Orthomolecular medicine: the past and future of medicine

If  there was a simple and cost-effective way to avoid many illnesses and even cure them, it would be adopted widely by now, right? No, wrong.

Nobel Laureate Prof. Linus Pauling, considered by some as the father of modern chemistry and one of the top 20 scientists of all time, coined the term "orthomolecular medicine" to refer to the practice of treating diseases with molecules which are natural to the body. "Ortho" means correct or "right". Using insulin to control diabetes is one example of orthomolecular medicine. Preventing the flu by taking a Vitamin-D3 supplement is another example. These substances are natural to the body and hence are tolerated well without many side-effects. In contrast, "toximolecular medicine" uses molecules not natural to the body and hence tends to have more side-effects. A small bottle of aspirin taken at once can kill.

Clearly Allopathic medicine can be orthomolecular or toximolecular depending on the medicine prescribed. Similarly traditional herbal medicine can be orthomolecular or toximolecular depending on the molecules present in the herb prescribed.

It turns out that a number of diseases can be prevented and/or cured using Vitamins, amino-acids, and minerals which are found in food. The main reason for this is that moderate deficiencies of these nutrients leads to various diseases, and simply eliminating the deficiency gets rid of the diseases as well. Some examples follow.

1. Atherosclerosis is a disease caused due to narrowing and hardening of arteries which can lead to heart attacks. Dr. Broda Barnes, an expert on the thyroid, provides compelling evidence all the way from the 19th century that hypothyroidism is a major cause of atherosclerosis in his book "Solved: The Riddle of Heart Attacks". Supplementing with thyroid extracts reversed atherosclerosis in his patients. Incidentally, key nutrients for the thyroid such as Iodine and B-vitamins have been shown to reduce heart disease. A second cure for Atherosclerosis was invented by Linus Pauling and his associates shortly before he died. The cure is simply large doses of Vitamin C taken along with amino-acid Lysine (see Pauling Therapy), obviating the need for heart bypass surgery.
2. Ichthyosis Vulgaris is a skin ailment in which fishy scales form on the skin: Dr. Frederick Robert Klenner, whose pioneering work has led to his induction in the orthomolecular hall of fame, used a combination of Vitamin A (150,000-200,000 IU) and Vitamin C (10 grams) daily to control the symptoms of ichthyosis (see Significance of High Daily Intake of Ascorbic Acid in Preventive Medicine). See the article on use of cod-liver oil for skin ailments by the Weston Price foundation. As an aside, Vitamins A, D3, and K2 work best together, according to findings of Dr. Weston Price, in comparison with Vitamin A alone. 
3. Elevated cholesterol levels can cause atherosclerosis. Vitamin B3 (in the form of Niacin, not niacinamide) normalizes cholesterol levels. 
4. Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder. Vitamin B3 with a combination of other vitamins was used by another orthomolecular hall of fame member, Dr. Abram Hoffer. 
5. Colds, influenza, viral pneumonia and a host of other ailments were cured using Vitamin C (at levels close to bowel tolerance) by Dr. Robert Cathcart. 
6. Allergies cause release of inflammatory substances such as histamine. Certain vitamins act as anti-histamines. Vitamin B3 as Niacin causes release of histamine, Vitamin B3 as niacinamide inhibits the action of histamine, and Vitamin C annihilates histamine.

Significant advantages of Orthomolecular medicine over toximolecular medicine are:

1. Cost effectiveness: Vitamins, minerals, amino acids etc. are relatively inexpensive.
2. No side effects: Since orthomolecular medicines are natural to the human body, they have virtually no side effects when taken in small to optimal doses. Large overdoses, however, can have unwanted (mostly reversible) effects but these should not be termed "side-effects"; "overdose effects" is more appropriate. Toximolecular medicines, in contrast, can have side-effects when taken in small to optimal doses, and overdoses of them can kill. There have been no deaths due to vitamins in many years  unlike toximolecular medicine deaths which outnumber traffic fatalities in the US. 
3. Preventive use: Orthomolecular medicines can (and should preferably) be used to prevent illness. Toximolecular medicines are not suitable for prevention due to their unwanted side effects. Dr. Abram Hoffer relates about the classic meeting of two great minds Irwin Stone and Linus Pauling: "Irwin heard Dr. Pauling state that he wished he could live another 25 years because science was making so many interesting discoveries. Dr. Stone wrote to him and told him he could achieve his goal if he would take vitamin C in megadoses. Dr. Pauling tried it out, was convinced because he felt so much better, and lived another 30 years." Pauling lived till the ripe old age of 93. 

So why is orthomolecular medicine not widely practiced and instead falsely dubbed as an "alternative medicine" by some? Some of the reasons are as follows (see Orthomolecular Medicine for Everyone by Dr. A. Hoffer and Dr. A. Saul)

1. Ignorance: Nutrition is not given much emphasis in medical school. Hence physicians do not know enough about Vitamins etc. and their ability to cure diseases. Nutrition is left to the dieticians and nutritionists.
2. Bias: The belief that Vitamins are "just vitamins" and are meant to only prevent pre-mortal diseases such as scurvy, pellagra, and beri-beri has stuck. Linus Pauling writes in the forward of the book "The heart and Vitamin E" (1985): "The failure of the medical establishment during the last forty years to recognize the value of Vitamin E in controlling heart disease is responsible for a tremendous amount of unnecessary suffering and for many early deaths. The interesting story of the efforts to suppress the Shute discoveries about Vitamin E illustrates the shocking bias of organized medicine against nutritional measures for achieving improved health."
3. Disruptive idea: Healthcare is unfortunately largely a "sickness care" industry using toximolecular medicines instead of being a "preventive healthcare" industry using orthomolecular medicines. By bringing down the cost of treating disease and even preventing them, orthomolecular medicine will disrupt the entire "sickness care" medical industry which is worth trillions of dollars. Hence those potentially affected have an incentive to prevent it from gaining acceptance.

Past and Future:  Orthomolecular medicine is not new. Using particular foods to prevent and cure disease is as old as the hills. In India, the Amla gooseberry has long been touted as a health superfood which gives long life. It turns out that Amla is very high in Vitamin C (100 - 300mg per gooseberry). Irwin Stone and Linus Pauling were only stating in modern terms what was known for ages in India. My prediction is that despite stiff opposition from vested interests, orthomolecular medicine will in the future gain wide acceptance, because of the Internet and the inexpensive availability of Vitamins and other orthomolecular medicines.

Anyone who wants to learn more about Orthomolecular medicine should study the works of the Issac Newton of Nutrition, Dr. Weston A. Price, whom I describe in the next blog "The heavy price to pay for ignoring Weston Price". 

DISCLAIMER: The content on this website is intended for informational, and educational purposes only and not as a substitute for the medical advice, treatment or diagnosis of a licensed health professional. The author of this blog is  not a health professional, and shall in no event be held liable to any party for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, punitive or other damages arising from any use of the content of this website.