ALDEHYDE POISONING
by
Dr. Lawrence Wilson
©
September 2019, L.D. Wilson Consultants,
Inc.
All information in this article is
solely the opinion of the author and is for educational purposes only. It is not for the diagnosis, treatment,
prescription or cure of any disease or health condition.
Contents
Definition
A Major Liver Toxin
Fermentation In The Intestinal Tract
Fermentation In The Blood
Fermentation In The Tissues
Allergic Effects
Reduced Oxygenation
Vitamin B1 Deficiency
Other Possible Symptoms Of Aldehyde
Overload
IV.
REMOVING ALDEHYDES FROM THE BODY
********************
Definition. Aldehydes
are toxic chemicals produced by fermentation of sugars. They are produced by yeasts and fungi,
which are called fermenting organisms.
Aldehyde
poisoning is the second most common source of severe liver toxicity and ill
health today. Many people have a
severe problem with aldehyde toxicity.
Some
aldehydes are made inside the body.
Others come from eating fermented foods.
ALDEHYDES MADE IN THE BODY
Digestive fermentation. If a starchy or sweet food is not
thoroughly digested and absorbed, some sugars remain in the intestines. Fermenting organisms that live mainly
in the large intestine ferment the sugars and produce aldehydes and
alcohol. Both are potent liver
toxins, especially acetaldehyde.
The design
of the large intestine prevents most of the toxins produced by fermenting
organisms from being absorbed.
Therefore, this source of aldehydes is not as harmful as the ones
described below.
One can tell
if one has fermentation occurring in the large intestine because, among other
chemicals, it produces methane gas.
This is a type of intestinal gas that is not too smelly. In contrast, putrefaction of proteins,
peptides and amino acide in the large intestine produces very foul-smelling
gas.
Fermentation in the blood. Once sugars are absorbed into
the bloodstream, they circulate until they are absorbed in the liver. Some people have fermenting organisms
in the blood itself that convert sugars into aldehydes in the blood.
This is
quite dangerous because the blood does not have any protection against the
aldehydes and other toxic chemicals that fermentation produces.
As a result,
fermentation of sugars in the blood is a very serious form of yeast infection
that often kills the patient.
This problem
is much worse in those with an elevated blood sugar. One need not have full-blown diabetes. Any elevation of the blood sugar
worsens the problem of fermentation in the blood.
One can tell
if this is occurring because the person will smell yeasty, which is a sour
odor. Women often know this odor
because it occurs in the vagina when they have a yeast infection there. This is an example of the next type of
fermentation problem.
Fermentation in the tissues. In many people, too much sugar goes to
the tissues. Eating sweets of any
kind tends to produce this problem.
These sugars feed fermentative organisms such as yeasts and fungi, which
then produce aldehydes and other toxic chemicals.
Common
locations for these yeast infections are the sinuses, vagina, mouth, ears and
occasionally other areas of the body.
This source
of aldehydes is far more important and serious if one has high levels of AGES
in the body. These are advanced
glycation end products and are sugar molecules bound to larger molecules,
mostly proteins and fats or oils.
Since AGES
contain sugar, they feed fermentative organisms wherever they are located in
the body. Many, for example,
accumulate in the liver and one can have fermentation inside the liver, which
is also very dangerous.
ALDEHYDES FROM FERMENTED FOODS
The other
source of aldehydes is from eating certain fermented foods. Fermenting a food is a way of preserving
it, in some cases, and cultures have used this method for millennia. Today, however, some authorities
suggest eating these foods to improve digestion and for other reasons.
Fermented
foods have a number of problems.
They are raw foods, they are very yin, and some cause aldehyde toxicity.
Foods that are very high in aldehydes
include Rejuvelac, apple cider vinegar and kombucha tea. Some home-made fermented foods are also
high in aldehydes. Our suggestions
about eating fermented foods are:
1. Only
small amounts.
2. The only
acceptable fermented foods are those that are very low in aldehydes. These are most cheese, yogurt, kefir, miso,
sauerkraut and occasional use of tofu or tempeh. These appear to be safe, when eaten in small amounts. Please completely avoid the others.
3. Adults
may only have a total of 4 ounces daily of cheese, yogurt and kefir
combined. In other words, if you
eat four ounces of cheese in a day, then you may not have any more diary
products at all.
For more
about fermented food, please read Fermented Foods on
this website.
While foods
can be an important source of aldehydes, in most people the main source is
fermentation due to too many sugars and carbohydrates in the diet.
III.
EFFECTS OF ALDEHYDE TOXICITY
According to
a 2005 article in Crit Rev Toxicol. 2005 Aug;35(7):609-62. Aldehyde sources, metabolism, molecular toxicity
mechanisms, and possible effects on human health by O'Brien PJ, Siraki AG, Shangari N., Department of Pharmaceutical
Sciences, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto, Toronto,
Ontario, Canada. peter.obrien@utoronto.ca, the toxic effects of aldehydes are
many.
They can include acting
as haptens in allergenic hypersensitivity diseases, respiratory allergies, and
idiosyncratic drug toxicity; the potential carcinogenic risks of the carbonyl
body burden; and the toxic effects of aldehydes in liver disease, embryo
toxicity/teratogenicity, diabetes/hypertension, sclerosing peritonitis,
cerebral ischemia/neurodegenerative diseases, and other aging-associated
diseases.
Red blood cell alteration. Acetaldehyde alters red blood cell
structure. It has been known since 1941 that acetaldehyde easily combines with
red blood cell membrane proteins to convert the red blood cells into a
"time-release capsuleÓ, releasing the acetaldehyde in the body far from
the site where it attached to the red blood cell (3).
