In a pre-taped segment for the "Dr. Oz show," actor Charlie Sheen has revealed that he temporarily went off his HIV medication in order to try out an alternative treatment from a doctor in Mexico.
Although details of the treatment were not disclosed, apparently, Dr. Sam Chachoua, the physician who treated Sheen in Mexico – claimed on the same episode via a phone call that Dr. Mehmet Oz taped – that he was so confident of his treatment that he allegedly drew blood from Sheen and injected it into himself.
It was later revealed by Mark Burg, Sheen's manager, that the actor is already back on his meds because even though the virus was undetectable in his blood because of his diligence of taking his cocktail of pills, the numbers went back up as he underwent the alternative treatment.
"Charlie is back on his meds. He tried a cure from a doctor in Mexico but the minute the numbers went up, he started taking his medicine," Burg said.
Although Sheen said during his interview with Oz that he does not necessarily recommend others to follow suit and go off their HIV meds to seek alternative treatments, he also felt that he was not playing Russian Roulette with his health and knew he was presenting himself as his own test guinea pig.
HIV/AIDS affects thousands all over the globe. While there are treatments available that allow those living with the virus to live normal, happy lives, those drugs are very costly and often only available to the very rich. Certainly, the idea of alternative treatments available sounds very appealing. While Sheen's own experiment into finding treatment options in Mexico did not go as he had hoped, are there really alternative therapies available for HIV/AIDS?
Alternative treatments are labeled as such because they do not fit into mainstream, western ways of approaching medicine. Often, people who decide to use alternative treatments, go off what most would consider normal health care. This is different from so-called complementary therapies, like yoga, which is meant to be used along with traditional medical care.
Although numerous websites exist to lambast "Big Pharma" for only being interested in creating expensive pills and medicines to treat HIV/AIDS, cancer and other serious illnesses, they are not actually interested in finding a cure because it will not be profitable. However, these sites must be read with a grain of salt as none of the alternative therapies they describe has undergone serious scientific study or scrutiny.
Complementary And Alternative Medicine (CAMS)
Positive thinking, visualization, relaxation techniques, and even meditation with a mantra are described as some of the best therapies to help patients deal with the emotional and psychological toll that HIV/AIDS can take on a person.
Some websites also list herbs that are said to be beneficial to people living with HIV/AIDS. However, people must be extremely cautious when mixing these with their regular medication. For example, therapies which make use of antimicrobial herbs say that they can enhance the bacteria and virus-fighting properties of regular drugs.
Neem, propolis, tea, and garlic are listed as common types of antimicrobial supplements. However, websites like AIDS.gov warn that garlic supplements are known to impede HIV medication.
Some herbs are also listed as being helpful in treating the symptoms of HIV/AIDS. Ginkgo for instance, is said to relieve dementia, while aloe vera treats skin problems and lemon balm alleviates insomnia. St. John's wort is also listed as an herb that many use to treat depression, but it is also known to change the way HIV drugs interact with the body and should not be taken along with conventional medication for HIV/AIDS.
As with all CAMS, patients are highly encouraged to enter into any form of therapy with care, well-researched, and under the guidance of their primary health care provider.
