Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor, and this article does not constitute medical advice. It is for entertainment purposes only. Please see your qualified health professional if you need medical assistance. Also see end of article for research funding announcement
Yesterday I got an exciting message from one of my social media contacts.
In it I was told about an Multiple Sclerosis sufferer who had progressed over the course of 23 years from pins and needles to being completely wheelchair bound. Her feet had become purple and inflamed to twice their normal size. They had tried everything over the years to try and alleviate all of her symptoms, but still it kept getting worse.
Then she started taking a phosphate containing electrolyte and alpha lipoic acid. Since she has been on these she has experienced improvements as follows. The purple in her feet is about 50% reduced and the swelling from the inflammation is now completely gone. She also reports her energy returning. Though she is still in a wheelchair, her family hope that she may at some point be able to walk again.
The other noticeable effect of her illness is with her menstrual cycle. During active menstruation her MS symptoms improve, but return again after menstruation stops. I will cover this another time.
In addition, she is housebound and never gets properly sick with colds or flu.
This really sparked my interest as a few people have been talking about this pooling of blood and fluid in the hands and feet over the last few weeks. I especially wanted to look at why this was happening in the first place and particularly why the phosphate seemed to be helping.
SUPPLEMENTS
Many in our research group are taking supplements. Over the course of four years some of us are starting to rely only on molecules and minerals that are natural to our bodies. We are relying less on herbal remedies, as plants that are good at detoxing arsenic, can also take up quite a bit from the soil they are grown in.
To detoxify arsenic, we are taking molecules like alpha lipoic acid (ALA). We can get this in small amounts in our diet, but probably not enough to cope with the levels of arsenic we are being exposed to. We have noticed some improvements with ALA. It is great at detoxing arsenic. The only problem is it can’t fix all the damage arsenic leaves behind, or resolve the depletion of nutrients.
We have found magnesium and zinc and the amino acid taurine very helpful in helping to fix and rebuild damaged cells. All of these can be depleted if the body is under a lot of stress from toxins. Taurine also seems to work wonders on arsenic induced headaches.
But there was still something missing. Many symptoms of arsenic poisoning would linger and be hard to get on top of at times. Some of us felt like we were loosing the battle, and that our cells were simply not up to it any more.
We have worked out that arsine gas gets in to our bodies through our lungs, attaches to red blood cells and is circulated around the body via the heart in exactly the same way as oxygen is. This means it can literally get in to every cell in the same way as oxygen does.
PHOSPHATE
Arsine gas can also make different types of solid arsenic once inside the body. One of these is Arsenate (Arsenic V).
Arsenate molecules are almost identical to phosphate molecules. Our bodies are made up of about 1% phosphate, a form of phosphorous. This is used in making bone, energy production, building and breaking down different proteins and keeping everything working smoothly.
Because Arsenate is so similar in shape it can be easily mistaken by the body for phosphate.
The big issue is, that even though Arsenate LOOKS similar, it doesn’t work like phosphate. So wherever it is used instead of phosphate, things can stop working so well.
ELECTROLYTE BALANCE
Arsenate can interfere with the Sodium and Potassium balance inside and outside of the cell. It does this by taking over the Phosphate’s role in the cell wall Sodium/Potassium pump. Because Arsenate isn’t quite the right fit, the pump starts to malfunction and Sodium and Potassium start to become unbalanced.
These pumps keep the salt levels even inside and outside of the cells. This also helps keep the pressure inside and outside of the cell even. Anything that disrupts the way water and minerals move in and out of the cells, can cause electrolyte imbalance and/or cell shrinkage or swelling. This affects all of our electrically-based body functions, including how our heart beats!
ENERGY
Arsenate can get in to the energy making machinery in the cell, called the mitochondria. Arsenate can break the chain reaction that produces energy by mimicking the phosphate molecules in the ADP/ATP (adenosine triphosphatase) cycle (circled in red). ATP is the molecule which provides us with energy.
