Observational Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2015. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Infect Dis. May 25, 2015; 5(2): 44-50
Published online May 25, 2015. doi: 10.5495/wjcid.v5.i2.44
Improvement in human immunodeficiency virus-1/acquired immune deficiency syndrome patients’ well-being following administration of “Phyto V7”
Ruben Wernik, Jose L Priore, Walter F Goldman, Adriana del Carmen Elias, Gadi Borkow
Ruben Wernik, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo CP 11800, Uruguay
Jose L Priore, Uruguay Servicio Médico Penitenciario, Dirección Nacional de Cárceles, Penitenciarías y Centros de Recuperación, Montevideo CP 11100, Uruguay
Walter F Goldman, Gadi Borkow, Immune Nutrition Incorporated, Gibton 76910, Israel
Adriana del Carmen Elias, Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, San Miguel de Tucumán, Tucumán 4000, Argentina
Author contributions: Wernik R and Goldman WF were involved in the design of the study and interaction with the Uruguay Government and General Direction of Prisons; Priore JL was in charge of the actual implementation of the trial; Elias AC and Borkow G analyzed the data and wrote the manuscript.
Ethics approval: The protocol was reviewed and approved by the Ethical Medical Committee of the Ministry of Health of Uruguay.
Informed consent: All study participants provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest: Dr. Walter F Goldman and Dr. Gadi Borkow are members of the Immune Nutrition Incorporated, the company that produces the Phyto V7 complex. All other authors do not have a conflict of interest.
Data sharing: Technical appendix, statistical analyses, and dataset are available from the corresponding author at dr.borkow@gmail.com. Consent was not obtained but the presented data are anonymized and risk of identification is nonexistent.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Dr. Gadi Borkow, Chief Scientist, Immune Nutrition Incorporated, Hameyasdim 44, Gibton 76910, Israel. dr.borkow@gmail.com
Telephone: +972-546-611287
Received: September 17, 2014
Peer-review started: September 18, 2014
First decision: December 17, 2014
Revised: January 29, 2015
Accepted: April 27, 2015
Article in press: April 29, 2015
Published online: May 25, 2015
Processing time: 244 Days and 2.4 Hours
Abstract

AIM: To corroborate the capacity of Phyto V7, a complex of phytochemicals, to improve the physical well-being of human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) infected and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients not undergoing antiretroviral treatment.

METHODS: Two hundred and thirty nine HIV-1 seropositive male and female voluntary inmates were recruited through the Uruguay National Program of AIDS. The study participants received for 90 consecutive days every eight hours two tablets (760 mg/each) of Phyto V7, containing a mix of the following phytochemicals: flavonols (Kaempferol, Quercetin), flavones (Apigenin, Luteolin), hydroxy-cinnamic acids (ferrulic acid), carotenoids (Lutein, Lycopene, Beta carotene) and organosulfur compounds, all from vegetal origin. The participants did not receive any antiretroviral treatment during the study. At days 0, 30, 60 and 90 (± 2 d) the participants were evaluated for body mass index (BMI), tolerance to Phyto V7 and Index of Quality of Life based on the Karfnosky scale. ANOVA, Tukey Post-test, χ2 test and Wilcoxon Signed Rank test were used to analyze the effect of treatment.

RESULTS: One hundred and nighty nine study participants finished the study. Already after 30 d of Phyto V7 consumption, the weight, BMI and Karnofsky score statistically significantly improved (P < 0.001), and continued to improve until the end of the study. The mean weight gain per participant during the 90 d was of 1.21 kg (approximately 2% of body weight). The overall increase in the mean Karnofsky score after 90 d was 14.08%. The lower the BMI and Karnofsky score of the participants were at the beginning of the study, the more notorious was the improvement over time. For example, the mean increment of Index of Quality of Life, among the participants with an initial Karnofsky score of 5 or below (n = 33) from day 0 to day 90, was of 35.67% (0.476 ± 0.044 vs 0.645 ± 0.09; P < 0.001). The tolerability to Phyto V7 was very good and no adverse reactions were recorded or reported.

CONCLUSION: Administration of the Phyto V7 can be an important tool to improve the well-being of HIV-1 seropositive individuals and AIDS patients, not undergoing antiretroviral treatment.

Keywords: Phytochemicals; Karnofsky score; Nutrition; Human immunodeficiency virus-1; Acquired immune deficiency syndrome

Core tip: Phyto V7 is a complex of phytochemicals and micronutrients. Phyto V7 has been found to stimulate the immune system and dramatically improve the physical well-being of terminal acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients. The current study demonstrates the capacity of Phyto V7 to improve the physical well-being of human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) infected and AIDS patients not undergoing antiretroviral treatment, as demonstrated in 199 individuals. We conclude that administration of the food supplement Phyto V7 can be an important tool to improve the well-being of HIV-1 seropositive individuals and AIDS patients, not undergoing antiretroviral treatment.