The infamous Jarisch-Herxheimer Reaction

Posted by Leanne on Dec 12th, 2007 | 1 comment

When doing a candida cleanse we are always hopeful that we will just start to feel better right away.  However, candida never seems to just fade quietly away into the night; it always goes with a fight.  Around 3-5 days into an effective candida cleanse, you may notice that you are just not feeling all that well and this “unwellness” is due to the Herxheimer reaction.  You may see continued Herxheimer reactions to varying degrees through the cleanse. 

Adolf Jarisch and Karl Herxheimer (both were dermatoligists studying a cure for syphilis - go figure) are credited with the discovery of the Herxheimer reaction in 1902.  These guys were treating patients who had syphilis with mercury.  Surprisingly, Adolf Jarish died in March of 1902, the same year that the Herxheimer reaction was discovered.  I wonder (purely my own speculation) if he was poisoned by the mercury he was using in his experiments.  At any rate, Herxhemier went on to live a very distinguished life right up until he was murdered by the Nazi’s in 1942 at the age of 81 in Theresienstadt, a German concentration camp. 

According to Wikipedia, the Herxheimer Reaction “occurs when large quantities of toxins are released into the body”.   There are too many toxins for the body to handle by the natural detoxification routes through the colon, kidney and liver.  When these organs become overloaded with toxins, the person experiencing a Herxheimer reaction may feel down-right lousy.  Typical Herxheimer reaction ”symptoms” could include: fatigue, headaches (even migraines), itchy skin, skin rashes, runny nose or post nasal drip and sometimes will even include a fever and chills.  If your body is doing a good job of getting rid of toxins, then these symptoms may only last a few hours and at the most a couple of days.  If these herxheimer reactions are very severe or last longer that a couple of days, you need to SLOW down whatever detoxification procedure you are doing and concentrate on getting your system clear of toxins. 

The most effective ways to rid yourself of toxins are:
1.  A good, soluble fiber (pysillium or apple pectin based)
2. Far Infr-Red Sauna or a regular Dry Sauna (10-20 minutes per session)
3. Colonics (if reactions are very severe)
4. Ionic Foot baths

It is always best to be taking a soluble fiber (usually pysillium-based) and taking sauna’s a couple of days a week when you start your candida cleanse; then you will be able to stay ahead of the toxic wave that will undoubtedly hit when the candida starts dying off.

One Response

1. mercury detoxification says:

   February 28, 2008 at 6:07 am

   mercury detoxification…

   You can start by making subtle changes in your approach to eating. While water fasting can be a powerful tool for detoxification, it…

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