1.
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Why does this MGN-3 immune system supplement have such a strange brand name — Biobran? |
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To some people the name “Biobran” sounds like a laxative, which can be off-putting to those involved with conditions more life-threatening than constipation, and for those with delicate stomachs. Biobran, however, has its name for good reason: it is a fractionated pre-digested (using enzymes from the shitake mushroom) biologically active rice bran product. So Biobran is a good descriptive name for this supplement, although those interested in marketing might prefer something more scientific sounding — perhaps with an “immuno” in the name. However, it must be remembered that, apart from its efficacy, the most important aspect of Biobran is its safety, and being a pre-digested bran product makes it very safe indeed. Also, as a soluble fibre, it has no laxative effect. |
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2.
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Is Biobran MGN-3 an immune booster or an immunomodulator? |
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Biobran is an immunomodulator; it does not artificially
boost the immune system. As a consequence, those who
benefit most from taking it are those with weak immune
systems (if your immune system is already strong Biobran
supplementation will not make a lot of difference). Modulators
are much safer than boosters or stimulants because they
bring biological parameters to balance rather than pushing
up specific parameters at the expense of others, which
causes side-effects. |
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3.
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Is Biobran a cure or a treatment for specific diseases? |
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Biobran is a nutritional supplement that helps to modulate
immune function. If, in the process of modulating immune
function, some of the symptoms of a particular disease
or condition abate, then all well and good. Biobran,
however, is not in itself a treatment or a cure for any
disease or medical condition. It is most successfully
used as an adjunct or addition to a proper treatment
program (conventional or otherwise) supervised by a health
care practitioner. Indeed, Professor Ghoneum himself
promotes conventional tumour treatment as an effective “debulker” whilst
using Biobran MGN-3 to help the body's own immune
function mop up any remainder and help the body to restore
integrity. |
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4.
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Would Biobran be beneficial for X, Y or Z disease? |
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Generally, anyone with a disease that involves a lowering of the immune system as a symptom is likely to receive some benefit from Biobran supplementation, although once again it should be stressed that Biobran is NOT a treatment in itself, but a useful supplement to take alongside treatment. Generally, virally caused diseases/infections and cancerous conditions respond best with Biobran supplementation alongside proper treatment, although you are always advised to inform your doctor of any supplementation. As conventional cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy also severely deplete the immune system, lowering quality of life, it comes as no surprise that one of the most reported benefits of Biobran supplementation is that it can help increase quality of life during these treatments by reducing some of the side-effects. |
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5.
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Should Biobran MGN-3 be avoided if one has an autoimmune disease? |
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Autoimmune diseases are those conditions in which the immune system attacks its own body — it has lost the ability to differentiate between self and non-self. Examples of autoimmune diseases are rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis and Crohn's
Disease. If the problem is serious, doctors will prescribe
immunosuppressant drugs in order to weaken the severity
of this self-attack. Immunosuppressants are also prescribed
for cell, tissue or organ transplants in order to minimise
rejection by the immune system. So if you are taking
immunosuppressant drugs then you are obviously advised
NOT to take Biobran, or at least check with your doctor
first. If, on the other hand, you have a less serious
autoimmune disease (like mild rheumatoid arthritis) for
which you are not on immuno-suppressants, and you want
to take Biobran to help strengthen your immune system,
then you must bear in mind that your symptoms might get
worse for about a month, after which they may significantly
improve. |
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The reason for this given by Daiwa Pharmaceutical
(and this has not yet been substantiated by third parties)
is that those with autoimmune diseases tend to have lowered
NK cell activities and substantially fluctuating macrophage
numbers. Under such circumstances, Biobran can help boost
the NK cell activity and help to damp macrophage fluctuations.
However, activating white cell activity before the fluctuations
are sufficiently reduced might aggravate symptoms for
a period of about a month after the start of Biobran
administration. For this reason, the manufacturer advises
a lower starting dose for that month period and then
a gradual increase. |
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Another factor that should be taken into consideration
is the anti-inflammatory effect of Biobran. Dr. Yuzo
Endo, Head of Research and Development at Daiwa Pharmaceutical,
himself originally started taking Biobran for his rheumatoid
arthritis. He was so impressed with the results that
he started examining the other aspects of this supplement. |
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6.
