
FAQ - Transfer Factor
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ALLERGIES:
What about milk allergies and lactose intolerance?
Milk allergies are caused by the large milk proteins primarily casein, and
to a lesser extent, the immunoglobulins. These proteins are removed from
transfer factor.
Can someone be allergic to transfer factors?
Unlike antibodies that are large molecules, transfer factors are quite small.4,5
There small size makes them nonallergenic.6,7
ANTIBODIES:
What is the difference between transfer factors and antibodies? Unlike antibodies that are large proteins, transfer factors are small peptides containing about eight amino acids.The small size of the transfer factors makes them non-allergenic. Antibodies are consumed by directly attaching themselves to the offending cell or protein. Transfer factors perform a different role. Transfer factors are immune messenger molecules that educate and alert naive immune cells to an impending danger. In this regard transfer factors perform a catalytic role in the immune system, triggering the affect without themselves being consumed. ~ Transfer factor preparations consist of three identifiable fractions.
APPROVAL:
Is transfer factor FDA approved?
Foods and dietary supplements are not approved per se by the FDA. Food supplements
derived from milk would certainly fall under the category of Generally
Recognized As Safe (GRAS)
Is Transfer Factor approved by the USDA?
Transfer Factor XF™ is produced within the bounds of a USDA certified
plant which follows established protocol for dairy production, including
pasteurization and safety guidelines. Furthermore, Transfer Factor™,
as a human-grade product, exceeds standards established for animal-grade
products. Each batch of Transfer Factor XF™ undergoes strict microbial
and potency tests to assure quality time after time.
CLINICAL TRIALS:
Will 4Life be running a trial for people with HIV/AIDS in Kenya?
We are currently running three studies including the humanitarian work we
are doing at Nkosi's Haven. The Kenyan study is waiting funding.
A general trend is that those on HAART therapy respond with relatively low
doses of TF+. We have had one individual whose drug regime caused a liver
enzyme surge that was best contained by using plain TF as a nutritional support.
In the cases of African Slim Disease (wasting), 6 TF+ per day resulted in
significant weight gain with subsequent recovery of strength and activity.
Two of the six participants in one section of our US AIDS study reported
significant improvement in lean body mass within the first 30 days of TF+
supplementation (6/day).
Are there research studies available on transfer factors?
4Life has made available three booklets containing condense information from
the volumes of research available on transfer factors and the components
that were brought together in Transfer Factor Plus™. The first booklet
is Transfer Factor by William Hennen, Ph.D. the second is called Enhanced
Transfer Factor, also by Dr. Hennen. A third booklet by Rita Elkins, MH,
is also entitled Transfer Factor, and is written in layman's terms so the
general population can gain additional knowledge. Each of these booklets
contains hundreds of references.
CONTINUAL USE:
Why consume TF when you are well?
Preventing a problem is safer than trying to cure it after you are
ill. With the number of deadly germs that are taking their toll on our society,
I
plan to protect my loved ones with transfer factors. Sometimes an illness
can damage body organs beyond repair. The wide benefits of transfer factors
are still being explored. A healthy immune system is crucial to your overall
health, cell cleansing, and cell rejuvenation. Within our bodies, there
is a continuous battle between the "good" and "bad" bacteria.
Giving your immune system a break can actually allow your body to direct
its energies elsewhere.
Do you advise daily use? How long will the immunity last?
Yes. The Transfer Factor works best when taken daily. The volume of TF in
your blood affects its effectiveness. If you discontinue use, your immune
system will miss out on its daily support.The immunity received from Transfer
Factor™ is short-term. When a germ enters your body or you are vaccinated,
a deep survival mechanism is triggered within your immune system. The memory
of the illness is stored through a different pathway to the transfer factors
within your body. Experienced knowledge, exchanged from transfer factor
to transfer factor, is not as long- lasting. Once the consumed transfer
factor is washed from your body, within four to six weeks the immunity
is lost. The information is transferred to your own transfer factor, but
that transfer factor will eventually die, and the information is diluted
down through a few generations.
If the immunity lasts for four weeks, why should you continue to consume
more?
The volume of TF in your body is important. Every area of your body is vulnerable
to attack from germs. The transfer factor must come in contact with the germ
to recognize it. The more TF you have policing the body, the greater the
chance that germs will be spotted early in the race for victory.
Can I still get sick when I am consuming TF?
Even a reinforced immune system can't always keep you well, but it can make
a tremendous difference in how ill you become and may save the life of
a loved one.
If I understand correctly, the primary function of TF is to act as a memory agent for the immune system - transferring immune programming from donor to recipient.
Given the ability of the immune system to remember this transferred
information, why is it necessary to keep taking it?
There are two avenues that the immune system uses to learn and store information.
One is from storage to storage (transfer factor) and the other is through
the encounter with the germ itself. Information that is transfered from
transfer factor to transfer factor fades as each generation of transfer
factor passes
the information down to the next generation of transfer factor. Each generation
loses information. The life of the information is approximately 5-6 weeks.
