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Article summary:

• Babesia infections have risen in recent years, following along with the global expansion of Lyme disease.
• Babesiosis refers to the infection itself, and Babesia refers to the parasites that cause the infection.
• Babesiosis is categorized as a coinfection of Lyme disease and like Lyme disease.
• Babesia is an intracellular parasite which lives inside the red blood cells, in a similar way as the pathogen that causes malaria.
• Babesiosis can range in severity from asymptomatic to life-threatening.
• Babesiosis has many of the symptoms of a flu-like illness, including fever, chills, fatigue, and muscle aches.
• An important and notable indicator of Babesiosis is an unusual degree of profuse sweating.
• Shortness of breath, called “air hunger” can also be an indicator of Babesia infection.
• Dark urine, recurrent pink eye, and mood swings are also common symptoms of Babesiosis.
• Severe and potentially fatal symptoms can arise in the later stages of Babesia infection, including anemia, jaundice, enlarged spleen and liver, acute respiratory distress, low blood pressure, and heart problems.
• People with other illnesses and coinfections, weakened immune systems, the elderly, and those who do not have a spleen are at higher risk for severe disease.
• Parasitology experts report that up to 40% of patients with Lyme disease are coinfected with Babesia.
• Babesia can be transmitted through blood transfusions (inside the red blood cells) or congenitally.
• Babesia infection can increase the severity of Lyme disease.
• Coinfection may provide a survival advantage for both the Babesia and Lyme disease pathogen.
• Babesia concurrent with Lyme disease can also lead to longer duration of illness.
• Babesiosis can be difficult to diagnose.
• Another coinfection, called Bartonella, often looks a lot like Babesia, and Bartonella often looks a lot like Babesia.
• The best determination of babesiosis can come through forming a clinical presentation based on symptoms.
• When addressing Babesia infection, it may be best to build up the immune system and make the infected person an inhospitable host instead of focusing solely on trying to eliminate the pathogen.
• The immune system needs to be engaged, focused, and able to overpower any sort of infection to rid the body of a stealthy pathogen like Babesia.
• It’s essential for the body’s drainage pathways to be open—brain glymphatics, body lymphatics, liver/bile duct, kidney, and bowel—all these need to be free-flowing to allow the wastes and dying pathogens to leave the body.
• Even if there is a definite diagnosis of Babesia infection, it can be best to use a comprehensive approach instead of just trying to eliminate Babesia.
• Factors such as heavy metals, other parasites, continuous EMR/EMF exposure, chemical toxicity, or mold exposure can adversely affect the immune system and allow the opportunistic infections to take hold.
• Botanical remedies with immunomodulating and adaptogenic effects can be helpful for Babesiosis.
• Specific remedies and protocols for supporting the body and clearing Babesia are documented in my At-Home Program for Chronic Illness.

Babesia species are the second most common parasite found in the blood of mammals.¹ Despite this high rank in the blood parasites for mammals category, it is seen less frequently in humans than other animals. The number of human cases has risen in recent years, though, following along with the global expansion of Lyme disease.

Like the Lyme disease bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, Babesia parasites are transferred to their hosts by tick bites. A report in the 2015 issue of Trends in Parasitology claimed that up to 40% of patients with Lyme disease experienced concurrent Babesiosis.²

How Do I Know If I Have Babesia?

“Babesiosis” refers to the disease itself, and “Babesia” refers to the parasites that cause the infection. Babesia microti is the main species responsible for human Babesiosis.³ Human babesiosis is emerging as a significant health threat. But, how do you know if you have it? Fortunately, there are helpful ways to pinpoint the Babesia parasite and the symptoms it produces.

What Is Babesia?

The first case of human Babesia infection was reported in Massachusetts in 1969. Babesiosis is categorized as a coinfection of Lyme disease and like Lyme disease, has become widespread. Cases have also been reported across the United States, Asia, and Europe.

Babesia is categorized as a coinfection of Lyme disease. It is an intracellular parasite, meaning it lives inside the red blood cells (RBCs). In that respect, it operates a lot like malaria. Babesia can reside and replicate within the RBCs and cause the cells to open up (lyse), spilling their contents. Then, an infected patient’s RBC count may go down and lead to anemia, fatigue, and more symptoms. Since RBCs are the blood cells responsible for delivering oxygen to the body, there can be other symptoms related to this Babesia-induced oxygen deprivation.

