34 replies to this topic

[Dorian Grey]

I take supplements for a reason, & I expect noticeable effects.  I'll show you mine if you'll show me yours!

 

SAM-e (s-adenosylmethionine).  Primary Effect: Joint/Back Pain support.  SAM-e is as effective as Celebrex/celecoxib for arthritis (and back) pain.  

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm...pubmed/15102339

 

This study was done for osteoarthritis of the knee, but I (and my girlfriend) have found it also works well for chronic (degenerative disk) back pain.  I've always been a big believer in supplements; my girlfriend, not so much.  I started her on SAM-e when she had a flare of knee and back pain.  She didn't notice much of an effect at first, but she did get better.  When she went off the SAM-e, her pain came back.  Believe it or not, SAM-e really works for the aches and pains of age (we're in our early 60s)

 

Vitamin-C.  Primary Effect: Gingivitis prophylactic.  If I don't take Vitamin-C (500mg/day), my gums bleed when I brush my teeth & my breath stinks.  Vitamin-C fixes this right up.  Not a drop of red in the sink, & my breath smells sweet as a rose.  Avoiding gingivitis with Vitamin-C works better than all the mouthwash in the world!  

 

IP6 (Inositol Hexaphosphate)  Primary Effect: Internal Deodorant.  IP6 chelates the small amounts of free (labile) iron the body fails to sequester.  Free iron acts as a catalyst for lipid oxidation which generates stinky malondialdehyde and 2-nonenal.  I try to avoid antiperspirant deodorants, but I work as a surgical scrub in a gown & gloves for hours at a time, & one can get quite stinky without some kind of effective protection.  When I take IP6 on an empty stomach in the morning, I can use a crystal / alum stick (potassium alum); a non-antiperspirant deodorant stone.  No worries about body odor, even after a full day in surgery. Yes, I sweat...  It just doesn't stink!   

 

Inositol.  Primary Effect: Sleep Aid.  My alarm goes off at 4:AM, & I need to get to sleep early.  Problem is, I often don't feel sleepy when it's time for bed.  One gram of Inositol, taken an hour before bedtime gets me in the mood for hitting the sack.  Very strange in that it really doesn't make you sleepy.  It just clears your head from those pesky thought loops that tend to swirl around in your head and keep you awake.  The OCD (obsessive compulsive) crowd first discovered this effect.   Magical stuff!  A Godsend for insomnia.  

 

FOS (fructooligosaccharide) Prebiotic.  Primary Effect: Gut Flora Support.  The gut microbiome is all the rage now days, but probiotics are expensive and one never knows how many cultures actually survive stomach acids to reach the colon.  FOS solves this problem by acting as a fertilizer for the good bugs that already exist in your colon.  FOS is not affected by stomach acid, so there's no question of effectiveness.  When I started taking FOS, I had a brief flare in flatulence that was rather distressing.  One thing I noticed right away about my gas-attack was that it didn't stink!  When I pass stool, there was also a remarkable reduction in odor.  What a find!  Only pennies a pill, & no more worries about squeaking out a room-clearing fart-bomb.  I take one capsule with every meal.  

 

PPC (polyenylphosphatidylcholine)  Primary Effect: Liver Support.  I'm rather fond of beer after dinner, and with fatty liver disease at epidemic levels (even in those who do not drink), a nightly beer-fest can be worrying as one moves through middle age and into one's 60s.  PPC is the only substance on earth shown to effectively prevent alcoholic liver disease in primates with 100% effectiveness.  

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.../pubmed/8276177

 

I've been a Joe Six-Pack for 40 years now, & liver enzymes, ultrasound, & even an ASH Fibrosure are all showing normal liver / no damage.  If PPC can prevent fatty liver disease in me, it can help keep your liver clean & functioning normally.  

 

Well, that's me done.  I'm very interested in hearing from those who've had similar experiences with supplements that actually changed their health / lives for the better.  

 

Let's Get Started!  

Edited by Dorian Grey, 07 September 2017 - 08:23 AM.

[Dorian Grey]

Supplements that actually do something "Pointless, Timewasting"?  

 

Do you prefer supplements that have no noticeable effect?  

[pamojja]

Do you prefer supplements that have no noticeable effect?  

