I’m often asked about Low Dose Naltrexone. These days it is used to treat everything from autoimmune disorders and cancer, to fertility and autism. I have been taking 5 mg daily of this off-label, somewhat experimental drug since approximately 2005.
How did I find out about Low Dose Naltrexone or LDN? On one of my regular visits to my mild-mannered functional medicine doctor he thrust a prescription for this drug into my hand. A month later my naturopath recommended LDN to me and I decided it was worth a try.
Many food blogs preach healing with food, and food alone. I’m here to tell you that when you feel sick the best thing you can do is listen to your body and do whatever it takes to feel good again. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Getting well is a process without any rules.
I take LDN as part of my treatment plan for multiple sclerosis. I was diagnosed with MS in 2006 and was absolutely devastated when I received the news. While I have chosen not to take the drugs that are recommended as standard care for MS, I have quite a lot of friends who do, and I respect their choice. However, the issue with many of the typical MS drugs is their side effects. Some leave you with flu-like symptoms that can be as bad as the symptoms of MS. In any event, LDN is optimal for me as I do not experience side effects from it, and from what I have read in the medical literature, most people find this to be the case.
What is Low Dose Naltrexone? First, let’s take a look at what I facetiously refer to as “high dose,” naltrexone, or the more traditional form of this drug. Naltrexone is an opiod antagonist typically given to heroin addicts in doses of up to 1500 mg upon their arrival in the emergency room. Giving this type of dose of naltrexone to a person under the influence of heroin snaps them into lucidity in minutes because naltrexone binds to the opiate receptors of the brain –the same receptors to which heroin binds. This prevents the addict from experiencing the effects of the heroin, and leads to complete lucidity.
According to the website lowdosenaltrexone.org, In 1985, a physician named Dr. Bernard Bihari discovered the effects of a much smaller dose of naltrexone (approximately 3mg once a day) on the body’s immune system. He found that this low dose, taken at bedtime, was able to enhance a patient’s response to infection by HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
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The use of a drug such as naltrexone in this way is called micro-dosing and can be extremely effective. It has been found that some drugs work differently (and sometimes quite oddly, more effectively) at lower levels. I find micro-dosing to be a very exciting and mostly under-explored component of traditional medicine.
According to the site lowdosenaltrexone.org LDN works in the following way:
The brief blockade of opioid receptors between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. that is caused by taking LDN at bedtime each night is believed to produce a prolonged up-regulation of vital elements of the immune system by causing an increase in endorphin production. Normal volunteers who have taken LDN in this fashion have been found to have much higher levels of beta-endorphins circulating in their blood in the following days.
While it is not completely understood yet, it is becoming apparent that endorphin secretions (our own internal opioids) play a central role in regulating the immune system. I believe that LDN works for me. I think it helps with my energy levels and also modulates my immune system so that it is more balanced. I also believe that it helps to control the neuropathy I experience.
Are wondering if LDN can help you? Here’s my advice. It may be worth discussing LDN with a DAN doctor, naturopath or functional medicine physician. In the meantime, remember that if you suffer from an autoimmune condition or any other health related issues, you may want to look into the main tenets of my healing program which include:
- Extra sleep in the realm of 10 hours or more per night
- Low intensity exercise every day
- The grain-free diet which I have followed strictly since 2001
Jessica says
How cannabis/hemp oil save my life
My name is Jessica from california,i was once a ovarian cancer patient i did chemo and
radiation many times but no avail it rather
weaken my immune system and i was unable to move from one place to another. i was living in pain for 3 years until i contacted the spanish national cancer research centre via email
spanishcancerresearchcentre@gmail.com for
procurement of cannabis/hemp oil and after using this medication for treatment for 7weeks,there was a great changes and as i am writing this article I’m not suffering from cancer again. cancer patient out there use this cannabis oil and you will be well again.
Kay Pitts says
Hi Jessica,
Have been dealing with stage 4 Breast Cancer. Am in my 11 th year and don’t want to do chemo of radiation. Can you tell me how you used the hemp oil? So glad you had such good results…
Blessings
Kay Pitts
linda says
I have used CBC oil for my fibromyalgia and it saved my life,I was suicidal from muscle pain and being up all night with no sleep,Indo the kind that doesn’t get you high and I joke with my son now that I thought it was my job to steer him away from marijuana but he ended up steering me to it,it is legal in Oregon and has had dramatic results for people suffering from pain,seizures,going through cancer treatments,Thank you for mentioning it,The downside is it is very expensive and insurance won’t cover,I’m going to try low dose naltrexone soon.
