Chapter 24: Cipro Or Cannabis-Whats Best For Anthrax

Consider also Cipro's listed side effects; Abdominal pain; constipation; diarrhea; dizziness; gas; headache; heartburn; lack of energy; loss of appetite; nausea; sensitivity to sunlight; stomach upset; vomiting. Blurred vision; chest pain; chills; fever; hives; nightmares; restlessness; ringing in the ears; skin rash and tremors. (136)

By January 2002, after more than 32,000 people from Washington to Boston consumed CIPRO in the wake of the anthrax mailings, thousands had become seriously ill, many died, as a result. This death toll has never been counted in assessing the damage brought about by the mailings. (137)

Many researchers have noted cannabis's reputation - mostly in African folk medicine - as an effective remedy for anthrax. (138)

The role certain cannabinoids play in general antibiotic action is more well known. (139) Cannabis - both smoked and infused into a drink - is often used to clean out the lungs. (140)

Nobody has died - nor has anyone suffered ringing, rashes or tremors - from simply smoking cannabis. (141) The worst effects of cannabis are cognitive impairment, psychomotor impairment, anxiety, dysphoria, panic and paranoia, chronic bronchitis, and a "dependence syndrome." (142) All effects can be mitigated through familiarity, proper growing and smoking techniques, and by seeing cannabis as a tool rather than a vice. (143)

Notes

(136) "Prescription Drugs" - from the editors of Consumers Guide - Home Health Handbook - 1991, pp. 67-68

(137) www.healingcelebrations.com/smallpoxandanthrax.htm

(138) Christian Ratsch, "Marijuana Medicine," Healing Arts Press, 2001, p. 129-131. See also "Plants of the Gods"by Schultes and Hofmann, 1995, p. 97, "Bulletin on Narcotics," July-September, 1960, High Times Encyclopedia of Recreational Drugs, 1978, p. 125

(139) www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/hemp/medical/konopi.htm CIBA Foundation Study Group, "Hashish--Its Chemistry and Pharmacology," 1964, pp. 45, 49, www.jackherer.com/book/ch07.html "Marijuana Medicine" pp. 123 (rabies) 129, 140, 149, 173 (TB) 39, 40, 157, 173, 175 (gonorrhea). See also www.ccguide.org.uk/medical.html, nepenthes.lycaeum.org/Lud.../wbos.html, "The antibiotic properties of cannabis appears to be in the cannabidiolic acid and cannabidiol" - www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/hemp/mjmedhb.htm, mojo.calyx.net/~olsen/HEMP/IHA/iha02209.html(THC) has even been shown to have antibacterial properties (Van Klingeren and Ten Ham 1976). www.druglibrary.org/olsen/HEMP/IHA/iha01104.html

(140) www.google.ca/search?q=cache:aMrubv2KSfMC: www.mikuriya.com/s3_1.pdf Cannabis expectorant&hl=en&ie=UTF-8 The R.R. McMeens M.D.,"Report of the Ohio State medical committee on cannabis Indica," 1860 www.mikuriya.com/meduses.html, "Marijuana Medicine" pp. 129-130, 158

(141) www.olywa.net/when/indications10.html, www.druglibrary.org/olsen/HEMP/IHA/iha01104.html, www.equalrights4all.org/books/health.html, www.electricemperor.com/enter/how.html

(142) 1994 Australian National Drug Strategy Report

(143) www.johnconroy.com/malmo_factum.pdf

FBI officials may be implicated in a conspiracy to impede justice in the anthrax mailings case, if not treasonous dereliction of duty, according to a growing number of scientists and consumer advocates. After officials cited the likeliest origin of the powdered anthrax was the U.S. Army?s Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah, or its Ohio-based supplier and CIA-contractor, Battelle Memorial Instititue (BMI), FBI Director Robert Mueller announced the bureau has no intention of investigating anyone with, or formerly with, their chief suspect?BMI.

Just weeks ago, major progress in the FBI?s investigation seemed forthcoming. The New York Times and Washington Post revealed that BMI, Dugway?s anthrax facility supplier and chief administrator had contracted with the CIA (in project ?Clear Vision?) to produce, albeit illegally, the 1 trillion spore-per-gram strain of anthrax under investigation. BMI, while heading the U.S. military?s ?Joint Vaccine Acquisitions Program? worth more than $1 billion in vaccine contracts, commissioned America?s top anthrax expert, William C. Patrick, III, to deliver a report on the powdered anthrax?s prospects for being spread through the mail.