Additionally, when Babesia causes the RBCs to lyse and the contents spill out, they have to be handled by the body. The parasites may gather in the spleen or the liver causing those organs becoming enlarged. Plus, there can be general inflammatory reactions to the Babesia/RBC debris. Neck and back pain, headaches, abdominal pain, and nausea are common. Additionally, organs involved in the body’s essential drainage system—lymph, liver, and kidney—can get congested with the parasites and debris, leading to further symptoms and side effects.

Another unfortunate component of Babesia infection—it can recur years after what was thought to be a complete and effective treatment, as the parasites residing inside of human red blood cells hide from and escape treatment methods.

Babesiosis causes a wide variety of symptoms. Babesia-infected patients will not necessarily have all of the symptoms at once. Plus, symptoms of this stealthy infection may change frequently. Symptoms of Babesia infection can include:⁴

• High fever
• Chills
• An unusual degree of sweating
• Shortness of breath (“air hunger”)
• Weakness
• Anorexia
• Severe headache
• Fatigue
• Muscle aches
• Joint pain
• Abdominal pain
• Nausea
• Skin bruising
• Mood changes
• Generalized weakness
• Fever
• Gastrointestinal symptoms (anorexia, nausea, abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.)
• Headache
• Myalgia
• Weight loss
• Arthralgia
• Respiratory symptoms
• Dark urine
• Pink eye

Most notably, people with Babesiosis may be continually hot and constantly sweating. They may go through cycles of fever and sweat at night. They may have sweats during the day, too. In addition to profuse sweating, Babesia-infected patients may also experience a shortness of breath referred to as “air hunger,” a sensation being unable to breathe in sufficient air and having a hard time catching a breath.

Recurrent conjunctivitis (pink eye) infections are also common. There can also be mood and emotion-related issues where people may experience anxiety to the point of panic, or depression to the point of suicidal thoughts.

When Babesiosis moves into its later stages, more severe symptoms can manifest, including:

• Jaundice
• Congestive heart failure
• Renal failure
• Acute respiratory distress syndrome⁵
• Anemia requiring transfusion
• Disseminated intravascular coagulation (small blood clots throughout the bloodstream, that block small blood vessels)
• Hypotension (very low blood pressure) and shock
• Myocardial infarction

The clinical spectrum of the infection can range from asymptomatic to rapidly progressive and fatal. Although babesiosis can affect people of all ages, most patients present with the infection in their 40s or 50s.

Moreover, certain factors cause more severe disease, and these patients are at increased risk:

• The elderly
• Prior splenectomy patients
• An Immunosuppressed or immunodeficient status
• People with liver disease
• Premature babies ⁶

How Are Babesia and Lyme Disease Connected?

As mentioned above, parasitology experts claim that up to 40% of patients with Lyme disease are coinfected with Babesia. This fact is particularly alarming given that the disease can often go undetected in asymptomatic people, and can then be transmitted through blood transfusions (inside the red blood cells) or congenitally. That leads to Babesiosis being the single most common transfusion-related infection.

Babesia infection can increase the severity of Lyme disease. Coinfected patients are more likely to experience a particular array of symptoms more frequently than those with Lyme disease alone.⁷ Concurrent symptoms and adverse effects include:

• Fatigue
• Headache
• Sweats
• Chills
• Anorexia
• Nausea
• Changing mood and emotions
• Conjunctivitis (“pink eye”)
• Splenomegaly (enlarged spleen)

Furthermore, Babesia requires different treatment than Lyme disease. This suggests that coinfection may provide a survival advantage for both the Babesia and Lyme disease pathogen.⁸

Babesia concurrent with Lyme disease can also lead to longer duration of illness. Babesia patients can have a wide range of constitutional, musculoskeletal, or neurological symptoms, and they can go on for years. A particular study found that 50% of coinfected patients were symptomatic for three months or longer, compared to only 4% of patients who had Lyme disease alone.⁹ 

It’s also concerning that Babesiosis can be difficult to diagnose based on symptoms. Nearly all patients with Babesia report profuse sweating. However, if the patients are coinfected with Lyme disease, the incidence of sweats dropped by 42%. Sweating is also reported in other tick-borne illnesses, which also adds to the diagnostic challenge. ¹⁰

Adding to the puzzle further, another coinfection, called Bartonella, often looks a lot like Babesia, and Bartonella often looks a lot like Babesia. So, if the patient is not responding to treatment, there may not be a resolution or improvement in the symptoms until the other is addressed. Many times it may be easier to assume that a patient has both of them and go after both when designing a treatment protocol.

