low white blood count on humira and mino

[LAR362]

HI ALL. I HAVE BEEN ON HUMIRA AND MINO SINCE AUGUST. MY WHITE BLOOD COUNT HAS STEADILY GONE DOWN. ALSO, ALL FOOD TASTES BLAND AND TERRIBLE. I AM TAKING 200MG OF MINO DAY. HAS ANYONE ELSE EXPERIENCED THIS? I KNOW THAT THE HUMIRA CAN SUPRESS THE IMMUNE SYSTEM SO THAT MAY BE THE REASON WHY WBC ARE LOW BUT CAN MINO DO THIS ALSO? ANY FEEDBACK IS APPRECIATED…

LORI

[Maz]

Hi Lar…good question. I had the opposite problem in the beginning and my white count was very high (indicates infection/inflammation). After starting antibiotic therapy, it got much worse (herx) and then came down to normal and has remained in normal range this past year while on mino and zith. In the past couple of years on this BB, I haven't heard of anyone commenting on the low WBC with mino, just that it elevates during a herx and lowers during a flare (see link below). So only a layman guess on my part, but it sounds more like it would be the Humira or possibly a flare.

https://www.roadback.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=studies.display&display_id=184#Anchor-The-51540

Perhaps Joe M could comment more fully on this, as his wife, Michele, takes Humira also and he keeps abreast of research on the biologics.

Hope you find an answer to this…please share if you do. Thanks!

Peace, Maz

[awesomemb]

Thats what I have heard that immune-sup drugs lower your ability to fight infections. That is because your WBC goes down. You are more likely to get a cold also. I dont know about the bland food. Regards, MB

[Joe M]

Hi

Yes, Humira can lower WBC counts.  I have never heard of it making food taste funny though.  I have heard of mino leaving a metallic taste in your mouth, which could affect taste I suppose.

Joe

[wendi]

I do not take biologics and I kno have a low WBC.  It has always been normal until my last blood draw.  I heard RA in general can cause it.  Don't know for sure though.

[LAR362]

thanx all for the input. My doc is monitoring my blood tests carefully and we will decide if may be a good idea to drop Humira and see if wbc comes back up. i do want to discontinue /wean myself off humira anyways so mabey this will come sooner than i thought.

[A Friend]

Lar,

About your sense of taste, it could be that you are deficient in zinc.  It is common for food to seem to lose its taste when this happens.  Here is a link about this:

http://www.regenerativenutrition.com/content.asp?id=394
 
Soil deficiencies have reduced zinc levels available in our food supply and some zinc is removed in food processing.  Zinc deficiency is extremely widespread. It?s symptoms of deficiency are numerous and often difficult to ascertain, however white spots on nails, stretch marks, poor sense of taste are strong indications of deficiency. 
 
AF

[Author]

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