 

Though I didn't tagged, there are of course supplements - with effects not unequivocally mentioned immediately - with as powerful effects in the long run as those noticed right away.

 

One example in my experience is of no more being sunburned since 9 years ago, when I started comprehensive supplementation. And I do challenge this each year by going in the deepest winter, skin completely white, to a tropical beach for six weeks. While each day twice for two hours in the sun from day one (without sun-cream).

 

There are, of course, studies which point to some UV-protection with individual nutrients, but found none to that extent. So my only explanation is that these individual agents, each to weak on its own, produced a powerful synergistic effect which can't be pinned down to one. But clearly coincided with starting comprehensive supplementation.

 

Your request was already asked for in this older thread:

 

http://www.longecity...eel-doing-good/
 

Here my stack, where I updated my noticeable effects from the former:

 

http://www.longecity...nal-remissions/

Edited by pamojja, 07 September 2017 - 12:57 PM.

[Dorian Grey]

Thanks for the link pamojja.  The second one to your stack says I don't have permission to view / No stacks match that id provided?  

 

I take other supplements that have less obvious effects too, but with so much anti-supplement propaganda around, wanted to get input on those who are actually getting noticeable effects. 

 

Yes, Dr Offit,

 

http://paul-offit.co...lieve-in-magic/

 

I do believe in magic!  

 

Edited by Dorian Grey, 07 September 2017 - 04:04 PM.

[Daniel Cooper]

Any concerns about the polyenylphosphatidylcholine getting metabolized into TMAO and causing cardiovascular disease?

 

I'd like to take some choline but that study has me a bit concerned.  TMAO seems bad, but it isn't obvious that choline is actually metabolized to it in the human gut.

 

 

 

[Oakman]

Here's a 'just happened' experience with a supplement producing nearly immediate, profound positive results - for an exquisitely sore big toe joint area of my foot that variously aches, throbs, and/or can be tender to touch. No, it is not gout, and it's bothered me for years. Nothing I'd ever tried taking internally or applying externally has done anythingt.

 

Anyway, on a whim, and for no particular purpose, I bought "Tropical Oasis Ionized Trace Minerals" aka, "Colloidal Minerals from Fulvic Acid Mineral Water." The description says it comes from, "all natural plant derived colloidal minerals extracted from prehistoric mineral deposits in the state of Utah." and, "contains 74 essential minerals in liquid form for up to 96% Absorption."

 

The list of minerals was full of everyday minerals I recognized, some a bit troubling, cesium, rubidium, cadmium, aluminum, mercury, things like that. But a large number were bizarre ones I had never heard of like yttrium, erbium, dysprosium, tellurium, gadolinium, etc. I did a bit of research to understand that these minerals were in a form, and an amount, that was not dangerous.

 

Within a couple days, nearly all symptoms troubling my foot stopped. Flabbergasted at this fortuitous turn of events, it is now essential to my daily supplement regimen. Happy Day!!

[Dorian Grey]

Any concerns about the polyenylphosphatidylcholine getting metabolized into TMAO and causing cardiovascular disease?

 

I'd like to take some choline but that study has me a bit concerned.  TMAO seems bad, but it isn't obvious that choline is actually metabolized to it in the human gut.

 

Chris Masterjohn PhD, offered a fairly convincing rebuttal to the choline/TMAO issue here:

 

https://www.westonap...-heart-disease/

 

Bottom line, seafood results in substantially higher urinary levels of TMAO than supplemental lecithin / phosphatidylcholine, so if lecithin is bad, then seafood would be deadly.  As cultures eating a high seafood diet (Japan & Mediterranean diet) tend to outlive much of the rest of the world, this would indicate brief and transient elevations in TMAO (which is filtered to urine fairly swiftly) apparently have little effect on coronary health in humans.  The study in Nature that triggered the lecithin/choline scare were done on mice, & studies with humans are substantially less impressive (see the rebuttal link).  

 

In balancing risk & reward, the very first symptom of a coline deficiency is fatty liver, which has become epidemic since consumption of eggs was demonized. Non-alcoholic fatty liver & NASH are rapidly damaging livers to the point of cirrhosis and transplant, so the risks of choline deficiency apparently are very real. 