This means that when there isn’t enough phosphate available, the mitochondria will try and use arsenate instead. But because the arsenate isn’t quite the right shape, the chain of reactions fails and no energy is produced.
This could make us feel a bit more tired that usual, or could develop in to a long term chronic tiredness like Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Our muscles and our organs can be affected.
CELL WALLS
Phosphate is a major part of the molecules that make up our cell walls. These molecules are called Phospholipids. The different parts attach to each other like Lego pieces.
The Phosphate molecules are all water friendly and in contact with the fluid inside and outside of the cells. Attached to the bottom of the Phosphate is a Glycerol molecule, and attached to the bottom of that there are dangling fatty chains called lipids (see image below). These loosely touch with neighbouring lipids to prevent large molecules and too much water getting through.
Even though lipids don’t like water, a small amount of water can move between them to help the cell keep its shape. The only things that can get straight through the barrier are tiny molecules like gases and lipids. All other nutrients have to go through special channels. This image shows how gases are allowed through the membrane along with other small molecules and how the Phosphate heads line the inside and outside of the cell wall.
When it comes to repair or build a new cell wall, if there are not enough Phosphate molecules available, Arsenate will be used instead.
But because the Arsenate isn’t quite the right fit with its other Phosphate neighbours, anything that disturbs the cell wall can cause the Arsenate to dislodge. This includes changes in pressure and temperature.
THE DIVER AND THE BALLOON
Let’s use a diver as an example. The pressure at ground level is just over 1000 millibars. Our diver gets on a wetsuit, flippers, goggles, breathing apparatus and oxygen tanks, rolls back in to the sea and swims down just 20 metres. The pressure increases to 2 bars or 2000 millibars of pressure. That is double what the body is used to.
If our cell walls are made of Phospholids, they should be able to withstand this type of pressure, but if our cell walls are contaminated with Arsenate lipid molecules they won’t perform as well.
Let’s imagine a balloon full of water being lowered in to another container full of water. If the balloon surface is 100% intact then nothing will happen. Its shape will stay nice and round in the container of water. The same would happen with the diver’s cells if they were just standing in a pool at chest height.
However because the diver isn’t 100% water like the contents of the balloon, quite a lot of compression occurs as the diver swims down to depth. We are approximately 65% oxygen! If the balloon was left half filled with air and taken down to 20 metres depth, it might not perform quite as well.
I digress.
Under 2000 millibars of pressure, and in the cold of the sea, the contents of cells start to get smaller - condensing everything in them. When the diver resurfaces, the contents of the cells return to normal size.
In a normal dive returning to the surface has to be done slowly. The compressed gases in the cells will begin to re-expand the further up the diver swims. Surfacing too fast can cause a condition called the bends. This is when these decompressed gases leave the cells too quickly and form dangerous bubbles in the blood stream.
HOLES!
What would happen if some of our diver’s cell walls had some arsenate in them?
As the diver swims down to 20 metres, the badly fitting Arsenate molecules would start to come loose from the Glycerol and Lipids, leaving holes in the cell walls.
Cell fluid would start leaking out uncontrollably, deflating the cells like an old balloon. The pressure could also destroy badly contaminated cells completely.
If some cells only lost a little bit of fluid through a few holes, on the way back up from the dive, their contents would start expanding again as pressure decreases, as normal cells would.
But because there are holes in some of the cell walls, fluid could start to flow back in the other direction, especially if the sodium concentration in the cell is too high (because of Arsenate damage to the Sodium/Potassium pump).
So much fluid could be absorbed back in that, coupled with gas decompression, some cells might explode.
ELECTROLYTES AND ORGANS
Any increase or decrease in pressure on contaminated cell walls, will make these cells vulnerable. They will lose and gain fluids in a completely uncontrolled way, spilling out minerals, proteins, arsenic and gases in to circulation and absorbing all sorts of molecules that don’t belong in the cell.
