MORGELLONS AND LYME DISEASE
Often those unfortunate enough to suffer with the debilitating symptoms of Morgellons are also found to have contracted Lyme disease sometime in the past. It is interesting that there is a
connection between Lyme disease and Morgellons. This considering the attention Lymes has garnered with certain health professionals who feel that Lyme, like Morgellons, is not an ordinary illness.
There have been allegations over the years that Lyme disease was a natural disease made worse by genetic manipulation. The focus of these accusations is Plum Island, Just off Orient Point, Long
Island, and six miles from the Connecticut coast. In 1954, research was influenced by the Cold War and scientists began studying ways to inflict damage on Soviet livestock. The Cuban government alleges that in the 1960s and 70s, bioweapons developed at Plum were deployed against Cuban agriculture, targeting pork, tobacco and
sugar cane.
In surrounding communities, distrust of Plum Island runs deep. Lyme disease takes its name from a Connecticut town across from the island; many wonder whether birds or swimming animals could have brought the disease from Plum Island. Some suspect that it may have been deliberately released. Others speculate that Morgellons may
have also originated on the island. Plum Island officials, of course, dismiss such hypotheses as fantasy. It is not too far outside of the spectrum to suggest that Morgellons could be a
manmade disease. One woman, identified by the name "L," sent the author an e-mail stating that her husband, in 1993/1994, worked as a mechanical technician for a chemical plant that started an
experimental program for their wastewater treatment plant adding plant organisms into their wastewater treatment facility. "He assisted with the installation of the startup equipment and
overlooked the ongoing maintenance of this equipment. There were times he would be working on this equipment in nothing more than rubber boots and a dust mask. This plant organism was not supposed
to infect humans.
"L" and her husband have both come down with symptoms of Morgellons. From the research so far, scientists who are examining the lesions
and the fibers extracted from them are finding that the fibers might be made of cellulose, a molecule generally found in plants.
Morgellons - New Disease, or
Man-Made Weapon of Terror?
by Tim R. Swartz
Posted: 13:10 December 3, 2007
The victims feel as if bugs are crawling under their skin. Their doctors treat them as if they are insane. It is called Morgellons,
the fiber disease, a mysterious skin disease that is currently spreading across the globe.
Those with this disease describe feelings of insects scurrying beneath their skin and have mysterious sores that ooze out blue and white fibers, some as thick as spaghetti strands. Attempts to remove the fibers are said to produce shooting pains radiating from the
site.
To date, no clinical studies have looked into Morgellons. The first paper mentioning Morgellons was published in a recent issue of the American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, co-authored by members of the Morgellons Research Foundation, a non-profit organization
devoted to raising public awareness about the disease.
The disease is named after a medical condition described in 1674 by the British author Thomas Browne. Known as "Morgellons," Browne said the disorder caused children to "critically break out with harsh
hairs on their backs." However, the Morgellons Research Foundation says that it is doubtful that the 17th-century disease is related to modern-day Morgellons.Analysis of the fibers found in the sores
suggest that they are more than just lint from clothing, carpets, or bedding, nor are the black specks
composed of pepper, as several dermatologists have proposed. Some
suggest the fibers are made of cellulose, a molecule generally found in plants. And if placed in a Petri dish, the fibers taken from a
Morgellons sore will continue to grow.
Most of the medical community seems to think that Morgellons is mass delusion and people complaining of the symptoms are diagnosed with "delusional parasitosis," a psychological problem in which people imagine that they are infested with parasites. Yet patients all
across the U.S. have reported the same symptoms long before hearing about the disease in the media or talking to other patients with similar symptoms.Some health professionals, such as Dr. Hildegarde Staninger from California, are finally beginning to sit up and take
notice, bringing into play modern technology in the form of electron microscopes and spectrographic analysis in order to discover the secret behind the Morgellons
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