Why You Should Use EWOT for Babesia infections
EWOT Staff
|21-01-2023
Why You Should Use EWOT for Babesia infections
If you’re anything like me, the prospect of an infection can be very worrisome. When it comes to Babesia infections—a type of tick-borne illness that causes flu-like symptoms such as fever and fatigue which can sometimes last for weeks or even months—the fear seems particularly great.
But did you know there is a safe and easy way to reduce your chance of getting infected with Babesia, known as EWOT (Exercise With Oxygen Therapy)? This revolutionary medical practice has been proven effective in both reducing the severity of symptoms associated with Babesia infections and significantly lowering the likelihood for reoccurrence.
In this blog post, we’ll explore why EWOT should be at the top of your list when considering treatments for a might-have-been or existing case of Babesia infection.
What is EWOT?
EWOT is the practice of performing 15-minutes of cardio exercise while breathing oxygen. It offers many of the same benefits of hyperbaric oxygen, but with the synergistic effects of exercise – which creates a cascade of changes in your body to optimize its ability to extract and transport oxygen to your tissues. The synergies of exercise and increased oxygen allow you to consume as much oxygen as a 90-minute hyperbaric oxygen treatment in just 15-minutes – and even better, you can do it from the comfort of your own home, rather than a medical facility.
What is Babesia?
Babesia is a protozoon that’s preferred habitat is red blood cells, endothelial cells that lie the blood vessels, liver, and other organs of the body. Babesia infects red blood cells, taking away their ability to oxygenate the body. It also likes to infect the endothelial cells that line the blood vessels and recruit red blood cells as a barrier to better hide from the immune system. If this develops enough, it can cause a blockage in the blood vessel and even lead to blood vessel rupture. These ruptures, when near the surface of the skin, lead to petechia – the thin red “blood vessels” that are visible in people with babesia infections. In worst cases, it also can lead to strokes.
The Science of Babesia
In an effort to evade the immune system, Babesia shifts the immune system from T1-dominant to T2-dominant. T1-dominant deals with defending against infections inside of cells, while T2-dominant immune functions deal with infections living in between cells (such as intestinal worms, etc.). It does this by down-regulating several immune cytokines (chemical messengers) such as interferon-gamma (INF-G), tumor necrose factor alpha (TNF-a) and Interleukin 2 (IL-2) as well as nitric oxide.
Because one of the best red blood cells (RBCs) defenses is nitric oxide (NO), Babesia works to suppress NO. When properly functioning, RBCs release NO to create a “toxic gas bubble” that surrounds them and kills potential invaders when threatened. Endothelial cells also use NO for a variety of functions, including vasodilation during exercise. The release of NO by endothelial cells in our blood vessels causes the blood vessel to relax so that it can carry more blood to help meet the oxygen demand of exercising muscles.
Common symptoms of a Babesia infection include air hunger and fatigue. The destruction of red blood cells through infection causes air hunger, which reduces the body’s ability to oxygenate its tissues. This creates an environment of low oxygen, also known as hypoxia. Hypoxia and mitochondria dysfunction causes fatigue. Babesia leads to mitochondria dysfunction in the endothelial cells of the blood vessels, creating “metabolic hypoxia." This combination of hypoxia and mitochondria creates a one-two punch that often leaves people with babesia with severe fatigue.
How Can EWOT help Babesia?
As mentioned above, NO has many uses in the body. Beyond protecting RBCs, the blood vessels release it during exercise as a vasodilator. The NO causes the blood vessels to relax. That way, they can increase the volume of blood and oxygen they can carry to exercising tissues.
So, exercising alone will help increase NO production, which is needed to defend the RBCs and help shift the immune dynamic from T2-dominant to T1-dominant so that the body can clear the infection. Additionally, NO production requires oxygen, part of the reason Babesia seeks to create hypoxic conditions in the body. Several studies show that breathing oxygen-enriched air increases NO production in both hyperbaric and non-pressurized treatments.
So, combining the power of exercise and oxygen can help increase NO. To help accelerate this process, we recommend you take 2,000 to 4,000 mg of L-Arginine about 15-minutes before performing EWOT and consider taking a total of 6,000 mg throughout the day.
EWOT Increases Endurance
In order for someone with babesia to benefit fom EWOT, they will need to be able to do exercise, which is often a challenge when dealing with the fatigue and air hunger. EWOT can help people with babesia here as well.
EWOT reduces the perceived difficulty of exercise and increases endurance by 30%-70% (this is why Olympic and Pro athletes often use EWOT). In addition, EWOT bypasses RBCs by using blood plasma to deliver oxygen. In normal conditions, oxygen is not very soluble in blood plasma, the clear liquid that transports the RBCs.
EWOT Helps Produce Energy
When doing EWOT, the extra oxygen and increased blood flow supersaturate the blood plasma and deliver oxygen to oxygen-starved tissues. The oxygen delivered via blood plasma can help reoxygenate the mitochondria. That way, they can begin to function properly and help produce energy. This energy is not only important for fighting fatigue, but allows the body to process toxins and to heal.
We often recommend that those with babesia start out exercising slowly and listen to their body. But, over time, they should notice their ability to exercise will grow, and with it the benefits of EWOT will multiply – this is the synergistic affect of exercise and oxygen.
EWOT Calms Babesia Inflammation
Next, EWOT is great at helping calm inflammation that is common in babesia. About a quarter of folks with babesia have joint pain (arthralgia) or and nearly half have nerve pain (myalgia). These are conditions caused by run-away inflammation. It is well documented that inflammation and hypoxia (oxygen starvation) go hand-in-hand. By supplying high levels of oxygen via the blood plasma, we can reduce the inflammation and headaches that often plague people with babesia infections.
EWOT Helps with Detox
Lastly, EWOT is a great mechanism for detoxification. When cells are fully oxygenated, the mitochondria capacity is maximized and our bodies have maximum energy. In times of high-stress, like a babesia infection, the body often can't clean up cellular waste or detoxify the tissues. This can cause toxins to build up in our fats and elimination organs. A reenergized body is able to clean up the toxins in the body. Oxygen, itself, is a detoxifier. Oxygen works to oxidize – or break down toxins into components that the body can more-readily eliminate. And when we do EWOT, we reduce lactic acid by 30% – 60%. This helps eliminate metabolic waste that clogs up essential cell functions.
Summing it up: Why EWOT for Babesia is a good idea
In summary, EWOT can help people with babesia infections by:
- Increasing nitric oxide production, which can help eliminate babesia while improving the immune system response to the infection.
- It can help with a variety babesia symptoms like air hunger, fatigue, pain and inflammation, and headaches.
- Lastly, it can help detoxify the body so that the body can continue to heal and repair itself.
If you have babesia it might be worth considering EWOT as part of your protocol. However, we recommend you consider adding l-arginine to your regiment before doing an EWOT session. We also recommend that you start slowly and listen to your body – be patient, as benefits will accrue over time. Often times folks start too quickly and experience a die-off response. Lastly, always check with your doctor before starting a new fitness regimen – none of this should be considered medical advice.
Interested in learning how EWOT can help with bartonella and other Lyme disease related infections? Read more on our blog!
Author Bio
Brad Pitzele
We wanted to make the high-quality, affordable EWOT systems to help people like myself, suffering through chronic illnesses, to regain their health and their quality of life.