About This Issue

The articles below were written before the Washington D.C. AIDS conference (June 1-5). We delayed the mailing in case new information from the conference made changes necessary. We left the articles unchanged, but added this section.

On monolaurin, some physicians and others have questioned the rationale of this approach, in view of the lack
of in vivo tests as an antiviral. No one questioned its safety, or its efficacy against viruses if it can get to them. But theory predicts that monolaurin would be digested and not get into the bloodstream, and because the theory said it could not work, no tests have been done.

On the other hand, the same theory says that AL 721 could not work, yet evidently it does. Also, the only results we have heard of people using monolaurin for an extended time for HIV -- the two people mentioned in the article below -- have been good. They are even more enthusiastic about monolaurin now than when we wrote the article.

We must weigh the opposite dangers of promoting a treatment which may not work, vs. losing one which may. The effectiveness studies we would like to see have not been done; probably they will not be done for years. This article can only present what we know, and clarify the uncertainties which remain.

We also want to acknowledge the groups which brought monolaurin to our attention -- Oklahoma Project Inform, and Nutrico -- both in Tulsa, Oklahoma (see article below). Nutrico describes itself as the first buyers club by and for
HIV-positive persons.

Today we are seeing a tremendous growth in such buyers clubs, in cities around the country. Their importance goes well beyond the substantial price discounts they obtain for their members on vitamins and other health products. Buyers clubs serve an important quality control function by representing their members in the marketplace. They help
people avoid shoddy products, by learning who can and who can't be trusted, and by having their own laboratory tests done when necessary. They can negotiate prices, and find sources of hard-to-locate specialty products which few of their members could obtain on their own. Many of them will ship their products, so you can use their services from anywhere.

Many buyers clubs also provide product information. Nutrico, for example, sends a 100-page package of information free to its members. (Membership costs $12., but at this time they are sending the package free to anyone who asks for it.) Membership also allows purchase of products at a discount, about 25 percent under retail price.

The other article below, "The Quackhunt of '87", was in large part a reply to a June 1 Newsweek article, "Preying On AIDS Victims", which cast aspersions on almost every unapproved treatment. Fortunately, the Washington, D.C. conference showed virtually no trace of the quackhunt psychology -- understandable, since the scientists themselves could potentially be vulnerable to such accusations. The press also has trouble with a quackhunt, despite its initial attractiveness, because of the obvious legal difficulties of citing specific examples. The war foreseen in my article may hopefully be one we will not have to fight.

The next issue of AIDS Treatment News will cover treatment developments at the Washington conference -- and the new optimism among the leading scientists and physicians.