Thus, by mid-December, the public, including health scientists urged to help federal officials identify suspects, realized that someone with high level security clearance, a ?black-op budget,? access to the BMI/Dugway anthrax labs, and vaccine sales incentive, most likely took BMI?s powdered anthrax, and prepared it for mailing from Trenton, NJ; St. Petersburg, FL; Atlanta, GA; and Malaysia.

For the first time since the 1975 Frank Church congressional investigation of the CIA for illegally stockpiling anthrax and other biological weapons, the public learned that the CIA had been violating the international Geneva Accord moratorium on biological weapons development?a revelation somewhat embarrassing to American diplomats engaged in the global ?War on Terrorism.?

:: Newspaper Reports about Cipro

During the Anthrax scare in the USA, in the Autumn of 2001, Cipro was the antibiotic of choice given to those potentially exposed to Anthrax spores. However, the experiences of those taking the drug led to a number of newspaper articles on the severe side effects associated with this drug. More articles about the severe side-effects of these drugs continue to be written.

FDA oversight of 'off-label' drug use wanes
By Chris Adams and Alison Young
Knight Ridder Newspapers Washington Bureau 4 November 2003

The drug Kristen Pettijohn took was called Avelox. It's part of a family of antibiotics called fluoroquinolones....That was a Thursday. By Sunday, Pettijohn was nauseated and suffering abdominal pain. Her mother packed a plastic bag with the remaining Avelox pills and took her to the hospital....Over the next five days, Pettijohn was incoherent. She had a burning rash and her skin began peeling off. She slipped into a coma, resting on an air bed, totally wrapped as though she were a severe burn patient....Pettijohn's liver was in full failure, and she was experiencing a form of Stevens-Johnson syndrome, a rare and extreme drug reaction mentioned on the Avelox label.

Gary and Ruth Pettijohn, of Batesville, Ind., hold a photo of their daughter, Kristen, who died after being prescribed a powerful antibiotic called Avelox. RANDY AMICK, KRT. She had a liver transplant on Friday. The doctors reported that her old liver had turned to mush and fallen apart in their hands. Soon after the operation, Pettijohn had a heart attack, then another. Her death certificate cited Avelox as the prime contributing factor in her death.
http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/news/special_packages/
riskyrx/7152542.htm

Postal workers sue Bayer, hospitals over antibiotic
NewsDay 18 October 2003

A group of U.S. Postal Service workers has filed a lawsuit against the manufacturer of an antibiotic they took during the anthrax scare two years ago. The lawsuit filed in Superior Court Friday charges that Bayer failed to disclose data that the drug, Cipro, could cause nerve and tendon damage. The suit, which seeks class action status, also names three New Jersey hospitals, accusing them of failing to provide warnings, perform exams or offer alternative medications. "It's unfortunate enough the workers went through the anthrax attacks, but the fact that they got a hit from Cipro, which was supposed to protect them, is disgraceful," attorney Stephen Sheller told The Star-Ledger of Newark for Saturday editions.
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-nj--antibioticsuit1018oct18,0,5540902.story?coll=ny-ap-regional-wire

Anthrax vs. the Cure
Exposed Workers Blame Cipro for Crippling Effects.
By Patrick Rucker
Fairford County Weekly 25 September 2003

Attorney Steve Sheller is leading the Cipro lawsuit. Hundreds of people, Sheller believes, are suffering severe health problems related to the drug. Sheller says Cipro has left his clients with a variety of debilitating ailments, including severe joint pain, tendinitis and muscle ache, severe anxiety and panic attacks, insomnia and depression. Sheller claims Cipro was often the wrong medicine for dealing with the anthrax scare and that Bayer knew the drug could cause complications, particularly if taken in combination with other drugs, but continued to push its use anyway. "They were handing Cipro out like candy," Sheller says, and his clients were not informed about possible adverse effects. westchesterweekly.com/gbase/News/content.html?oid=oid:34987

Cipro Made Us Sick
Hundreds to sue West Haven-based Bayer over a drug they took to fight anthrax
By Patrick Rucker
Hartford Advocate 25 September 2003

Days after starting his cycle of Cipro, Angell began suffering pain in his joints and tendons. Walking became labored and painful. He stopped taking Cipro, but his condition did not improve. In fact, his condition has never improved. Chronic pain forced Angell to leave his post with Baucus. He now works as a consultant from home and lays the blame for his disability on Cipro.

