Alternative non-toxic treatments for type 1 (Juvenile) diabetes?
A friend of mine has been diabetic since he was 11 y.o. He is 55 now. He had a kidney transplant a couple of years ago, but the new kidney is now only 20% functional because of the BK-virus. He started having problems with his legs about 6 months ago and now he can not feel one of his feet and can barely limp on the other one. Doctors say that the nerve in one foot died and the other foot will always be swollen and hurt quite a bit.
Somebody recommended Vanadyl Plus, but it is too toxic for the transplanted kidney.
I wonder if anybody knows of any treatment for such complications from diabetes. We need something that would work for a type 1 diabetes patient with a kidney transplant.
He might want to try benforthiamine, which is a synthetic version of vitamin B1. It has been shown to help and/or possibly even prevent diabetes complications, including nerve damage and kidney disease. Now, I wouldn't expect any miracles, but it's worth a shot.
You can search Pub Med and the internet for info on benfortiamine.
He can also try anti-inflammatory supplements like Omega 3 EFA. Make sure he is not prone to an abnormal heart rythym though, as Omega 3 supplements can aggrevate this (even though they protect the heart otherwise).
Lastly, make sure his blood sugars are well controlled.
I assume he is already on ACE inhibitors and a low protein or renal diet. Both may help slow down any further deterioration.
Transplants do fail on their own as well. If that is the case, I would suggest he get a combined kidney and pancreas transplant.
If this is solely due to a virus, there is a chance some function may come back and his kidney *may* recover somewhat. I never rule out anything!
Best wishes for your friend! Please do not give up on him! You are a very nice person for trying to help him.