 

Choline becomes even more essential in drinking populations, as it has been shown to have a protective effect against alcoholic liver disease.  

[Dorian Grey]

Glad you found something that gave impressive results for your toe/joint pain Oakman.  

 

I know the trace mineral followers are very vocal about benefits they've seen personally.  

 

I've never tried them myself, but will have to give them another look.

 

I've been chelating minerals with IP6 for several years now, and have developed a nasty case of plantar fasciitis.  

 

Don't know if it could be connected to the chelation, but I'm actively looking for answers.  

 

Thanks for this tip!  

[Adaptogen]

Chris Masterjohn PhD, offered a fairly convincing rebuttal to the choline/TMAO issue here:

 

https://www.westonap...-heart-disease/

 

Bottom line, seafood results in substantially higher urinary levels of TMAO than supplemental lecithin / phosphatidylcholine, so if lecithin is bad, then seafood would be deadly.  As cultures eating a high seafood diet (Japan & Mediterranean diet) tend to outlive much of the rest of the world, this would indicate brief and transient elevations in TMAO (which is filtered to urine fairly swiftly) apparently have little effect on coronary health in humans.  The study in Nature that triggered the lecithin/choline scare were done on mice, & studies with humans are substantially less impressive (see the rebuttal link).  

 

In balancing risk & reward, the very first symptom of a coline deficiency is fatty liver, which has become epidemic since consumption of eggs was demonized. Non-alcoholic fatty liver & NASH are rapidly damaging livers to the point of cirrhosis and transplant, so the risks of choline deficiency apparently are very real. 

 

Choline becomes even more essential in drinking populations, as it has been shown to have a protective effect against alcoholic liver disease.  

 

 

Fish protein increases circulating levels of trimethylamine-N-oxide and accelerates aortic lesion formation in apoE null mice.

 

There are numerous reasons why Japan and the Mediterranean have lower levels of heart disease, despite high fish consumption.  Some speculation is that the benefits of increased omega-3 intake outweigh the potential atherosclerotic effects of the TMAO. Higher dietary glycine and taurine levels may also have a protective effect. Japanese and Meds also likely have gut microbiota modulated in such a way via fiber and polyphenols (tea catechins, mushroom ingestion, resveratrol from wine, etc) that reduces their atherosclerotic risk significantly.

Resveratrol attenuates trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO)-induced atherosclerosis by regulating TMAO synthesis and bile acid metabolism via remodeling of the gutmicrobiota

 

Another important fact to note, is that not all fish have equal levels of TMAO. In freshwater fish, the content is negligible. The tmao level is also much lower in non-deep sea dwelling fish. Even tuna has quite a low level, and shallow water shellfish and shrimp all have much lower levels than fish like cod or halibut, which is what the studies/rebuttals use as their "reference fish."
 

There is tremendous amount of publications in just 2017 illustrating pretty clearly that high levels of circulating/dietary TMAO is a bad thing Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) as a new potential therapeutic target for insulin resistance and cancer.

 

Relationship of serum trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) levels with early atherosclerosis in humans - "We provide novel information that increased serum TMAO levels associate with increased cIMT, independently of established cardiovascular risk markers, including insulin resistance, visceral obesity and fatty liver."

Edited by Adaptogen, 09 September 2017 - 06:16 AM.

[Iporuru]

 

Chris Masterjohn PhD, offered a fairly convincing rebuttal to the choline/TMAO issue here:

 

https://www.westonap...-heart-disease/

 

Bottom line, seafood results in substantially higher urinary levels of TMAO than supplemental lecithin / phosphatidylcholine, so if lecithin is bad, then seafood would be deadly.  As cultures eating a high seafood diet (Japan & Mediterranean diet) tend to outlive much of the rest of the world, this would indicate brief and transient elevations in TMAO (which is filtered to urine fairly swiftly) apparently have little effect on coronary health in humans.  The study in Nature that triggered the lecithin/choline scare were done on mice, & studies with humans are substantially less impressive (see the rebuttal link).  

 

In balancing risk & reward, the very first symptom of a coline deficiency is fatty liver, which has become epidemic since consumption of eggs was demonized. Non-alcoholic fatty liver & NASH are rapidly damaging livers to the point of cirrhosis and transplant, so the risks of choline deficiency apparently are very real. 