And Angell is not alone. The drug that he believes left him debilitated is being blamed by many others for destroying their normal lives and now they are taking action. A Philadelphia law firm is preparing a class-action lawsuit against Bayer Pharmaceutical, Cipro's Germany-based manufacturer that has its North American headquarters in West Haven. The suit is being filed on behalf of the Capitol Hill staff, Washington postal workers, employees of American Media -- publisher of the Sun and National Inquirer -- and all those who claim to have been injured after taking Cipro in the wake of the anthrax scare. The suit also involves persons who took the drug for routine medical purposes.
hartfordadvocate.com/gbase/News/content?oid=old:35035

Baucus Urges GAO to Open Cipro Probe
By Mark Preston
Roll Call 19 December 2002

Prompted by a staffer's prolonged illness, Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) on Wednesday urged Congressional investigators to examine the widespread distribution of Cipro following last year's anthrax attacks.
"Obviously, we were given this [antibiotic] and nobody knew much about it," said Jeff Forbes, Baucus' chief of staff. "And it appears that this drug could have had a negative effect on one of Senator Baucus' employees, and he wants to get to the bottom of it."

Senator Seeks Probe of Cipro Use for Anthrax
Reuters 19 December 2002

The weakened condition of a Senate staffer has spurred a request for congressional investigators to probe the effects from the widespread use of Bayer Ag antibiotic Cipro in Washington after anthrax-laced letters were mailed to Congress last year. Montana Democrat Sen. Max Baucus wrote to the General Accounting Office to ask for an investigation because one of his staff suffered a debilitating condition after he began to take the drug, a Baucus spokeswoman said on Thursday. The staffer, John Angell, has a condition that affects his tendons and makes it hard for him to walk. He first noticed the symptoms within days of taking Cipro to protect against anthrax exposure, the Baucus spokeswoman said.

Anthrax drug blamed for lingering ailments
By John Lantigua, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Palm Beach Post 20 October 2002

For some American Media employees, veterans of last year's agonizing anthrax scare, it isn't over yet. A very small number of people say they continue to suffer physical problems that are both persistent and perplexing. They attribute those discomforts to the drug they were given to fight possible anthrax poisoning -- Cipro -- a product of the Bayer Corp. In fact, some have decided that the medicine has posed more of a threat to them than the malady -- a claim challenged by some doctors involved in the crisis and by the company. But the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta is concerned enough that it is in the middle of a two-year study of people who took anthrax antibiotics. "I think the stuff is horrible and wish I hadn't taken anything," says a 45-year-old mother of two who still works at AMI and asked that her name not be used. "Ten days into taking it, I got pains in my right foot, and then it started in my left Achilles tendon. I stopped taking it after 20 days, but in all the months since I haven't taken a step that I didn't feel it."

Anthrax ills mirror Cipro side effects
By Mark Benjamin and Dan Olmsted
United Press International 25 April 2002

Doctors treating several survivors of last year's anthrax attacks describe a continuing set of symptoms that are similar to reported side effects of the main drug used to treat them. Those patients -- who received treatment after actually contracting anthrax and not just as a precaution -- suffer from symptoms including confusion, memory loss, fatigue and joint pain. That same constellation of mental and physical problems also has been associated with patients taking Cipro for other reasons.
www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=25042002-053414-5750r


Investigative Report: Cipro, Part 1 - What You Don't Know Can Hurt You
By Kevin Curran
NewsMax.com 29 November 2001

It is a simple medical equation: Anthrax exposure + Cipro = cure. Or does it?A NewsMax.com investigation of the reaction to the recent anthrax episodes has found the pursuit of a treatment has opened the door for misinformation, confusion and the protection of a major pharmaceutical company.
www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2001/11/28/115211.shtml

Cipro no option for man tested for anthrax in Washington
By Nathan Dickinson
Pottsville Republican and Evening Herald 17 November 2001

"I myself remember having had a real problem with Cipro," Zogby said. Zogby said his ordeal with Cipro occurred seven years ago when he needed to take an antibiotic, but the debilitating side effects of anxiety and depression pushed him to return to his personal physician and request a different type of drug. What also compelled him to switch at the time, Zogby said, was an article in the Washington Post describing assorted side effects some people were experiencing with drugs like Cipro.

