The CDC reported that about 300,000 people are affected by Lyme disease annually. This bacterial infection affects people of all ages and is transmitted by deer ticks and black-legged ticks across the United States, and other 60 countries more.
The symptoms of Lyme disease are similar to many other diseases, so diagnosing it is not easy.
This disease can affect all body organs, including the heart, brain and nervous system, the muscles and joints.
These are the most common symptoms:
– Joint pain
– Fever
– Nausea
– Muscle pain
– Chills
– Sweats
– A rash in the shape of a bull’s eye
It is conventionally treated with antibiotics, but they treat the symptoms only, and the disease remains in the body, and might even worsen the condition.
However, a recent preclinical study showed that the whole stevia leaf extract is a powerful antibiotic in the fight against a pathogen known as Borrelia Burgdorferi, which causes Lyme disease.
The study was conducted by researchers from the Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, West Haven, CT, and the findings were published in the European Journal of Microbiology & Immunology.
Researchers directly compared the effects of an alcohol extract of a whole stevia leaf product and conventional antibiotics, in terms of their ability to destroy various forms of Borrelia burgdorferi.
This pathogen is highly resistant to antibiotics and it can exist in various forms.
Therefore, it formed a barrier against conventional antibiotics, and they were unable to fight it.
On the other hand, researchers reported that “Stevia whole leaf extract, as an individual agent, was effective against all known morphological forms of B. burgdorferi.”
They found that 10-20% of Lyme disease patients treated with antibiotics for 2-4 weeks, experienced side-effects such as muscle pain, joint pain, and fatigue, and sometimes, these symptoms lasted for over 6 months.
They then explained: “The leaf extract of stevia possesses many phytochemicals… with known antimicrobial properties against many pathogens.
Results from this study suggest that a natural product such as Stevia leaf extract could be an effective agent against B. burgdorferi.”
Even though this was a preliminary study, its findings are promising, so it can serve as a basis for further research on the effects of the whole Stevia leaf extract, as it is a potentially powerful natural treatment of Lyme disease.