When an actual germ enters the body or a vaccination is given, the learning
process is a complete immune learning experience and the memory last longer
in some instances. Another reason that you must continue to consume transfer
factor regularly is that volume is important. You must have a certain volume
of transfer factor in your system for that particular transfer factor to
have an impact on the overall immune system function. This is one reason
why whole colostrum doesn't create immunity. There is not enough tf in
it.
Why
do we need to use Transfer Factor™ if we
received immune information when we were infants?
The transfer factors we received as infants are just purposeful as those
available in Transfer Factor™. As infants, mother's colostrum gave
immune information while our immune systems were not fully developed, but
the transfer factors were absorbed into the bloodstream and eventually were
used up to become part of the functioning immune system, consisting of lymphocytes,
natural killer cells, macrophages, etc. The information provided at birth
was to work against the specific threats experienced by your mother at that
time; after years of life new threats to the immune system exist. By using
oral transfer factor we are providing the same type of immune information
we received at birth.
DISCOVERY:
Who discovered transfer factors and when?
In 1949, Dr. H. Sherwood Lawrence made a revolutionary discovery while studying
tuberculosis. He determined that an immune response could be transferred
from a donor to a recipient by injecting an extract of white blood cells
(leukocytes) from a previously infected, now healthy, subject into a newly
infected patient. He found that this extract contained a factor capable
of transferring immunity³. He named the substance "transfer factor." Dr.
Lawrence's discovery came in the midst of the discovery and use of antibiotics.
Transfer factors have been used throughout the antibiotic age in different
regions of the world such as China, Poland, Italy and others, but never
have been available commercially due to the lack of technology. In the
fifty years since Lawrence's pioneering work, an estimated $40,000,000
has been spent on research resulting in over 3,000 published scientific
papers documenting the benefits of transfer factors. The world's leading
scientists and physicians have established the safety and remarkable immune
system benefits of transfer factors. The processing methods that allow
for large-scale extraction of transfer factors have only recently been
perfected and a commercial product has only been available within the last
few years.
How does ingesting transfer factors orally compare to injecting transfer
factors from blood preparations?
Generally, the effects are very similar no matter how transfer factors enter
the body. Because transfer factors originate in the blood, the source of
transfer factors is identical whether they reenter the body in concentrated
form such as 4Life™ Transfer Factor™, or by injection.
HEAT:
Is there
heat used in processing Transfer Factor™?
Yes, the normal pasteurization process is applied to the colostrum followed
by low temperature heat dehydration. The peptide structure of transfer
factor is not broken down or effected at the heat level that is used in
the pasteurization process. Vitamins, herbs, and peptide structures each
have a different threshold at which heat is harmful to its bio-activity.
Is there a limit to how hot the product can get?
Yes. Colostrum undergoes a brief heat process that is limited to proper pasteurization
methods. This amount of heat does not affect transfer factor activity.
Is the transfer factor molecule heat sensitive? What about increased temperatures
in shipping of the product to the customer?
A proprietary protein stabilization method is used to maintain transfer factor
activity during the processing of Transfer Factor.
HOW:
How do transfer factors work?
Transfer factors are tiny molecules found in colostrum, which provide "immune
knowledge" from a mother's immune system to her baby used in recognizing
and fighting outside threats. By transferring information from cell to cell,
transfer factors serve as "teachers" to the new cells, ensuring
a strong immune system capable of surviving, even thriving, in its new environment.
Transfer factors are not species-specific and can therefore be extracted
from any mammal and then be given to another mammal with the same efficacy.
MANUFACTURING:
Who manufactures your products?
4Life manufactures it's own products in order to maintain control over quality
and availability.
SAFETY²:
Can Transfer Factor be taken during pregnancy?
There have been no adverse responses reported while taking Transfer Factor
during pregnancy. As with all supplements, consult a physician before use.
Can it be taken with any other vitamins, ginseng or any other nutritional
product?
TF and TF+ are compatible with any other type of nutrient.
I have heard reports of people exceeding the recommended serving
size of Transfer Factor. Is this safe?
Transfer Factor has been consumed for many years with no reported side effects.
Studies have shown no toxicity. The recommended maintenance amount is 3 capsules
a day.
Is it
safe to take multiple capsules of Transfer Factor™ a
day?
There is no known toxicity level associated with Transfer Factor™.
Can
a person use more than the recommended serving size of Transfer Factor
Plus™?
Some individuals do use more for added immune support during short duration.
The best and safest way to begin using Transfer Factor Plus™ is to
use the recommended serving size as listed on the product label.
STOMACH ACIDS:
Do stomach acids or other functions of the digestive tract neutralize transfer
factors?
Stomach acid or digestive enzymes do not degrade the potency of transfer
factor.
TOXICITY:
Is there a toxic level of transfer factors?
4Life Transfer Factor™ has a long history of safety with millions of
doses taken without incident among humans or animals.
Any fear of overdose?
We have tested for overdose in vitro up to 2,000 times the recommended dosage
with no negative side effects.