First Victims of Anthrax Mail Attack Shunning Cipro
NewsMax.com 10 November 2001

One of their co-workers died and another came close to death thanks to an anthrax-riddled letter, but fellow employees at Boca Raton's American Media Inc. (AMI) are finding that taking the antibiotic meant to prevent them from getting the deadly disease is a health threat in itself. "I'd say the majority of people have switched off Cipro to one of the other antibiotics," David Pecker, CEO of AMI told the New York Post.
www.newsmax.com/archive/print.shtml?a=2001/11/10/113347

Experts warn against Cipro side effects
By Alyson Oüten
KTVB.com Idaho's NewsChannel 7 November 2001

Sales of the antibiotic Cipro have gone through the roof since anthrax cases started popping up along the east coast. Cipro prescriptions have increased 50% nationwide and prescriptions have nearly tripled in New York City. But, the side effects of this power drug have some doctors concerned.
ktvb.com/news/newstory.html?StoryID=9486

Concerns arise about Cipro's side effects
By Stephen Smith
The Miami Herald 3 November 2001

Concerns about potentially dangerous side effects from the anthrax-thwarting drug Cipro have prompted the state to activate a 24-hour hot line to gather reports and dispense advice. In the month since about 1,100 people in Palm Beach County began taking the powerful antibiotic, the Florida Department of Health has recorded reports of side effects at an unexpectedly high rate, the state's top disease tracker said Friday.

Prescribing Cipro Is 'Uncontrolled Experiment'
Health Officials Worry That Taking Drug for Anthrax May Have Serious Side Effects
By Shankar Vedantam
Washington Post 3 November 2001

The full impact of large numbers of people being put on Cipro by doctors -- and even larger numbers taking the medicine on their own -- will not be known for weeks or months. But already, patients with other illnesses who desperately need Cipro have been deprived of the medicine, and patients around the country taking the drug have begun reporting such side effects as dizziness, headaches, nausea and achy joints.
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A32486-2001Nov2.html

Anthrax Cure has its Own Dangers
Associated Press
CNN 31 October 2001

After five days on Cipro, Jill Perel can't imagine why anyone would take the anti-anthrax drug without a clear need and a doctor's prescription. "I had never been so sick," she said from Delray Beach, Florida "People taking Cipro with no exposure to anthrax have to be out of their minds." For many people, warding off a possible case of anthrax infection has become a pain in the neck, head, belly and more, thanks to the unpleasant and sometimes dangerous side effects of the antibiotic.

Patients Struggling with Cipro Side Effects
By Jonathan Bor
Baltimore Sun 31 October 2001

Last Tuesday, Linda Cotton listened intently when the doctor who handed her a 10-day supply of antibiotic, Cipro, warned of possible side effects. Hours after taking her first pill, she knew exactly what he was talking about. First came splitting headaches, then nausea and a nagging irritability that hasn't yet quit.

Experts Warn of Increased Risk of Seizure with Cipro Use
By Melinda T. Willis
ABC News 31 October 2001

Some people may be at higher risk of having a seizure if they take the antibiotic Cipro - now in demand as an anthrax treatment - the Epilepsy Foundation warns.
www.abcnews.go.com/sections/living/DailyNews/
cipro_seizures011019.html

Confusion about anthrax and what to do about it abounds; here are answers, straight and up to date
By Avery Comarow
US News 31 October 2001

Cipro can be fatal if you're taking the asthma medication theophylline, and side effects can be serious. Antibiotics in the Cipro family may do long-term damage to the nervous system, with symptoms ranging from shooting pains to swollen joints.
www.usnews.com/usnews/issue/011105/health/5terror.b2.htm

The Cure is What Ails Them
By Rita Rubin
USA Today 31 October 2001

At one point, John Ford wasn't sure which would be worse: getting sick with inhalation anthrax or continuing to take Cipro to prevent getting sick with inhalation anthrax.
www.usatoday.com/news/attack/2001/10/31/anthrax-cipro.htm

Cipro Side Effects Cause Switch
By Brian DeBose
The Washington Times 30 October 2001

Postal workers, who suffered from such side effects as drowsiness, nausea and migraine headaches from taking the antibiotic Cipro to fight off anthrax, are pleased that the D.C. Health Department switched them to doxycycline. But they have little trust in city and federal officials.

