Addressing HPV with Functional Medicine Part 1
HPV is a scary diagnosis… you can’t see it, you probably can’t feel it… and suddenly you’re hearing the big “C” word: Cancer.
It’s overwhelming and scary… and sadly, many western practitioners don’t do much reassuring, explaining, or even provide all the options for treatment and management.
And they definitely don’t want to talk about natural treatments for HPV…
But the truth is that you DO have options when it comes to treating HPV and the abnormal cells it can cause.
Today, I’m writing for anyone facing an HPV diagnosis. I know it is frightening and overwhelming - and I want to help. Let's talk about HPV, and I'll share a case study of one of my real-life patients who took a more natural route to treating HPV, with amazing results.
What Is HPV?
HPV stands for human papillomavirus. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection.
In 2018 alone, the CDC reported 43 million HPV infections. The bottom line is that most sexually active people have HPV at some point in their life.
Why is HPV so common?
Unlike other STIs, HPV can be spread even without any symptoms. In general, men are not routinely screened and have no symptoms, so they are often unknowingly spreading it. And, like men, women with HPV often have no outward symptoms. Because symptoms aren’t noticeable, it could be years after you contract HPV that you find out you have it during a routine pap smear or STI test. That makes tracking back to where you got it, and who you might have spread it to, nearly impossible.
But the most important thing to know about HPV is that in the vast majority of cases it is no big deal. Most people contract HPV and clear the virus on their own. Think of getting over a cold: your immune system does the work and takes care of it.
But for the people who aren’t able to clear HPV on their own, it can cause problems. That’s what we’re going to discuss today.
When HPV Doesn’t Resolve On Its Own
When HPV doesn’t resolve on its own, it can cause the development of abnormal cells on the cervix that can eventually lead to cervical cancer.
HPV doesn’t typically cause noticeable symptoms, and this is one of the reasons women need routine pap smears. We can’t see or feel the start of cervical cancer without an exam, but if caught early and addressed, it can be stopped before it evolves into full-blown cancer.
Even if you’re working with an alternative practitioner, don’t skip your GYN exam. It’s really important.
Pap Smear
So you did it, you went in for your pap smear or gynecological exam… only to get bad news: either your pap smear or your HPV test was abnormal.
Depending on your doctor, you might have been tested for HPV and gotten a positive result, and then come back for a pap smear… or your doctor might have started with a pap smear, and found abnormal cells on your cervix - also called cervical dysplasia.
Once cervical dysplasia has been found, the next step is usually a procedure called a colposcopy. This procedure takes tiny biopsies of the cervix for a closer look (compared to just scraping the top layer of the cervix in a pap smear).
The colposcopy shows what level of abnormal cells you have: low, moderate, or high, called CIN-1, CIN-2, or CIN-3.
In most cases, if your results show just CIN-1 or 2, your doctor will recommend a “watch and wait” approach. The hope is that your body will fight off the HPV and reverse the abnormal cells on its own.
If you have CIN-3 or CIN-2-3 (which means it's unclear if cells are CIN-2 or CIN-3), the next step is typically a loop electrosurgical excision procedure, better known as a LEEP. The LEEP takes a larger biopsy piece to get a better diagnosis and hopefully removes all the abnormal cells, too.
Doctors also often hope that as the body heals the cervix after the LEEP procedure, it will also recognize the HPV virus and fight it off.
After the LEEP procedure, you’ll follow up with another pap smear, with the hope that the abnormal cells are gone. You can also expect more frequent pap smears over the next few years.
If your follow-up pap smear isn’t clear, the next step could be another LEEP… or even a hysterectomy, depending on the circumstances.
What Western Medicine Gets Right (And Sometimes Wrong)
As a functional medicine practitioner, what I like about the western medicine approach is that it involves being proactive.
But here’s what I find frustrating…
It is estimated that only 5% of CIN-2 and 12% of CIN-3 cervical dysplasia cases will progress to invasive cancer if untreated.
And, in general, it takes 10 to 20 years for abnormal cells to progress to cancer, and that progression requires persistent HPV infection to occur.
That means that even if you have abnormal cells, you have a LOT of time to address it before cancer becomes a serious concern.
