Pinecone Lignin and Ascorbic Acid Treatment for Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1

Pinecone Lignin and Ascorbic Acid Treatment for Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1

Pinecone Lignin and Ascorbic Acid Treatment for Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1

By Gene Bruno, MS, MHS, RH(AHG)

Huntington College of Health Sciences

Infection with herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2) is lifelong and can have serious consequences. According to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the nationwide prevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 (determined in the 2005-2010 cycle of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey), 54 percent of people ages 14 to 49 have had HSV-1 infection and 16 percent have had HSV-2 infection, overall.1 Antiviral medications as well as natural remedies have been used to reduce symptoms and recurrence rates of HSV-1 and HSV-2. One of the lesser known but promising natural treatments is pine cone lignin and ascorbic acid.

To evaluate the anti-HSV-1 activity of pine cone lignin and ascorbic acid treatment, a pilot clinical study2 was conducted. The study involved 48 healthy patients of both sexes between 4 and 61 years of age (mean: 31+/-16 years) with active HSV-1 lesions. According to the HSV-1 stage at presentation, patients were divided into prodrome (16 patients), erythema (11 patients), papular edema (1 patient), vesicle/pustule (13 patients), and ulcer (7 patients) stages. . 50 mg each of lignin-ascorbic acid tablet or solution was administered orally three times daily for one month. Clinical assessments were performed daily in the first week and at least three times a week in the second week after onset and every six months during the following year to identify recurrence episodes.

The results showed that the patients who started treatment with lignin-ascorbic acid within the first 48 hours after the onset of symptoms did not develop lesions characteristic of HSV-1, while the patients who started treatment later had a shorter duration of cold sores and a decrease in the symptoms compared to previous episodes (P=0.001). The majority of patients reported a reduction in symptom severity and reduction in recurrence episodes after treatment with lignin-ascorbic acid compared to previous episodes, suggesting potential applicability for the prevention and treatment of HSV-1 infection.

References

Professor Gene Bruno, MS, MHS, provost for Huntington College of Health Sciences, is a nutritionist, herbalist, author and educator. For more than 37 years, he has educated and trained natural products retailers and healthcare professionals, researched and formulated natural products for dozens of dietary supplement companies, and authored articles on nutrition, herbal medicine, nutraceuticals, and integrative health topics for trade and consumer magazines and peer-reviewed publications. He can be reached at gbruno@hchs.edu.

• Antivirale Medikamente
• Askorbinsäure
• CDC
• Zentren für die Kontrolle und Prävention von Krankheiten
• Herpes-simplex-Virus Typ 1
• Herpes-simplex-Virus Typ 2
• HSV-1
• natürliche Heilmittel
• Kiefernzapfen-Lignin
• Prof. Gene Bruno Blog
• Symptome reduzieren

Read original article in English.