Aloe Vera, wheatgrass etc

Hi All,

My son has an antibody - which you are aware of - and it is being suppressed with prednisone. 
I have recently been reluctant to give him aloe vera juice, wheat grass and the like because I wonder if they would act against the prednisone in suppressing the overactive immunce response - the warm antibody. 

Is there any sense to this line of thought or am I over thinking this?  What are your thoughts on this Andy?

Thank you all,

Sharmin

Sharmin, if your son is taking Prednisone, which is a corticosteroid, the combination of that with the aloe vera may cause an aggravated decrease in potassium, which you have to be careful of.  I would definitely ask his doctor before giving him any type of herbs, especially if he's on the prednisone.

I'm not sure about the wheatgrass, as I'm learning more about it myself, but I would still consult with his doctor.

The information for prednisone can be found at

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/medmaster/a601102.html

The only herb it specifically mentions is St John's Wort but as with all drugs it does advise that you tell your doctor any herbal preparations you are taking. It also does state that calcium and potassium supplements should be taken if using prednisone. If you read through the side effects of prednisone you will see why reducing the dose to coincide with transfusions only, rather than daily, is so important. Prednisone is a drug to avoid taking regularly (daily) long term. The "take only with transfusion" approach has proven to be more effective and far less harmful.

As Danielle mentioned, caution should be taken with aloe as the combination with prednisone can lower potassium levels. It may be possible to take it if you are also supplementing with potassium but consult with your doctor first. On the other hand, wheatgrass is a food. It is a sprouted grain of wheat and the only side effect I have ever heard of was in someone who got a bit too carried away with the fresh juice and was taking too much and it gave some intestinal distress. Nothing harmful, but definitely uncomfortable. Wheatgrass is a bioflavanoid, which are also found in many fruits and vegetables and are considered beneficial for health. It is also a good anti-oxidant so it may have some benefit in protecting cells against damage done by iron and the many drugs thal patients take. It is reputed to have a positive effect on the health of the immune system and it seems that if anything, it may lessen the antibody reaction by helping to restore proper immune system function. I would not hesitate to use wheatgrass.

Thank you Danielle and Andy,

My son was originally taking 40mg daily, which was slowly reduced during the course of the treatment.  Now that we give him a stronger pulse with transfusion (3 days of 10mg) - we give him 10mg every second day - regularily.  I wish that we could give him even less because this must have other bad effects on him - but for the time being it is the only way to lower his transfusions and prevent iron build up. 

I will hold off on the Alow Vera until the anti body is controlled but I will try to give him wheatgrass whenever possible. 

Thanks again,
Sharmin