Secondly, the LEEP procedure is not without risk. While some have only minor bleeding and no other side effects, all of the following have been reported after one or more LEEP procedures:
- Miscarriages - Per one study from 2015, in 116 women studied, an 18% increased risk of miscarriage was reported among those previously treated with LEEP. A different study cited a positive association with second trimester miscarriage.
- Depression
- Cervical stenosis - narrowing of the cervix, which can make getting pregnant difficult or cause problems with passage of fluids like menstrual blood.
- Chronic pelvic pain
- Pain during sex
- Inability to orgasm, low libido, loss of sensation in vagina, cervix, or clitoris
- PTSD - a form of sexual trauma experienced that stays traumatizing when thinking or talking about the procedure.
And while there is a *hope* that the LEEP procedure will help your body identify and fight the HPV as a side effect… western treatment does nothing to address the root cause of the abnormal cells: the HPV infection!
And that’s where the functional medicine approach really shines.
The Functional Medicine Approach to HPV Treatment
No matter what stage of HPV you’re dealing with - from just a positive test result to CIN-3 cells - the very first step should be taking proactive steps to support your immune system in fighting HPV itself.
Remember that most people are able to clear the HPV virus without intervention. If you’re not, here are the red flags I look for:
- Low nutrient status
- Poor sleep
- Stress or poor stress management
- Genetic predisposition
- Other chronic infections
Together, all these factors can lead to low immune expression and a susceptibility to chronic viral infections of all types.
But the good news is that the majority of these factors are modifiable.
That means, with the right support, you might be able to shift from someone who isn’t able to clear HPV on your own, to someone who is.
And on top of this, we can also use antiviral protocols to give your body a leg up in fighting the infection.
A healthy immune system should be able to handle HPV all on its own - so the approach that makes the most sense is to treat your immune system, and then let your body get rid of the HPV and heal the abnormal cells.
No matter where you are in the process - from just finding out to having already completed one or more LEEPs - this approach can help.
In Part 2 of this post, I’ll share my HPV treatment plan and a case study of one of my real patients who reversed abnormal cells and HPV using this approach. Read Part 2 here.
- Brie
PS - ready for help with HPV? You don’t have to wait for Part 2. Book a free intro consultation with my team today to get started on your customized treatment plan. Book your intro call here.
Natural Cold & Flu Remedies
Natural Cold & Flu Remedies (from Chinese Medicine)
It starts in the last weeks of summer with the “back-to-school” cold. By the time fall is slowly starting to turn to winter, it can feel like cold and flu infections are lurking on every door knob and elevator button.
And the truth is, they are! School age kids get 6-8 colds on average per year, and adults get 2-4. Women get more colds than men - probably because they often have more contact with kids. That averages roughly 5.5 missed work days per person, and 150 million workdays missed nationwide, just due to the common cold virus.
But, you don’t have to get sick that often (or stay sick so long)! You can get through the fall and winter without sniffles, runny noses, hacking coughs, and more phlegm than you thought existed in the universe - and you can do it without prescription drugs or over-the-counter cough syrups.
Can You Treat a Cold or Flu Naturally?
Absolutely. If you catch it early enough, nutrients and herbs can cut a virus off before it takes hold. And if you don’t catch it in time to prevent it from taking root, holistic treatment works powerfully to decrease symptoms, shorten the duration, and prevent secondary infections (like bronchitis or pneumonia) from developing later.
And remember: antibiotics do not work for viral infections, so they have no use in treating the common cold. The only time you should use antibiotics is if a bacterial infection sets in on top of a cold or flu.
Herbs, on the other hand, can help treat both bacteria and viruses. One plant can contain thousands of phytochemicals - compounds that are antiviral, help to boost white blood cell sounds, and antibacterial can all be in the same herb! Carefully combining herbs, as has been done for thousands of years, can make them even more powerful!
Why I Use Chinese Medicine to Treat Colds & Flus
When patients (or myself!) come down with the common cold, I always go back to my roots in Chinese Herbal Medicine. Herbs have been used by Chinese Medicine practitioners for thousands of years to treat and prevent colds and flus.