Experts Are Troubled by Patients Who, Defying Odds and Advice, Stop Taking Cipro
By Dana Canedy
New York Times 30 October 2001

Bobbie Bender simply could not take one more Cipro pill. Soon after beginning a prescribed 60-day treatment of the antibiotic for possible anthrax exposure, Mr. Bender said he began to experience gastrointestinal problems. Days later, he began seeing white spots and sometimes felt faint, he said. So, against the advice of state and local health officials, Mr. Bender, an employee at American Media Inc., where anthrax killed one co-worker and infected another earlier this month, has stopped taking the white Cipro pills altogether.
www.nytimes.com/2001/10/30/national/30FLOR.html

Cipro Side Effects Spur Concern
By Mike Toner and Jane O. Hansen
Atlanta Journal-Constitution 29 October 2001

More than 10,000 Americans are taking Cipro for possible exposure to anthrax. Millions more take the antibiotic for other reasons. Prescriptions have soared by 49 percent in the last month. Bayer, which manufactures the drug, plans to sell 100 million tablets to the government this year --- and 200 million more later. But the surge in Cipro sales is focusing attention on a simmering controversy about some rare but painful and debilitating side effects that have dogged the class of antibiotics called fluoroquinolones.

Drug of Choice Has a Downside
By Carol Krucoff
Los Angeles Times 29 October 2001

Watching a panicked nation stockpile Cipro makes Linda Baldwin want to cry. "That drug absolutely ruined my life," says the 61-year-old Oxnard woman, who was given Cipro and its sister drug, Floxin, for a urinary tract infection in 1996. She blames the drugs for causing blurred vision, excruciating muscle and joint pain and a cascade of other disabling side effects that have left her unable to work or even play with her grandchildren.

Man allegedly drove into gates of Holyfield's home
Associated Press
26 October 2001

FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. -- Former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield is pressing charges against a man who allegedly plowed his car through the gates of the boxer's suburban Atlanta home. Michael D. Copeland of Jonesboro was charged with criminal damage to property. Copeland told police he was a postal worker and became disoriented Wednesday evening when he felt a burning sensation on his skin, said Maj. Bruce Jordan of the Fayette County sheriff's department. Officers found literature about anthrax, a bottle of the antibiotic Cipro and a surgical mask on the front seat of Copeland's car, Jordan said. Copeland was treated at Southern Regional Medical Center and released. The hospital did not immediately know if he was tested for anthrax.

Saved from anthrax, sick from Cipro?
By Paul Sperry
WorldNetDaily 24 October 2001

Side effects could hit runners, coffee-drinkers, kids, elderly hardest.
www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=25058

If misused, drug for anthrax could carry bigger risks
By Jeremy Manier
Chicago Tribune 24 October 2001

As worrisome as anthrax can be, the misuse of Cipro and other antibiotics meant to fight the disease may create an even greater public health threat of drug-resistant germs, along with putting individuals at risk for allergic reactions and nervous-system side effects, experts say.
chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0110240281oct24.story

Antibiotic May Not Be the 'Protection' You Envision
By Christopher Wanjek
Washington Post 22 October 2001

Lost amid the public health establishment's call for calm about anthrax is the fact that stocking up on antibiotics isn't just a threat to public health. Even if you care only about yourself and your family, taking these drugs is misguided, dangerous and possibly deadly. By administering powerful antibiotics when they're not medically indicated, you can easily wind up hurting the very people you're trying to protect.
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33778-2001Oct22.html

Boca hospital over-prescribing Cipro.
Some physicians 'take the easy way out,' dispense drug to 'hypochondriacs'
By Paul Sperry
World Net Daily 11 October 2001

According to the FDA package insert, Cipro is contraindicated for patients who are pregnant, since it can cause spontaneous abortions, and for diabetics, since it elevates glucose levels. Diabetics have gone into comas after taking Cipro. ... Cipro can cause a life-threatening type of colitis, a chronic irritation of the bowel. ... According to the pharmacist, the side effects from Cipro are much worse than those of common antibiotics, such as tetracycline. ... Three years ago, a Washington-area woman took Cipro for a sinus infection and spent the next 18 months trying to recover from the drug's side effects, the pharmacist says.
www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=24888