A highly and dangerous and notorious digestive bug, C Diff, has become resistant to traditional medical techniques, such as antibiotics, thus causing 20% relapse rate as ?surviving spores transform into active bacteria.?  Victoria Bowmann, Ph.D., a holistic practitioner and author of You Gotta Have Guts: The Natural Way to Enhance G.I. Health, has developed a natural strategy to successfully combat a malady that plagues 3-million Americans annually.  Research indicates that broad-spectrum antibiotics, employed in many treatments, disrupt the normal intestinal flora and leads to an overgrowth of C Diff while drugs used to stop diarrhea exacerbate a condition that, in some cases, can be fatal. 

?Antibiotics are ineffective because the diseases have adapted, plus they also wipe out the disease fighting capabilities of the body.  People come to me all the time after traditional methods have failed them, and C Diff is a pain condition that takes time to health through natural methods.  I employ a strategy of cleansing and repopulating the intestinal tract with good flora that is proving successful,? says Victoria Bowmann, Ph.D.

There are two forms of C Diff: an active, infectious form that doesn't survive for long periods of time and a non-active spore form that does survive the environment for extended periods of time. These spores indirectly infect when ingested and then morph into an active infectious form with symptoms similar to what Influenza viruses cause.  Since the spores are resistant to antibiotics, 20% of patients experience a relapse as the surviving spores transform into active bacteria. This re-infects the patient.

These C Diff spores can be found in a wide variety of areas you might find surprising: On toilet seats (not surprising), furniture, diaper pails, bedpans, telephones (surprising), stethoscopes, as well as under fingernails and on jewelry, particularly rings (really surprising).  Domesticated animals carry the spores and hospitals restrict potted plants as the soil may provide breeding ground for spores.

There are both mild cases of C Diff and severe cases.  The symptoms of the mild form are diarrhea (under 10 watery stools per day), flu like symptoms, mild abdominal pain, cramping and a low-grade fever.  The severe form is called C Diff Colitis and includes symptoms of a fever between 102 degrees and 104 degrees, severe diarrhea with over 10 watery stools per day, severe abdominal pain and inflammation of the large intestine.  It is rarely life threatening, however complications can occur including a dilated colon, inflammation of the lining of the abdomen and even perforation of the colon.

A long advocate for probiotics, Bowmann has spent over 20 years in pursuit of research on the benefits of probiotics and effectively employing them for a variety of digestive conditions.  As the infection rate of C Diff rose research began to indicate that certain strains of probiotics could effectively treat C Diff infections.  Prompting Bowmann to start devising strategies to combat the problem in a natural way, with or without the use of prescription medication.  These are usually administered twice daily for at least 30 days, which shortens the duration of diarrhea and other symptoms.  In addition, oral rehydration with micronutrients and minerals can support the body in maintaining electrolyte balance.

Two particular cases revolutionized her methodology:

Case Study #1:

Someone came to her who had been struggling with C Diff for about five years, taking numerous courses of Flagel (antibiotics) for recurrence.  All of the traditional methods failed him, and he was looking for relief and help.  We discussed his case and he asked if I would join his efforts.  This was October 2006.  He had also been diagnosed with IBS and colitis. He uses Gastrocare to keep the bowels solid, with 1 bowel movement per day yet he still has deep lower quadrant pain.

The previous research information gave me the insight in how to administer the probiotics. After 4 weekly treatments of colon hydrotherapy with reflorastation, he comments: ?My GI tract is good, there is no deep pain.  I have healthy eliminations and no IBS symptoms.?  About 7 months later he underwent a surgical procedure, was hospitalized for over a week, and the gut symptoms returned. Soon after being discharged, he came in for the reflorastation.  He has needed no further treatment.

Case Study #2:

A 28 year old nurse was a kidney transplant recipient so her immune system was suppressed due to anti-rejection medication. During a stressful time, she got C Diff and spent 3 weeks with loose, crampy bowels. Not wanting to challenge her liver to the mainstream medications normally used, she decided to try reflorastation. Two treatments were administered a week apart and the C Diff was resolved.

Victoria Bowmann, Ph.D. interviewed on NBC TV News About Her Work:

For more about Dr. Bowmann?s methods email her at VBowmann@cox.net and check out her website at www.MyRealHealth.com

About Victoria Bowmann, Ph.D.

Victoria Bowmann is a health care professional, author and speaker with more than 30 years of expertise in cleansing, detoxification, digestive and gastro-intestinal (GI) health. 

Growing up with allergies and a predisposition to arthritis and other genetic ailments, Bowmann began in earnest at a young age to research alternative treatments to invasive conventional approaches.

Bowmann honed in on the importance of cleansing and detoxification as a major factor in optimizing health. She created a widely used manual on reflorastation, a technique used to reintroduce healthy bacteria into the bowel following a colon hydrotherapy.

Over the past three decades, Bowmann has successfully utilized her method of reflorastation and propriety blend of probiotics to treat and deliver the optimal results to her patients. Her technique is now used by natural therapists worldwide.

In fact, as a pioneer in probiotic research, Bowmann has traveled internationally to educate other colon therapists and physicians and has personally trained technicians at the Paracelsus Clinic in Lustmuhle, Switzerland.

She has been interviewed on television and radio and has delivered numerous presentations across the nation and abroad. She is also a regular contributor to several national publications, such as:

?           Explore! for the professional

?           Public Health Alert

?           Naturopathic Doctor?s News and Review

In her book released this June (2009), You Gotta Have GUTS: The Natural Way to Enhance GI Health, Bowmann shares her extensive knowledge in layman?s terms and touts the relationship between GI health and overall well-being.  For three decades she has operated a private holistic therapy practice in Phoenix, Ariz., where she creates treatment plans designed to detoxify the body and restore a greater degree of vitality to the individual.

A self-proclaimed ?bodywork devotee,? Bowmann is extensively educated on integrated healing and natural medicine. After first studying business at Arizona State University, she went on to become a licensed massage and colon therapist in the state of Arizona.  She earned her Ph.D. in Homeopathy and Natural Medicine from Westbrook University as well as a Doctorate in Homeopathic Medicine from the British Institute of Homeopathy