As this happens, however, the membrane
covering the red blood cell becomes stiffer. Yet in order to travel through the capillaries, which are
the smallest blood vessels and which feed the trillions of individual cells,
the red blood cell must be able to fold or deform. The average red blood cell
diameter is 7 microns; yet a typical capillary is only 2 microns in diameter.
Red blood cells stiffened through chronic
acetaldehyde exposure will have difficulty deforming sufficiently to pass
through capillaries. Consequently,
red blood cell-carried oxygen to many cells is reduced. (3) (Our brains require
20% of all the oxygen we breathe!)
Other reasons for reduced oxygenation. The work of K.K. Tsuboi and colleagues
has shown that acetaldehyde forms stable combinations with hemoglobin in red
blood cells. This reduces the ability of red blood cells to accept, hold, and
transport oxygen through the bloodstream, which is their primary function. (5)
Effects on the brain. Acetaldehyde decreases the ability of
the protein tubulin to assemble into microtubules. (6) Microtubules are long,
thin, tube-like structures that serve several functions in the brain cell. They
help provide structural support to the nerve cell, somewhat like girders in a
bridge or a building, keeping the nerve cell and the dendrites semi-rigid.
Dendrites are the feathery-looking
extensions from the main body of the nerve cell that connects nerve cells to
each other. Some neurons connect through dendrites to as many as 100,000 other
neurons.
Microtubules also serve to transport
nutrients and biochemical raw materials manufactured in the cell body to the
dendrites. When this raw material transport is compromised, the dendrites will
gradually atrophy and die off.
Two classic examples of brain pathology
involving degeneration of the dendrites in humans are chronic alcoholic brain damage and Alzheimer's
disease.
Vitamin B1 deficiency. Acetaldehyde can cause a deficiency of
vitamin B1 or thiamin.
Vitamin B1 is so critical to brain and nerve function it is often called
the "nerve vitamin." The work of Dr. Herbert Sprince, MD(7) showed that
acetaldehyde has a very strong tendency to combine with vitamin B. Unfortunately, in detoxifying
acetaldehyde, vitamin B1 is destroyed.
Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. Moderately severe B1 deficiency in
humans leads to a group of symptoms called Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. This syndrome is characterized by
mental confusion, poor memory, poor neuromuscular coordination, and visual
disturbances.
Its primary accepted cause is chronic
alcoholism. Vitamin B1 is also
necessary for the production of ATP in all body cells including the brain. The brain uses between 20% and 50% of
the body's total energy, even while asleep.
Vitamin B1 is also essential for the
production of acetylcholine.
Acetylcholine is one of the brain's major neurotransmitters, facilitating
optimal memory, mental focus and concentration, and learning.
Alzheimer's disease represents a rather
extreme case of memory loss and impaired concentration. This can be due to destruction of
acetylcholine-using brain cells.
In a classic experiment reported in 1942,
R.R. Williams and colleagues found that even mild B1 deficiency in humans
continued over a long period of time (the experiment ran six months) produces
symptoms including apathy,
confusion, emotional instability, irritability, depression, feelings of
impending doom, fatigue, insomnia, and headaches, all symptoms of
less-than-optimal brain function.
OTHER
COMMON SYMPTOMS OF ALDEHYDE OVERLOAD
Common symptoms associated with aldehyde toxicity
are:
Yeast or fungal infections
Sugar craving
Skin problems
Sinus problems (fungal overgrowth)
Low thyroid
Gas and bloating
Epstein-Barr virus syndrome
Copper symptoms: headache, easy bruising, mind
racing, brain fog
Burnout
Many poor or very poor eliminator patterns on the
hair test
Sympathetic dominant
Sugar and/or carbohydrate addiction
Lowering the
level of aldehydes in the body mainly requires reducing starches and all sugars
in the diet. This includes
reducing or eliminating fruit, candy, ice cream, pastries, cookies, candy and
sweet drinks such as soda pop and juices.
This is
usually sufficient to enable the body to slowly get rid of stored aldehydes.
References
1. Cleary, J.P. The NAD Deficiency
Diseases. J Orthomolecular Med, 1986, 1:164-74.
2. Galland, L.D. Nutrition and Candida
Albicans, 1986 A Year in Nutritional Medicine, ed J. Bland. New Canaan :Keats
Pub., 1986, 203-238.
3. Truss, C.O. Metabolic Abnormalities
in Patients with Chronic Candidiasis: The Acetaldehyde Hypothesis. J
Orthomolecular Psychiatry, 1984, 13:66-93.
4. Levine, S. and Kidd, P. Antioxidant
Adaptation, pp. 70-71. San Francisco : Biocurrents
Pub., 1986.
5. Tsuboi, K.K. et al. Acetaldehyde-Dependent
Changes in Hemoglobin and Oxygen Affinity of Human Erythrocytes. Hemoglobin,
1981, 5:241-50.
6. Tuma, D.J. et al. The Interaction of
Acetaldehyde with Tubulin, in: Ann NY Acad Sci, ed. E. Rubin ,
Vol. 492, 1987.
7. Sprince, H., et al. Protective Action
of Ascorbic Acid and Sulfur Compounds against Acetaldehyde Toxicity:
Implications in Alcoholism and Smoking. Agents and Actions, 1975, 5:164-73.
8. Williams, R.R., et al. Induced Thiamin
(Vitamin B1) Deficiency in Man. Arch Int Med, 1942,
69:721-38.
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