 

Choline becomes even more essential in drinking populations, as it has been shown to have a protective effect against alcoholic liver disease.  

 

 

Fish protein increases circulating levels of trimethylamine-N-oxide and accelerates aortic lesion formation in apoE null mice.

 

There are numerous reasons why Japan and the Mediterranean have lower levels of heart disease, despite high fish consumption.  Some speculation is that the benefits of increased omega-3 intake outweigh the potential atherosclerotic effects of the TMAO. Higher dietary glycine and taurine levels may also have a protective effect. Japanese and Meds also likely have gut microbiota modulated in such a way via fiber and polyphenols (tea catechins, mushroom ingestion, resveratrol from wine, etc) that reduces their atherosclerotic risk significantly.

Resveratrol attenuates trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO)-induced atherosclerosis by regulating TMAO synthesis and bile acid metabolism via remodeling of the gutmicrobiota

 

Another important fact to note, is that not all fish have equal levels of TMAO. In freshwater fish, the content is negligible. The tmao level is also much lower in non-deep sea dwelling fish. Even tuna has quite a low level, and shallow water shellfish and shrimp all have much lower levels than fish like cod or halibut, which is what the studies/rebuttals use as their "reference fish."
 

There is tremendous amount of publications in just 2017 illustrating pretty clearly that high levels of circulating/dietary TMAO is a bad thing Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) as a new potential therapeutic target for insulin resistance and cancer.

 

Relationship of serum trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) levels with early atherosclerosis in humans - "We provide novel information that increased serum TMAO levels associate with increased cIMT, independently of established cardiovascular risk markers, including insulin resistance, visceral obesity and fatty liver."

 

 

See also Michael's comments on TMAO and arguments advanced by the Weston A. Price Foundation and Chris Kesser in http://www.longecity...red-supplement/

 

[Daniel Cooper]

 

Any concerns about the polyenylphosphatidylcholine getting metabolized into TMAO and causing cardiovascular disease?

 

I'd like to take some choline but that study has me a bit concerned.  TMAO seems bad, but it isn't obvious that choline is actually metabolized to it in the human gut.

 

Chris Masterjohn PhD, offered a fairly convincing rebuttal to the choline/TMAO issue here:

 

https://www.westonap...-heart-disease/

 

Bottom line, seafood results in substantially higher urinary levels of TMAO than supplemental lecithin / phosphatidylcholine, so if lecithin is bad, then seafood would be deadly.  As cultures eating a high seafood diet (Japan & Mediterranean diet) tend to outlive much of the rest of the world, this would indicate brief and transient elevations in TMAO (which is filtered to urine fairly swiftly) apparently have little effect on coronary health in humans.  The study in Nature that triggered the lecithin/choline scare were done on mice, & studies with humans are substantially less impressive (see the rebuttal link).  

 

In balancing risk & reward, the very first symptom of a coline deficiency is fatty liver, which has become epidemic since consumption of eggs was demonized. Non-alcoholic fatty liver & NASH are rapidly damaging livers to the point of cirrhosis and transplant, so the risks of choline deficiency apparently are very real. 

 

Choline becomes even more essential in drinking populations, as it has been shown to have a protective effect against alcoholic liver disease.  

 

 

I'm aware of that line of reasoning (basically, mouse gut bacteria convert choline to TMAO, but not human gut bacteria) and I really want to believe it because I want to supplement with choline for several reasons.

 

But, there's this:

 

Gut Microbe-Generated Trimethylamine N-Oxide From Dietary Choline Is Prothrombotic in Subjects
 

These guys fed choline to real humans (herbivores and omnivores) and measured a 10x increase in plasma TMAO levels, so I don't know that the idea that humans don't metabolize choline to TMAO is supportable.

 

Which is shame since I think that choline has many positive aspects as a supplement.  But if this study is right I think daily supplementation with choline can be problematic.

 

I wish it were not so.

[Oakman]

Glad you found something that gave impressive results for your toe/joint pain Oakman.  

 

I know the trace mineral followers are very vocal about benefits they've seen personally.  

 

I've never tried them myself, but will have to give them another look.

 

I've been chelating minerals with IP6 for several years now, and have developed a nasty case of plantar fasciitis.  