Heavy loss of fluids from the cells, would dramatically affects our diver’s electrolyte balance. This can cause changes in blood pressure, heart rate and kidney function. If lots of cells start to die under the increase or decrease in pressure, this could cause bleeding from blood vessels, leakage in to and out of the gut, lungs, central nervous system and other organs and tissues.
If our diver is already having a problem with their electrolyte balance and already has because of Arsenate before he dives, this will get worse during the dive and on return to the surface.
TOXINS
The body is sometimes exposed to more toxins than the liver and kidneys can cope with, causing a backlog. Some of this is incorporated in to cells as we have seen above.
Usually though, in order to protect the organs, the body will push any excess toxic material, including any leaking from the cells, to the extremities, starting with the hands and feet. The tissue in the hands and feet will swell with fluid in an attempt to dilute the toxins.
Capillaries affected by the high levels of pooling arsenic in the extremities, will become weak and blood will leak in to the tissues. This will cause the purple colour described in the case of multiple sclerosis detailed at the start.
CELL STRESS
Cell walls contaminated with arsenate can also be affected by many other activities. I have listed some examples below
extreme changes from hot to cold eg
ice water bathing
saunas
hot tubs
large and sudden changes in atmospheric temperature
large and sudden changes in air pressure
storms with or without lightning
electromagnetic pulses from man made sources or natural phenomena
close contact with strong magnets including
mobile phones
earphones
wireless mice
tablets
other screens
underwired bras (check the underarm edge of wires)
intense and prolonged exercise
any other pressure changing activity including
take off and landing in a normal aircraft
some fair ground rides
Centrifugal forces (spinning)
gravity forces (quick ascents and descents)
flying fighter jets!
PROLONGED ARSENIC EXPOSURE
Of course the lady with multiple sclerosis is probably not doing many of these activities and as she is largely house bound the weather elements may also not be affecting her as much as the rest of us. Her case does seem to involve however, prolonged exposure to Arsenic and continued loss of Phosphate over time.
Her previous worsening condition tells us that she had been being exposed to higher levels of Arsenic that she was able to remove and greater loss of Phosphate than she was able to replace.
Often people tell us that they are eating a really healthy diet but that it doesn’t seem to be making a difference to their health. This is because, even if we are eating healthy food, when Arsenic is in the system it can prevent proper digestion. It can also make the gut wall leaky, by damaging and destroying the cells in the same way as we have discussed.
This means partially digested food can escape in to the body, which not only is completely useless from a nutritional point of view, but can cause infection in the blood and central nervous system.
In the case of the lady with Multiple Sclerosis, as with many of us using a phosphate based electrolyte, the direct supplementation of Phosphate has clearly been much more useful to the body. As soon as it arrives in the gut, it is ready for use, and doesn’t even need digestion.
Clearly there is some sense in supplementation of Phosphate, particularly in people who are unable to get enough from their diet. It also makes sense for those who are being exposed to high levels of Arsenic, or any of the stresses listed above, to increase their intake. It is also worthwhile remembering that the plants and animals around us are also being exposed, so getting our Phosphate in adequate amounts from food can also be hampered by Arsenic.
This is only one, but seemingly a significant aspect of how Arsenic affects the body. We are after all a big bunch of cells!
There are many more free to read articles and some free podcasts on Arsenic. It is a huge field of research which I am trying to make as easily accessible as possible so please feel free to ask questions.
Cover: Photo by Jakob Boman on Unsplash
RESEARCH FUNDING REQUEST
The research, writing and presenting I do for The Boom Review is fully independent. To help me keep it that way, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to The Boom Review full article and podcast service on Substack, or the podcasts only on Apple podcasts. Or you can contribute on an ad hoc basis through the Coffee App or Paypal using linktr.ee. Every little counts. Thank you to those who already contribute.
Brilliant. Can I ask in what form/what brand of Phosphate you take and in what quantity daily? Thank you.
Thank you Caroline, very informative.