What about long term studies on transfer factor?
The study that Dr. See performed in vitro (on cultured blood), showed no
toxicity on the blood markers when tf was added at the amount of 2,000
times the recommended dosage.
We have had most of our office and many others on Transfer Factor for three
years now with no negative affects.
As far as the biochemistry involved, there is no problem. Molecularly the
structure is exactly the same as what is in our blood. The only difference
is that the 8 amino acids rearrange themselves to recognize the antigens
each particular transfer factor has been exposed to.
VALIDATION:
Have transfer factors been scientifically validated?
Since Lawrence's discovery of transfer factor in 1949³, there have been
over 3,000 scientific studies published on transfer factor.
WHAT:
What are transfer factors?
Transfer factors are memory molecules in your immune system that store
all of the experiences of your immune system. They police your body looking
for invading germs. A transfer factor is a peptide of 40 amino acids, which
change their arrangement to form different communications. These amino
acids act like the alphabet. You can arrange the twenty-six letters of
the alphabet into thousands of words that communicate meaning. These amino
acids can form into thousands of arrangements. Each of these arrangements
describe a particular bacteria, virus, parasite, or fungi. Other immune
cells can read this biochemical communication. Cells within your body communicate
between themselves to form combat strategies in order to keep you well.
Don't confuse amino acids with protein. It requires more than 100 amino
acids to constitute a protein. Amino acids are the building blocks to many
different
chemicals and substances in the body besides proteins. Transfer factors are
the "brains" of the immune system.
Through a special patented process licensed to 4Life Research™, concentrated
transfer factors can now be extracted from cow colostrum.
Are transfer factors made of sugars, proteins or fats?
Isolated transfer factors have been determined to be a chain of small peptides
consisting of 44 amino acids. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins.
Is it a vitamin, mineral or herb?
No. It is a supplement unlike any other. It is in a class of it's own
What role do transfer factors play in the immune system?
These are an inducer fraction, a antigen specific fraction and a suppressor
fraction.¹ The immune system must be able to respond quickly, respond
specifically and not exhaust itself by over responding and attacking normal
tissue. The three transfer factor fractions were named because of the discovered
affects they had on immune system. The inducer fraction triggers a general
state of readiness in the immune system. The antigen specific fraction
is an array of critical tags used by the immune system to identify a host
of enemy microbes. The suppressor fraction is as important as the other
fractions in that the components of this fraction keep the immune system
from focusing all its strength on a defeated infection while ignoring new
microbial threats. The suppressor fraction is also responsible for controlling
allergic reactions and blocking autoimmune disorders.
WHERE:
Where are transfer factors found?
In the blood and in the first milk after a mother gives birth.
Is there
a Transfer Factor product created for topical application?
Yes,
TF Renewall has been formulated for external application to support the body's
first line of immune defense: the skin. Please consult with a physician for
information on specific skin conditions.
References:
1. Biotherapy 1996;9(1-3):1-5
Transfer factor--current status and future prospects.
Lawrence HS, Borkowsky W.
Department of Medicine, New York University Medical Center, New York, NY
10016, USA.
2. Biotherapy 1996;9(1-3):175-85
In vitro studies during long-term oral administration of specific transfer
factor.
Pizza G, De Vinci C, Fornarola V, Palareti A, Baricordi O, Viza D.
Immunodiagnosis and Immunotherapy Unit, S. Orsola Malpighi Hospital, Bologna,
Italy.
3. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 1949;71,716
The Cellular transfer of cutaneous hypersensitivity to tuberculin in man.
Lawerence HS
4.Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1993 Jun 23;685:362-8.
Structural nature and functions of transfer factors.
Kirkpatrick CH.
5. J Interferon Cytokine Res. 2000 Apr;20(4):439-41.
Eleventh International Congress on Transfer Factors: March 1-4, 1999, Monterrey,
Nuevo Leon, Mexico.
Dumonde DC, Kirkpatrick CH, Pizza G.
6. Eur J Cancer. 1977 Sep;13(9):917-23.
Effect of in vitro produced transfer factor on the immune response of cancer
patients.
Pizza G, Viza D, Boucheix C, Corrado F.
7. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1985 Mar;178(3):468-75.
Transfer factor for the treatment of HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis.
Roda E, Viza D, Pizza G, Mastroroberto L, Phillips J, De Vinci C, Barbara
L.
For more information on any of 4Life’s™ products, please feel free to contact us. Use your back button to return to the homepage that contains our contact information. If you have any questions or need assistance with ordering, we are pleased to help you in any way we can.
This information has not been evaluated by the FDA or our company. This information is not intended to promote any of our products as a medical cure. Nutrients do not directly cure diseases or destroy germs. Nutrients reinforce the immune system. Our immune system naturally fights germs and attempts to keep us well. Although there is a volume of research that would indicate nutrition has a powerful effect on our immune system and health, all research is open to interruption and contradictions. A possible placebo effect must be taken into consideration when reviewing testimonies. The preceding information is provided as one source of educating oneself.
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