 

Don't know if it could be connected to the chelation, but I'm actively looking for answers.  

 

Thanks for this tip!  

 

I've also been taking IP6/Inositol since before (by about a month) starting the trace minerals, so I'm thinking IP6 does not affect them, or not enough to matter.  How much IP6 do you take? I'm on 800mg IP6/220mg Inositol from calcium magnesium phytate.

Edited by Oakman, 09 September 2017 - 01:11 PM.

[Kalliste]

I take Myo-inositol in cycles.

One very real effect is it generates toothache.

Luckily I'm qualified to diagnose my own teeth and take multiple dental x-rays to see if anything is wrong. Neither one actually needs any dental procedure. They are simply my only two teeth with damage, one filled and the other attacked by a cavity that remineralized 7 years ago. That effect would have been very scary if I did not have a dental background.

 

Maybe I will buy actual IP6 pills and see if that is different. The tooth-ache goes away after each Myo-Inositol cycle.

 

 

To list some supplements I would start with MitoQ. Greg isn't paying me to say this (know I'm eagerly awaiting Kelseys Buckyprotector, and Skulachevs SKQ1/Plastoquioinones.

But MitoQ clearly works. Even 5mg makes me more energized. 20-25mg is the most I ever took. That was pretty profound, gym-wise, bike-wise and aggressiveness-wise it makes a big difference far removed from placebo-effects. The mental change for me (man) is a bit disquieting. Mitochondria must play a central part in the brains-function so it's not far removed that targeting them Changes behavior.

 

Its confusing it seems so unknown by athletes and bodybuilders who might crave these effects. These effects of energy are essentially what every supplements promises but I never came upon anything that does this aside from plain Caffeine.

 

MitoQ is damn expensive though.

 

Melatonin is my number two. Needs no explaining. It makes me sleepier. 0.5-3mg.

I would like to take more but fear that it might wreak havoc by remaining in the retina and other places the next day causing redox-trouble.

 

Caffeine needs no explanation...

 

 

Edited by Kalliste, 09 September 2017 - 01:22 PM.

[Dorian Grey]

 

 

Any concerns about the polyenylphosphatidylcholine getting metabolized into TMAO and causing cardiovascular disease?

 

I'd like to take some choline but that study has me a bit concerned.  TMAO seems bad, but it isn't obvious that choline is actually metabolized to it in the human gut.

 

Chris Masterjohn PhD, offered a fairly convincing rebuttal to the choline/TMAO issue here:

 

https://www.westonap...-heart-disease/

 

Bottom line, seafood results in substantially higher urinary levels of TMAO than supplemental lecithin / phosphatidylcholine, so if lecithin is bad, then seafood would be deadly.  As cultures eating a high seafood diet (Japan & Mediterranean diet) tend to outlive much of the rest of the world, this would indicate brief and transient elevations in TMAO (which is filtered to urine fairly swiftly) apparently have little effect on coronary health in humans.  The study in Nature that triggered the lecithin/choline scare were done on mice, & studies with humans are substantially less impressive (see the rebuttal link).  

 

In balancing risk & reward, the very first symptom of a coline deficiency is fatty liver, which has become epidemic since consumption of eggs was demonized. Non-alcoholic fatty liver & NASH are rapidly damaging livers to the point of cirrhosis and transplant, so the risks of choline deficiency apparently are very real. 

 

Choline becomes even more essential in drinking populations, as it has been shown to have a protective effect against alcoholic liver disease.  

 

 

I'm aware of that line of reasoning (basically, mouse gut bacteria convert choline to TMAO, but not human gut bacteria) and I really want to believe it because I want to supplement with choline for several reasons.

 

But, there's this:

 

Gut Microbe-Generated Trimethylamine N-Oxide From Dietary Choline Is Prothrombotic in Subjects
 

These guys fed choline to real humans (herbivores and omnivores) and measured a 10x increase in plasma TMAO levels, so I don't know that the idea that humans don't metabolize choline to TMAO is supportable.

 

Which is shame since I think that choline has many positive aspects as a supplement.  But if this study is right I think daily supplementation with choline can be problematic.

 

I wish it were not so.