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Can I take Biobran with X, Y or Z medication? |
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Like any product, it would be impossible to test Biobran
with every one of the tens of thousands of medicines
currently available. However, understanding that Biobran
is a digestible bran supplement or glyconutrient, and
that it has been taken by tens of thousands of people
worldwide without incident, makes it a very safe supplement
with no reported contraindications, apart from, obviously,
immunosuppressants. It has also passed strict hospital
evaluation tests. That said, it is always recommended
with any product (or indeed radical change in diet) that
you inform your doctor or practitioner. |
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What determines the cost of Biobran MGN-3? |
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Although Biobran is “merely” pre-digested rice bran that has been fractionated to select certain molecular sizes, the process itself is quite complex to do under pharmaceutically controlled conditions. Also, the yield of Biobran from rice bran during this process is actually very small. This makes Biobran an expensive product. Add to this the product development and research costs that Daiwa Pharmaceutical have borne over the years and you begin to understand the costs involved. In the future, this price will gradually reduce as development costs are recouped, hospitals carry a larger percentage of the research costs, and production is scaled up. |
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8.
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Why do the 1000mg sachets of Biobran have a net weight of 2000mg? |
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The sachets each contain 1000mg of active Biobran whilst the tablets each contain 250mg of active Biobran. The rest of the weight for each is from the excipients that are added to stabilise the product, help keep it together (for the tablets), help it to flow (for the sachets), and to keep the Biobran dry (it is very hydrophilic). |
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9.
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Is there any difference between the efficacy of sachets and tablets? |
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The manufacturers of Biobran MGN-3 have assured that
there is no difference in effectiveness between the forms
that the Biobran comes in. So taking 4 tablets is entirely
equivalent to taking one sachet: both contain 1000mg
of Biobran. (Tablets are more convenient for those on
smaller dosages and for those not wanting the fuss of
mixing the powder in half a glass of water.) However,
as the sachets are more readily absorbed, ideally they
should be taken twenty minutes after a meal whereas the
tablets should be taken with a meal. |
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10.
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How much Biobran MGN-3 should I take? |
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As a general rule, higher doses of Biobran tend to get to the optimum immune level or normalization point much more quickly than lower dosages and so are recommended for more serious conditions where speed of recovery is important. |
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Dosages vary from 500mg a day (half a sachet or 2 tablets) right up to 3000mg a day (3 sachets or 12 tablets) or more for a standard-weight adult. A fairly healthy adult, or someone with a mild cold or infection, would take 500mg a day for general immune protection and disease prevention. For more serious immune deficiencies or for faster recovery one would take 1 sachet a day (4 tablets or 15mg/kg/day), whilst for very serious immune deficiencies, such as those associated with cancer, one would take 3 sachets (12 tablets or 45mg/kg/day) a day for 2 months and then drop down to a maintenance dose of 1 sachet (4 tablets) thereafter. (If, whilst on the maintenance dose, treatments like chemotherapy or radiotherapy are given, it is advisable to increase the amount again to the full 3 grams a day or more from a week before the treatment until a couple of weeks after.) |
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It is always better to divide dosages throughout the day between the meals, so for example, someone on 3 sachets or 12 tablets a day should take 1 sachet or 4 tablets with the three main meals of the day — breakfast, lunch and supper. |
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If I stop and then start Biobran supplementation, how much should I take? |
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Those taking a gram (1000mg or 4 tablets) or more of
Biobran a day will reach optimum immune modulation after
a two month period. If Biobran is stopped at any time,
immune function will generally fall back, over a month
period, to its original weakened level because of the
continued immunosuppressant factors such as disease presence,
poor diet, stress, toxicity etc. It is advisable, therefore,
not to interrupt a course of Biobran for more than a
very occasional unavoidable few-day period. |
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When can I safely stop taking Biobran? |
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Biobran MGN-3 suffers no hyporesponsiveness or tail-off in effectiveness over time, and so it can be taken indefinitely. However, the cost of long-term supplementation can be prohibitive and so many want to know when they can stop taking it. If you have taken it for a particular condition and that condition has been successfully treated, then Biobran supplementation can be stopped or a very small maintenance dose can be continued. If the condition persists or is ongoing, it is probably better to continue taking it. When stopping Biobran you are always recommended to adopt healthy lifestyles in order to maximize your unaided immune system levels. |
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Can I reduce chemotherapy dosage if I take Biobran? |
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Some research has suggested that as the body's ability to fight for itself has been increased, chemotherapy dosages can be reduced. Whilst this has tentatively been shown in some animal studies, we would NOT recommend this. Always consult your oncologist. |
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If I am having chemotherapy/radiotherapy and choose to take Biobran alongside, when should I start taking it? |
