capsules of Mariandina J and her improvement continued. It is now 7 months of remission to date. She has not had any more coughing and her clinical improvement has persisted up to now.

Encouraged by the first patient, we have tried the same on seven other patients with lesions of Kaposi Sarcoma on the skin and palate. These had the visual observation of the changes in the colour of the Kaposi Sarcoma lesions. They all indicated a graded reduction in size and darkness of colour.

The dosage of Mariandina J for cases of Kaposi Sarcoma, HSV 1 & 2 (cold sores and genital sores) and Herpes Zoster is three capsules three times a day for adults. There were no toxic side effects when such a dose was administered continuously for 4 months in the case of Kaposi Sarcoma. One patient reported mild diarrhoea, which lasted 2 days. The patients reported a rapid onset of pain relief especially in the case of Herpes Simplex 2 and Herpes Zoster. These patients suffered no post-herpetic neuralgia that our other patients experienced when other conventional treatments were used. In the case of Herpes Simplex 2 we would recommend a maintenance dose of one capsule a day for 3 months to avoid recurrence during the period of low CD4 count.

We recommend that Mariandina B is given in subsequent months together with Mariandina A for the boosting of the immune system which combats the HIV & HSV.

The effect of Mariandina on the common cold virus was given a preliminary study on 4 patients while awaiting a wider trial. The symptoms of a cold were taken to be:

1. Sneezing

2. Pyrexia, cough associated with pharyngitis, rhinitis and tracheitis

These symptoms and signs may last between 4 – 10 days and in some patients longer. There may be severe secondary bacterial infections requiring antibiotics.

Administration of Mariandina J 2×3 of 3×3 suppressed these symptoms within 12 hours. When this was maintained for 24 – 48 hours, the symptoms did not recur.

Case History 1:

Patient’s name: H. S.

Age: 46 yrs

Sex: Male

This patient was referred from Royal Hospital in Oman with the following diagnoses
on 4/1/97. He was started on Mariandina A 3×3, Mariandina B 2×3, Mariandina J 3×3 among other supportive therapy. By the time, he was discharged on 18/2/97, both the oral and cutaneous lesions of Kaposi Sarcoma had markedly reduced in size. We have seen him three times as an outpatient and the lesions in the oral cavity are almost gone, while the cutaneous lesions are progressively thinning out.

Case History 2:

Patient’s name: Kawoya P

Age: 32 Yrs

Sex: Female

Occupation: Nurse

She had oral and skin lesions of Kaposi Sarcoma. On the 18/9/96 she was started on Mariandina B 1×2, Mariandina A 1×2 and Mariandina J 1×3 daily. By 6/11/96, the patient reported that the lesions were beginning to reduce in size and by 27/1/97, the lesions in the oral cavity and skin were minimal, while that on the dorsum of the right foot had flattened out. Many other patients have had similar benefits.

Our experience is that patients who receive a high dose of Mariandina J (3×3) improve faster than those receiving lower doses. Before the introduction of Mariandina J, we did not notice such improvement of Kaposi Sarcoma lesions while the patients were on Mariandina A & B alone, and we used to refer them to the Uganda Cancer Institute for, either chemotherapy or radiotherapy, but now we do not refer them to UCI, thereby saving the patients the toxic side of such treatment.

Similarly, Mariandina J in high doses (3×3) is beneficial to patients with herpes zoster and herpetic ulcers. The above observations indicate that Mariandina J is not only active against HIV, but it is also active against Kaposi Sarcoma ‘virus’ and Herpes Simplex virus (the virus that causes cold sores and genital sores).

The Use of Anti-oxidants and Micronutrients In the Control of Diabetes Mellitus in AIDS