LONGECITY

I want to get a list going of the potential negative aspects of some supplements. The idea of this is to help us identify substances with potential adverse effects. Sometimes while we are multi-supplementing, it's difficult to identify which is doing what, especially if something is not agreeing with you. Some supps don't always provide the desired or expected outcome. Other manifest negative side effects more strongly than positive ones.

What substances have you added to your regimen only to discover they had a negative impact?

1. Horse chestnut -- Found it made the skin in my face and neck REALLY saggy. Probably by increasing the action of elastase. It was supposed to do the opposite.

2. Bromelain: 4000 GDU
Serrapeptase: 80,000 Units
Nattokinase: 2,000 FU

Caused lung irritation and exacerbated emphysema sx secondary to alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency.

3. Magnesium - makes the flu a lot worse.

4. Forskolin - any dose higher than 40 mg turns me into a raging bull.
5. Maca - more than 3 tablespoons a day gives me a headache.
6. Cayenne - Can cause neuropathy (used to elicit neuropathy in standard research models)

Anything cholinergic makes me depressed. That includes DMAE, lecithin, choline bitartrate, and acetylcarnitine. Phosphatidylserine and gingko make me irritable and give me a headache. Lipoic acid tears my stomach up in any form, including a single drop (5 mg.) of liquid potassium lipoate. Jeez, it's a wonder I keep trying this stuff.

Good topic, though it's likely to generate lots of potentially erroneous interpretations so everything should be taken with a grain of salt...

My personal worst supplement experience was with theanine which I think induces atrial fibrillation for me. I wrote about it in another post that I started.

Well, -

DON'T KEEP ON TAKING carnosine in high dose (500mg+) for several days if you get skin rash, plugged sinuses, muscle twitch, and feel your histamine is on fire -> I eventually got pneumonia for weeks. Thrilling Times.

>>> though it's likely to generate lots of potentially erroneous interpretations so everything should be taken with a grain of salt... <<<

Well, still (a) supplement(s) cannot control the possible genetic 'odds against you', what you eat, your lifestyle etc.

>>> though it's likely to generate lots of potentially erroneous interpretations so everything should be taken with a grain of salt... <<<

Well, still (a) supplement(s) cannot control the possible genetic 'odds against you', what you eat, your lifestyle etc.

All I meant is that single-person anecdotes are highly unreliable.
Edited by Jay, 15 December 2009 - 05:17 PM.

Taking way too much Serrapeptase and not starting out at low dose and titrating up slowly.

Very large dosages of Serrapeptase made my medical condition much worse.
I learned a lot from that experience; I'm no longer in any hurry when to comes
to evaluating what works and what doesn't.

I'm back to taking it after a long hiatus but for now just one (40,000 Units)
enteric-coated Serrapeptase capsule on an empty stomach.

Nothing else that I can recall gave me side effects or "harm" except the high-dose
Serrapeptase, which I now remember gave me nose bleeds too.
Edited by pycnogenol, 15 December 2009 - 04:59 PM.

Good topic, though it's likely to generate lots of potentially erroneous interpretations so everything should be taken with a grain of salt...

Won't the salt interfere with the placebo?

anything with PEA including chocamine style cocoa extracts makes me unbelievably depressed

I had a bad experience when I was combining ortho mind and mindcare mentat

GABA
Several years ago took 1 gram in a capsule.
15 mins later I had a 20 second episode of being unable to breath
and my pulse went up to what seemed 200.

Apparently its a very rare side effect of GABA.
Luckily i had read about it somewhere so I knew it would
pass. Extremely uncomfortable though.

~Mike
Edited by Mike_N, 15 December 2009 - 05:04 PM.

Bovine Colostrum - I was in bad shape for months after taking for about 6 weeks. Swollen fingers, joint pain, unbelievable fatigue. Of course, I didn't know I had adrenal problems at the time, and had just gotten off a stint with high dose corticosteroids & wasn't healthy at all. After using the B. Colostrum, I had also developed an "allergy" to many dairy products, healthy fats (flax & fish oil) and it took a few years before I could ingest the fats in small amts. Although I still stay away from fish oil.