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The sooner the better provided your oncologist does not object. Having a strong immune system when you first start chemotherapy will make the chemotherapy or radiotherapy treatment much easier to take with milder side effects. You should start with the higher dose of 3 grams or sachets a day immediately to get your immune system normalized as rapidly as possible. Normally you would reduce the dose of Biobran to 1 sachet or 1 gram a day after 2 months, but in the case of an extended period of chemo or radiotherapy, it is recommended that you remain on this higher dose throughout actual treatment to help mitigate the side effects. (Ideally, the high dose should be taken from a week before the treament to two weeks after.) |
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Can children take Biobran MGN-3? |
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Biobran has been safely and successfully taken by children of all ages. Doses tend to be reduced in proportion to their weight to adult weight. So for example, a child that weighs 20kg might take about a third or a quarter of the adult dose. |
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Can pregnant women take Biobran? |
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Pregnant women have taken Biobran without any problems. However, Daiwa Pharmaceutical have told us that, as with any product or food, no matter how seemingly safe, until extensive tests are done on pregnant women they cannot endorse Biobran supplementation for this group. |
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Can I give Biobran MGN-3 to my pets? |
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Many people have given Biobran to their pets to strengthen immune function. We have heard of it given to mammals and birds only, although we are sure somebody who feeds it to their pet iguana will be contacting us shortly (less developed life-forms such as fish have more primitive immune systems and so it wouldn't be recommended). Again, as with children, the doses need to be scaled down according to weight. Use the formula of 15mg/kg/day to have the equivalent dosage of an adult human being taking 1000mg or 1 sachet a day. |
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Does Biobran pass through the blood-brain barrier? |
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As yet, there is no evidence that Biobran can pass
through the blood-brain barrier. Biobran has a large
molecular mass, much larger than glucose which can go
through this barrier, and so it is unlikely that it can
penetrate it. Does this mean that Biobran is of no use
for someone with abnormal cell growths in the brain?
No. Biobran is still beneficial because the brain does
not have a separate immune system to the body so a strengthened
immune system will benefit all regions of the body to
some extent. And although NK cells generally do not migrate
across the blood-brain barrier, any abnormal growths
in the brain would have a correspondingly increased vascularisation
(and one that is more haphazard than normal vascularisation)
and so NK cells are more likely to be able to reach these
abnormal cells. Having said that, there is little data
available for the effect of Biobran on brain growths,
although it will definitely help with quality of
life of such patients. (Information from Dr. Endo in
Japan.) |
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Can Biobran be taken during a stem cell transplant? |
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When someone is undergoing stem cell therapy, they are invariably on immunosuppressants to help reduce the risk of rejection of the stem cells. During this period, nothing that increases immune function should be taken. Once the stem cells have taken and the immunosuppressants have been stopped, provided your doctor is happy, Biobran can be taken to help normalize the immune system again. |
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20. |
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Is Biobran a sterile product? |
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Like other natural food supplements, Biobran is not
a sterile product. In fact, any process of sterilization,
which usually involves high temperatures and possibly
pressures, would denature the product. It is, however,
made in a pharmaceutical lab and is packed by a high
quality packer. So although there is extremely low bacterial
content in this product, it would still be classified
as very clean in comparision to other health supplements
on the market. Biobran does not contain any harmful bacteria. |
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Can Biobran MGN-3 be home-made? |
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Unfortunately, the Biobran making process is much more complex than just mixing shitake mushrooms with rice bran. The enzymes have to be isolated from the mushrooms, mixed with the rice bran and then, after a set period of time, the low molecular weight compounds of the resulting short-chain polysaccharides fractionated off. This process, therefore, is too complex to be done in a kitchen. |
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Is Biobran MGN-3 tested on animals? |
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As a Japanese company, Daiwa Pharmaceutical was legally
required to perform an LD50 animal test for safety reasons.
This is a one-off test conducted on rats that all new
products have to go through. Whilst this test is regrettable
because some of the rats are killed, it is unavoidable
and a legal requirement. Without LD50 safety data, no
hospital ethics committee would conduct any human trials
or studies with Biobran, and it would certainly not be
available to the public. The other animal experiments
(again with rats) that this company has performed with
Biobran are "subchronic" tests to study side
effects and immune system activation. With these tests,
no animals are killed. Daiwa is committed to acting both
ethically and responsibly, and always keeps any animal
experimentation to an absolute minimum. |
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Does Biobran MGN-3 contain GMO ingredients? |
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Absolutely not. Biobran is not genetically modified in any way and contains no GMO ingredients. |
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Why are agents selling Biobran MGN-3 so reticent about presenting its benefits? |
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In most European countries it is not legal for agents selling any food supplement to make medical claims. Biobran therefore is sold simply as a supplement that can help boost weak immune systems. In the US, promoters seem to have the freedom to say a little more, although recently Lane Labs in the US has been banned from selling it because of claims they made for it. |
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