
Hypothesis: Bipolar disorder is an Epstein–Barr virus‐driven disease - adammichaelc
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7133420/
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Decker87
This study is from April, I wonder if there's been any substantial progress on
whether this hypothesis is true?

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tdrp
Maybe someone in the field can pitch in, but I also saw this sentence in the
article: "I have previously hypothesised that all human chronic autoimmune
diseases are caused by Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) infection of autoreactive B
cells,"

So it seems he's been hovering around the EBV hypothesis for longer than that
so I am also curious if there was any real progress and whether this is
something the medical research community is treating seriously.

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hhas01
"I have previously hypothesised that all human chronic autoimmune diseases are
caused by Epstein–Barr virus (EBV)"

Obvious red flag is obvious, because once you start looking for something in
particular you do start finding it everywhere you look.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias)

This is why we developed the scientific method, to act as a filter for such
human follies. That the author is _still_ hypothesizing instead of rolling up
his sleeves and doing the actual work to DISprove his own ideas speaks
volumes.

Or, to put it another way: it is not sufficient merely to gird oneself in the
mantle of Marshall and Warren; one must also swallow the H Pylori and serve
their hard time on the shitter.

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computerphage
"Epstein-Barr virus, or EBV, is one of the most common human viruses in the
world. It spreads primarily through saliva. EBV can cause infectious
mononucleosis, also called mono, and other illnesses. Most people will get
infected with EBV in their lifetime and will not have any symptoms. Mono
caused by EBV is most common among teens and adults."

[https://www.cdc.gov/epstein-barr/index.html](https://www.cdc.gov/epstein-
barr/index.html)

~~~
adammichaelc
While true, what this misses that is discussed in the paper is that some
people’s immune systems aren’t able to fight EBV effectively.

Their bodies show high levels of antibodies, indicating an active fight,
whereas most people will only have antibodies showing a previous fight.

In bipolar and schizophrenia, the blood seems to indicate an active fight, and
a higher antibody count, versus in a neurotypical person.

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captainredbeard
Diets optimized for managing autoimmune disorders -- e.g. Wahl's -- are
effective with BD, too.

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cknoxrun
Is this through first-hand experience? I am tempted to give this a go.

~~~
captainredbeard
Yes.

Ketogenic diets are often used for autoimmune disorders and are known
effective for BD, too.

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0x2a
Can you cite a source on the latter claim?

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captainredbeard
[https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30075165/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30075165/)

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hellofunk
This implies that the genetic link is somewhat of a coincidence, the family
members just happen to have all caught the same virus? Is that the right
interpretation? Because BD does seem to come in waves in families.

~~~
adammichaelc
It’s not just that they caught the virus, but that their immune systems are
unable to defeat the virus. So, the battle remains active for life, and
becomes a chronic infection.

Presumably, this would suggest that the genetic component is the
susceptibility to the virus, and inability to defeat it.

~~~
hellofunk
Seems unlikely that virus is so prevalent to infect multiple family members
that do not cohabitate but nonetheless show genetic link for BD.

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edoggie
Wow, if this is true, could provide amazing new insights on many brain related
ailments.

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ntsplnkv2
Can someone give a layman's explanation?

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shakezula
I'm a layman but I read the paper. The paper's main points are that people
with bipolar show a specific lack of some chemicals that Epstein-Barr Virus
infections can cause, it argues that this theory would explain lithium being
paradoxically good at treating BD (for some technical reasons it gets into),
and further there's ample evidence that mood disorders and autoimmune
disorders have a high comorbdity, with the author suggesting that the two are
more deeply related.

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ex3ndr
Woah. So i should treat autoimmune to improve my mood? Like specific diet?

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imtringued
Extremely unspecific advice:

If you use too much toilet paper all the time then something is wrong with
your diet and you should try figuring out what the cause is. Once your diet
has improved you won't need more than one wipe.

I doubt this will help with bipolar disorder specifically though. This is
mostly helpful for people who don't get enough fiber.

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anon4lol
... but I love Taco Bell so much it hurts.

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Kassius509
Woah

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pcdoodle
Epstein didn't kill himself.