 

 

Interesting in the choline/prothrombotic study they were using choline bitartrate at a gram/day.  I've read lecithin is "de-constructed" in the gut into simple choline, but still wonder if they'd get a similar result from lecithin.  

 

From Chris Masterjohn's rebuttal: "Choline chloride and choline stearate led to the production of large amounts of trimethylamine, but lecithin (phosphatidylcholine), the main form of choline found in food, led to only a small increase.  It turned out, however, that their lecithin was contaminated with some trimethylamine.  If they “cleaned” it to remove the contamination, shown in the fourth panel, the lecithin did not increase urinary excretion of trimethylamine at all."

Edited by Dorian Grey, 09 September 2017 - 05:21 PM.

[Dorian Grey]

I take Myo-inositol in cycles.

One very real effect is it generates toothache.

Luckily I'm qualified to diagnose my own teeth and take multiple dental x-rays to see if anything is wrong. Neither one actually needs any dental procedure. They are simply my only two teeth with damage, one filled and the other attacked by a cavity that remineralized 7 years ago. That effect would have been very scary if I did not have a dental background.

 

Maybe I will buy actual IP6 pills and see if that is different. The tooth-ache goes away after each Myo-Inositol cycle.

 

 

To list some supplements I would start with MitoQ. Greg isn't paying me to say this (know I'm eagerly awaiting Kelseys Buckyprotector, and Skulachevs SKQ1/Plastoquioinones.

But MitoQ clearly works. Even 5mg makes me more energized. 20-25mg is the most I ever took. That was pretty profound, gym-wise, bike-wise and aggressiveness-wise it makes a big difference far removed from placebo-effects. The mental change for me (man) is a bit disquieting. Mitochondria must play a central part in the brains-function so it's not far removed that targeting them Changes behavior.

 

Its confusing it seems so unknown by athletes and bodybuilders who might crave these effects. These effects of energy are essentially what every supplements promises but I never came upon anything that does this aside from plain Caffeine.

 

MitoQ is damn expensive though.

 

Melatonin is my number two. Needs no explaining. It makes me sleepier. 0.5-3mg.

I would like to take more but fear that it might wreak havoc by remaining in the retina and other places the next day causing redox-trouble.

 

Caffeine needs no explanation...

 

I do get some transient increases in dental sensitivity from IP6 but this only occurs at 1g/day.  This does not occur for me at 500mg/day.  I've been taking IP6 for over half a decade now, and haven't had any increase in tooth decay or loose fillings, so hopefully this is a good sign the sensitivity is a benign issue.  

 

I also take myo-inositol (1g/day) and haven't noticed any increase in dental sensitivity from this, even when combined with IP6 at 500mg/day.  

[Rocket]

TUDCA fixed my liver enzymes and its backed up by blood tests.

Started taking valerian for insomnia and have been sleeping great on it. Melatonin did nothing. Chamomile would slightly help for one or two nights and stop working. Other OTC stuff did nothing. Crossing my fingers that it keeps working.

Apple cider vinegar helps really good with acid reflux.

Maybe not a supplemental stack, but nonetheless real results.

Edited by Rocket, 18 September 2017 - 01:11 AM.

[Darryl]

Most notable was glycine. It really does help with insomnia.

[Dorian Grey]

Thanks for the input Darryl.  My girlfriend will want to try this.  

[Skyguy2005]

GOOD EFFECTS:

 

Ginkgo Biloba

Resveratrol

Chorella

Reishi

 

Edited by Skyguy2005, 18 September 2017 - 11:38 PM.

[Rocket]

Well, giving the glycine a try out tonight. Swallowed a couple grams of unsweetened gelatin from the grocery store, mixed with warm water.

[Darryl]

2 g gelatin is about 0.4 g glycine. The sleep studies use 3 g, I add roughly 6-8 g to my evening beverage, there's no adverse effects with up to 31 g.

[Rocket]

Based on Daryl's 0.4g Glycine / 2g Gelatin, I ended up taking a total of 6g Glycine last night. I don't know that it helped initiate sleep (but I don't know it didn't), but I slept like a log for 6.5 hours until the alarm went off then had a hard time getting up out of bed.

Edited by Rocket, 20 September 2017 - 12:46 PM.