How Is Babesiosis Diagnosed and Treated?

Babesiosis can be challenging to diagnose. In the very early stages, typically the first two weeks of the infection, Babesia parasites can be seen in a blood sample under a microscope.

Further testing may provide some supportive results. If there is anywhere from mild to severe hemolytic anemia, a disorder in which red blood cells are destroyed faster than they can be made, it can provide support for a Babesiosis diagnosis. Additionally, a slightly depressed leukocyte (white blood cell) count may be present. For the most part, though, the best determination can come through forming a clinical presentation based on symptoms.

Understandably, people infected with Babesia can have a lot going on in their bodies. Bringing the body into balance is an essential first step. You are always well-advised to focus on building up your immune system and making yourself an inhospitable host instead of focusing solely on trying to eliminate the pathogens.

Any time a protocol is applied that kills off a pathogen, there can be an adjustment time as the body removes the pathogens and their debris. That’s why it’s so essential for the body’s drainage pathways to be open—brain glymphatics, body lymphatics, liver/bile duct, kidney, and bowel—all these need to be free-flowing to allow the wastes to leave the body. Otherwise, they can accumulate and exacerbate symptoms or create detoxification reactions.

Specific botanicals have immunomodulating effects, meaning that they can boost the immune system’s ability to control stealth microbes and restore normal immune system functions, while at the same time reducing immune-mediated inflammation. Some immunomodulating herbs also have adaptogenic effects, meaning they improve the body’s ability to deal with stresses. They include:

• Cordyceps
• Reishi
• Rhodiola
• Eleuthero

Supplements and herbs can address Babesia symptoms and offer a Babesia-infected patient a better quality of life by reducing the parasitic load. A combination of botanicals can be helpful to treat Babesiosis, including:

Artemisia (Artemisia annua) is also called qing hao in Chinese medicine. It contains a chemical compound called artemisinin that has potent antimalarial effects. It is thought that the herb can lose its effectiveness with long-term use, so it is best to cycle on and off it. ¹¹

Berberine is an alkaloid found in goldenseal that is antimicrobial, antifungal, anti-tumor, and anti-inflammatory.¹² It also supports healthy lipid levels and has blood glucose–lowering (antidiabetic) effects.

Cryptolepis root is an herbal treatment that is gaining good traction. It is a herb used in Africa to treat malaria.¹³ It’s been shown to be effective in several Babesiosis patients who kept on relapsing.

Cat’s Claw (Uncaria tomentosa) is one of the highly touted herbs native to the Amazon. It has a long history of traditional use for the treatment of a wide range of inflammatory conditions. This herbal remedy has compounds in it that are considered an immunomodulator, meaning it boosts or reduces immune system function depending on which is needed. It is known to be anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial.¹⁴

Noni (Morinda citrifolia) is a plant native to the Polynesian region which is rich in antioxidants and polysaccharides. It has been shown to provide anti-malarial, antibacterial, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and antihistamine effects.¹⁵

Neem (Azadirachta indica) is a traditional medicinal plant of India that has potent antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. This versatile herb contains berberine alkaloid as one of its constituents. It has demonstrated protective effects on the liver and kidneys and potentially has anti-cancer properties and protective effects on the liver and kidneys.¹⁶

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is used worldwide for the treatment of infectious diseases, gastrointestinal complaints, and wound healing. It’s effective against both gram positive and negative bacteria and helps fight fevers. It is also antimalarial, antimicrobial, and antibabesial.¹⁷

Why Use a Comprehensive Treatment Approach?

Even if there is a definite diagnosis of Babesia infection, it can be best to use a comprehensive approach instead of just trying to eliminate Babesia. Rather than aiming to take down Babesia, you can accomplish a great deal by addressing all the pieces that are going on with your body.

The immune system needs to be engaged, focused, and able to overpower any sort of infection to rid the body of a stealthy pathogen like Babesia. If you have heavy metals, other parasites, continuous EMR/EMF exposure, chemical toxicity, or mold exposure, they can adversely affect the immune system, and the opportunistic infections can take hold. Until you get rid of those challenges, you’re likely not going to have the success that you want in completely freeing yourself of Babesia.

Even though Babesia infection is a key player in chronic illness, you have the power to regain control of your health and feel better. If you’d like additional support addressing Babesiosis, coinfections, and chronic illness, check out my At-Home Program, which has valuable information and protocols that you can work through on your own.

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