Curious says
Linda, I noticed you mention fibro. and are in Oregon. I live in the High Desert area and have found finding a Dr that is well versed in alternative therapies to be quite the challenge. Do you have any suggestions on Physicians? I am willing to travel to Portland, Eugene, Or Salem if needed. I take LDN at night. I stopped it a few times to see if it is actually making a difference. I feel like it improves my tolerance to pain, but not sure how else it maybe impacting me. If you have any Oregon specific info., I am all ears.
Elana, thanks for sharing insight all these years. You have made being GF easier and are always the first resource I send people to when they are just starting out. Best to you and your family!
Elana says
Thanks so much :-)
Jane says
LDN didn’t work for me — fibro/fatigue and adrenal fatigue, but I wanted to share this web site for those of you with MS: TerryWahls.Com. It is worth a look and may help some/all of you. Also, I learned that I was extremely low in iodine (as well as vitamin D), but after taking kelp and getting my iodine numbers up, so much has falling into place! There is an epidemic of low iodine in the country, so please get it checked with your next blood work. It has been nothing short of a miracle as I have been working with a fibro/fatigue specialist for years and have tried everything!
Kirsten says
Elana,
I just wanted to say thank-you for making the comment about not always being able to heal with food alone! I know that depression and MS are two very different things (both are common in my family – opposite sides), but my poor husband tried to treat his depression with food only after so many people out there shoved the “heal everything with food, or you’re eating wrong and killing yourself” dogma (my words, not theirs). Thankfully, he finally listened to his body and began adding in certain supplements and even small doses of mild pharmaceuticals. He’s a million times happier than he has ever been and both of believe he would have never reached this point if we’d stuck with food only.
Thank-you so much for reminding everyone that food is not the only treatment out there, that sometimes more is needed.
Kirsten
Jude from Australia says
and hopefully you have been tested for borrelia – Lyme disease and chlamydia pneumoniae (not the sexual kind)
So many people are recovering using a protocol devised by Dr David Wheldon for his wife Sarah.
http://www.davidwheldon.co.uk/ms-treatment1.html
I’ve personally used this protocol to recover from severe chronic fatigue syndrome. After 30 years, I am now almost fully functional.
It’s great that we are able to share all this vast amount of information on the net. Thanks
Karen says
Your statement, “Getting well is a process without any rules” resonates with me. I have Chronic Lyme and thankfully, have responded well to treatment. I’m stronger and healthier than I’ve been in years. I’m still working on being 100% but I’m so much improved. To treat my Lyme I took antibiotics, which are the standard of care recommended by the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Organization (ILADS). I was surprised by the number of people who vehemently argued with me about my choice and insisted that I should simply follow a clean diet. Never mind that I have been grain, dairy, soy, and sugar free for years before the diagnosis, they were all certain I would recover fully if I just removed………’x’ food. I am profoundly grateful for a wonderful naturopath who is ILADS trained and passionate about helping me recover, and for the availability of the amoxy and doxy that saved my life. Some people don’t respond to antibiotics with Lyme. I am one of the fortunate ones but I encourage everyone to trust their instincts, read voraciously, and not be afraid to change doctors. There really are no rules and one size (or treatment plan) does not fit all. Continued best wishes.
Sheri says
Very interesting. I have Hashimotos Thyroiditis, Lyme and Bartonella. I will definitely ask my Lyme doctor about LDN. Anything that can help my immune system will definitely help with the Lyme and my thyroid disease. As long as it doesn’t cause insomnia which is already a huge problem for me.
I am also curious if you have been tested for Lyme disease and co-infections. Doctors are very uninformed/misinformed about Lyme and its co-infections. It took me over 30 years to be finally diagnosed. If you have not yet seen a doctor about Lyme disease, you should definitely seek out a Lyme Literate Medical Doctor (LLMD) and get Western Blot testing only from IgeneX labs.
Kobi says
Thank you Elana! I am struggling with the fact that I can’t seem to heal my maladies with foods as so many others can. It’s frustrating but it gives me a sense of relief when I hear others admit it as well (paleomg was the other story recently). Thanks!
Leslie says
Elana,
I am right here in your neighborhood…and have MS…and I am on LDN…I went to the LDN conference in Chicago in October. I just attended in the fall? a cooking class you had at Sur La Table….
The LDN and abstaining from gluten has been great for me….I jog several days a week on 4th street which I never thought I would do again until I started LDN. Good for you for putting this out on your blog/facebook!!!
s a c says
Know a few people who take it with success for IBD , this is my 2nd go with it as I’m in another flare and on what the GI’s perscribes, drugs that I feel horrible taking ,and don’t work anyway. My friend took LDN for almost 7months before seeing full remission so it can take time. I’m sticking with it this time
tranquil1 says
Hi Elana,
Thanks for the info. I have recently learned of the use of this medication for lyme disease…which is sometimes misdiagnosed as MS…hoping that you have been tested for that.
Glad to hear that the LDN is helpful!
Thanks for sharing your insight, too!