In Chinese Medicine, the common cold is divided into six distinct stages that each have unique herbal treatments. Formulas to treat symptoms of each stage are carefully created with different herbs. Chinese medicine herbalists consider not just what stage of a cold you’re in, but also the properties of the herbs, temperatures, and how a person will interact with the herbs based on their own constitution.
These formulas can give you both quick, short-term relief (by treating your symptoms) as well as help you get better faster (by boosting your immune system).
To really customize an herbal formula to what stage of a cold you are at and your constitution, I would recommend an in-person consult. But even if you can’t see a Chinese Medicine practitioner like me in person, there are some general nutrient and herbal formulas that are balanced enough to be safe and effective in all generally healthy adults who are trying to fend off impending coughing and sneezing.
Prevention First
Hands down, the best way to fight a cold or flu is to not get sick in the first place!
It goes without saying that practising good hygiene is the first step - wash your hands with hot water and soap and cover your nose and mouth when you cough or sneeze. Eating a nutrient-dense diet, getting plenty of sleep, and regular exercise can also help keep your immune system strong so that you effortlessly fight off anything that comes your way.
But Chinese herbs can be a secret weapon in preventing colds, too. Herbs can help strengthen our immune systems and fight off colds before they take root.
My favourite formula for taking throughout cold and flu season to strengthen the immune system is Yu Ping Fen Wan. This traditional Chinese formula contains lots of Astragalus, an herb which helps to increase circulating white blood cell counts and increases cytokines in our immune system that help ward off viral infections. The brand I use calls this formula Astra C, and the dose for adults is 2 tabs 2-3 times daily through cold and flu season.
What If I’m Already Sick?
With any Chinese Medicine formula, the quicker you start to take it, the better results you can expect. Personally, I will sometimes take a few doses of the herbal formulas for the first stage of a cold if I have had significant exposure to someone who is currently sick, just to make sure I don’t come down with the same thing!
But even if you don’t catch it before symptoms set in, the sooner you start treatment, the faster you’ll feel better.
But I know what you’re thinking - the last thing you want to do when you already feel bad from a cold (and maybe have a husband with the man-flu and kids who need your attention, too) is try and decipher labels at a Chinese herb shop!
That’s why I recommend keeping some herbal formulas on hand during the winter months. These are tablets that you can keep in the cupboard, just like you would a bottle of cold syrup. That way, when a cold or flu strikes, you’re already prepared.
I have my exact cold and flu protocols
(yes, even the exact brands of herbs I use!) - the same ones I use for myself and my clients - all in one PDF. You can download a copy for free here
.
When To Get More Help
The common cold, and a low grade version of the annual flu virus, as common as they are, can still make you feel really bad.
Both colds and the flu can usually be treated at home, without needing to see a doctor.
The most common cold symptoms are:
- runny nose and sneezing
- sore throat
- sinus congestion
- mild headaches
- body aches
- chills
- low-grade fever
- generally feeling unwell
A cold should run its course within 7-10 days, in most adults. Herbal treatments (like the ones in my protocol) can help with these symptoms.
But if your symptoms progress to any of these, you should seek medical attention:
- If your fever rises above 101.3 or lasts for more than 5 days
- If your headache, ear, throat, or sinus pain becomes severe
- If you notice wheezing, or have asthma symptoms
- If you get a deep barking cough or bronchitis, especially if you start to feel worse several days into the virus, rather than better.
The influenza virus (aka the flu), has many of the same symptoms as a common cold virus, but it is more likely to include fever (which is frequently over 100 degrees), and tends to have a more abrupt onset. Body-aches are usually more pronounced, and it is not uncommon to also have digestive symptoms like vomiting or diarrhoea.
The flu takes up to 2 weeks to recover from. The warning signs for seeking medical attention are the same as with the common cold, but according the the Mayo clinic, additionally include:
- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
- Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
- Sudden dizziness
- Confusion
- Severe or persistent vomiting
- Flu-like symptoms that improve but then return with fever and worse cough
Feel Better Soon!
Hopefully you’re reading this article before you get hit with a nasty cold or flu - but if not, I hope you feel better soon! Grab a bowl of bone broth, bundle up, and try some of my cold and flu protocols here.