Transcription
[Music] We recently posted an educational video on methylene blue, and we had an incredible response. I want to make sure that anyone who viewed that video knows how much I appreciate their time. Having watched some other YouTube videos following that, the response to those has been incredible as well, indicating a lot of interest in methylene blue. We received many follow-up questions, and while we addressed a lot of those in writing, there are a few that I think are important to discuss in a video format so that you can watch and rewatch it.
One of the first follow-up questions, which I found particularly interesting, was whether methylene blue, being an antimicrobial, affects our gut microbiome. The microbiome consists of the good bacteria we want; a quality microbiome has a lot of beneficial bacteria. When that balance is disrupted, it's referred to as dysbiosis, where there are more bad bacteria than good. So, it's a great question: does methylene blue damage the gut microbiome?
In my research, I found a couple of studies, one of which was conducted on mice in Russia in 2020. The results were very dose-dependent. They were looking for cognitive improvement, which is one of the benefits of methylene blue, by putting mice into mazes and observing their performance at certain doses of methylene blue without damaging their microbiome. Interestingly, when they used extremely high doses, they did not see an improvement in cognitive function but did observe destruction of the microbiome.
So, my answer to the question of whether methylene blue damages the gut microbiome is that it is indeed dose-dependent. In the small doses we are seeing in people who are ingesting it and getting benefits, I don't believe it will affect the microbiome negatively. However, I also firmly believe that people should take a probiotic daily or a couple of times a week at the very least. If there is any potential for the antimicrobial effect of methylene blue in the GI tract to affect your gut microbiome—because everyone is different—I think we can balance that out with a good probiotic.
Regarding the second most frequently asked question: can methylene blue be used in veterinary medicine, particularly for dogs and cats? This was something I needed to research, as I had not heard of anyone using it in veterinary medicine. I reached out to a couple of colleagues who have more experience with methylene blue than we do, and none of them had any experience with it being used in animals. However, we did find some dosing information for dogs used for methemoglobinemia, which is a rare blood disorder. There is a little literature on that specific condition in dogs, but we found that methylene blue is very much contraindicated in cats. So, at least we know that, which is an important piece of information for you.
There were a lot of questions on dosing. What I'm learning is that, much like our experience with low-dose naltrexone (LDN), which we will address in the future, the questions we are seeing about methylene blue indicate that it can be a very individualized dosing regimen. The best approach is to start low. This insight comes from information I gathered at our compounding seminar in Houston in October 2023, where a couple of physicians who use a lot of methylene blue shared their experiences and case studies on patients they were treating with methylene blue and a combination of methylene blue and low-dose naltrexone.
So, what are we seeing methylene blue being used for? Long COVID is one application, along with Alzheimer's, dementia, and inflammation. Cognitive function is one of the great opportunities here. As for the right dose, I believe we need to start low and gradually increase until we see a response. We are looking at a 5-milligram dose once a day for maybe a couple of weeks. It works pretty fast, so if you don't see an improvement in a short period, that would indicate we should increase the dose. We could do this by going from 5 milligrams to 5 milligrams twice a day, or 5 milligrams in the morning and 10 milligrams at night.
Some of the dosing information we are seeing ranges from 0.5 mg per kilogram to 2 to 3 mg per kilogram. There is some dosing by weight being used that could get you to a higher dose, maybe around 40 to 50 milligrams a day. However, if we can achieve benefits at a much lower dose, we are not exposing ourselves to as much methylene blue as we need to get the benefits. Remember that methylene blue is a hormetic drug; in low doses, it can be very beneficial, but in higher doses, it can be toxic. Therefore, I think it's important to keep the dose as low as possible to achieve the desired benefits.
Methylene blue is being used for a variety of conditions, and individual dosing is crucial. This is why it's so important that we always practice the triad of care, with the patient, pharmacist, and prescriber working together to find the optimum dose. How do LDN and methylene blue work together? They have different mechanisms of action, but they treat many of the same conditions. We believe this creates a synergistic approach where LDN helps with inflammation and provides a bit more autoimmune support, while methylene blue powers the mitochondria.
When used together, we can keep the dose lower and harness the power of both, potentially leading to better outcomes. Our doctors at the seminar were using a lot of methylene blue and low-dose naltrexone in their patient population. Can they be used together? Absolutely. Do they have to be? It depends; again, it's a very individualized patient protocol, and that's why we're here to help you with methylene blue. Later, we will address some of the low-dose naltrexone questions.
One important topic we need to discuss is sourcing methylene blue. Some people have reached out with questions about using products they bought online. I want to emphasize the importance of being very careful about what you're buying and ingesting. There are industrial-grade liquid products available that are only about 70% pure and contain many contaminants because they are not made for ingestion.
It's crucial, as I mentioned in the original video, that we use a United States Pharmacopeia (USP) grade of methylene blue, which is 100% pure and free of impurities. We mix that with a USP powder to fill capsules accurately for dosing. Again, be very careful about what you're purchasing online. I believe methylene blue should only be used under the care of a prescriber who is communicating with myself and our pharmacy staff about the dosing and the independent testing we will conduct to ensure the accuracy of the capsules we are making.
I cannot stress enough the importance of being cautious about what you're buying and ingesting. I've received reports from people using drops they purchased and feeling better, but long-term use could expose you to toxins that you really don't want. So, buyer beware.
I want to thank everyone again for the views on our methylene blue post on our YouTube channel. After checking today, we're up to 18,000 views. I truly appreciate your attention to this topic. Keep viewing; we are working hard to provide a wealth of information as an educational tool, and we really appreciate your engagement. [Music]