[Skyguy2005]

In terms of minerals:

good effects: iron, molybdenum

bad effects: copper, zinc

 

Iron gets a bad reputation, but I've only experienced good feelings (ferrous fumarate). Perhaps this reflects my blood donating, and that I dont eat meat (although I do eat seafood). But yeah, you do need it to repair your DNA etc. etc..

 

Copper feels really bad. No idea why. Zinc feels bad as well, but nowhere near as bad as copper. Perhaps this is something to do with iron feeling good.

Edited by Skyguy2005, 23 September 2017 - 02:41 PM.

[Dorian Grey]

Iron can help you feel better when you've got a deficiency, which is likely in a vegan blood donor.  

 

If you get in the habit of taking it regularly, be careful if you stop donating blood, and watch ferritin to keep it out of triple digits.  

 

50 to 80 is the sweet spot for ferritin.  Less than 40 and you're going to notice fatigue.  Over 100 & you're going to start accelerating aging and increase risk of ferrotoxic diseases.  

[Skyguy2005]

Iron can help you feel better when you've got a deficiency, which is likely in a vegan blood donor.  

 

If you get in the habit of taking it regularly, be careful if you stop donating blood, and watch ferritin to keep it out of triple digits.  

 

50 to 80 is the sweet spot for ferritin.  Less than 40 and you're going to notice fatigue.  Over 100 & you're going to start accelerating aging and increase risk of ferrotoxic diseases.  

 

Pescetarian blood donor (but yes).

If I remember correctly my level was 60 last time it came to test.

[albedo]

Probably IP6 for lowering ferritin going from as high as 450ng/ml to <=100ng/ml (2006-2017). This is confounded though with other supplements and lifestyle changes to control and lower inflammation of which ferritin  is a typical biomarker next to CRP, leucocytes, fibrinogen and others which might also be organ specific.

[Dorian Grey]

Ferritin is indeed an excellent marker for inflammation and even infections, as well as possible iron elevation.  

 

When it's elevated, look to TSAT (transferrin saturation) to flag iron elevations.  TSAT should be in the middle third of normal range for optimal health.  

 

When ferritin is in triple digits, something's going on that should be corrected.  A shame it (ferritin) is no longer included in routine labs.  

[Skyguy2005]

I should probably mention, when I take Ginkgo Biloba (especially after a long time away from it), you can see actually my skin move UP my face. It's pretty crazy.

[baccheion]

1mg+ vitamin K2 MK-4: cleared plaque/tartar from teeth

Garlic (garlicin brand): smoothed skin and improved mood

Lecithin: mood boost

Resveratrol: stable energy and sleep/wake cycle (ie, easy to wake up, stay awake, and induce sleep)

Magnesium (oil spray): no need for deodorant

Edited by baccheion, 24 December 2017 - 04:21 AM.

[StanG]

"Thanks for the link pamojja.  The second one to your stack says I don't have permission to view / No stacks match that id provided?  

 

I take other supplements that have less obvious effects too, but with so much anti-supplement propaganda around, wanted to get input on those who are actually getting noticeable effects."

 

I take over 100 different supplements (300+ total) weekly and believe there are many effects, mainly small by themselves but large in total. This took years of gradual building up to and many changes (and will always be making a few).

 

I can think of only two supplements that, by themselves, made obvious changes.

 

1. Naigen (NR) - Just as my father did at 40 some years of age, I lost my arm and leg hair only it was in my late 50s. When I started taking NR, I immediately notices dark hair growing on both my arms and legs. This was a slow process but obvious. Then it slowed up and stopped except for a very small restart 1-2 years later. 

 

2.Hydrolyzed Collagen - my right knee slowly became quite painful. After taking this and SAMe (and a couple of other supps plus using 5lb weights on both legs and swinging them for ten minutes to open the gap).  After taking the supps for 1 1/2 years the pain was gone (there is still a bit of stiffness when I have get up in the morning but moving the bottom of my legs back and forth for 30 seconds ends it) When the doctor X-rayed it, they both looked perfectly normal. The exam indicated only a bit of arthritis in my inner right knee.

 

It's easy for a person to be critical (sometimes they're even right) but at 74, I'm doing this and much more while waiting for "the really good stuff".

 

This is a great blog!