I agree with PP in that what one person may have a bad experience with doesn't necessarily mean it's a dangerous substance. Our bodies are all different in what they need.
Edited by Clarity, 15 December 2009 - 05:21 PM.

The worst reaction I've gotten from a supplement was from, believe it or not, Resveratrol

A week after starting it I got a lower back ache that would not go away, then I started getting other pains in my joints. I discontinued use and it took months for these problems to go away.

The worst reaction I've gotten from a supplement was from, believe it or not, Resveratrol

A week after starting it I got a lower back ache that would not go away, then I started getting other pains in my joints. I discontinued use and it took months for these problems to go away.

do you think the lower back pain was a kidney problem? resveratrol has been seen to be toxic for kidneys in very, very high doses. and there was that one study indicating it might raise homocysteine levels... (in the CBS deficient mice).

GABA
Several years ago took 1 gram in a capsule.
15 mins later I had a 20 second episode of being unable to breath
and my pulse went up to what seemed 200.

Apparently its a very rare side effect of GABA.
Luckily i had read about it somewhere so I knew it would
pass. Extremely uncomfortable though.

~Mike

These days I get that from high dose GABA or high dose Tryptophan.
And it is rather uncomfortable although intellectually interesting.
I donlt really need either but it bothers me that I get this effect.

I used to take 3 grams or more tryptophan for GH release and now
I'm limited to about 250mg with my regular 3mg dose of melatonin.

Stimulant aminos like Tyrosine don't seem to have any sides for me.
I've always slept like a rock so perhaps I'm just messing with something that
isn't broken when I take those...

Tyrosine - anxiety attack

NAC - either caused or at least aggravated a peptic ulcer (strips protective mucous from stomach lining)

Inositol - indigestable or unabsorbable, produces terrible gas

Phosphatidylserine - terrible fatigue and brain fog

Relora - terrible fatigue and brain fog

Anything That Reduces Cortisol Levels - terrible fatigue and brain fog

Curcumin - killed libido dead at higher doses (mTOR inhibition?)

Taurine - high dose (4 grams) long-term (over a year) caused anxiety

DHEA - 50mg daily elevated estrone levels and reduced testosterone by 40%

Deprenyl - nearly broke up with my girlfriend (now wife) due to intolerant a$$hole behavior

Olive Leaf Extract - consistently terrible reaction to this, severe fatigue, brain fog, anxiety, not sure if its a side effect, allergy, or herx reaction

Tryptophan - makes me feel like I'm going to pass out, dizzy, low blood pressure.


This is just off the top of my head, if I went back through my journal I know I could find alot more.'

edit: forgot serrapeptase irritated my lungs too, made me wheezy/asthmatic.
Edited by FunkOdyssey, 15 December 2009 - 08:28 PM.

echinacea - stomach cramps, happened twice.

ALCAR made me too wired to get any work to done, at 500mg
Piracetam made me incredibly depressed and fatigued after using 1.6-3.2g daily for over a month

DMAE- made me feel like I was on top of my studies, a few weeks later, I figured out that I actually retained nothing on it..... Not too late though, otherwise I would still be a medical student

Silymarin - Diarrhea

DHEA - significantly reduced my libido, probably by increasing estrones.

High dose of Vitamin E, and high Gamma E - made me feel terrible.
Low dose of full spectrum E works.

Krill oil - Caused Nausea. Tried two separate batches, same effect. I cannot tolerate krill oil.

Inositol - indigestable or unabsorbable, produces terrible gas.

I'l take your word for it, Funk!

Inositol - indigestable or unabsorbable, produces terrible gas.

I'l take your word for it, Funk!

It's true. Inositol once held promise for me because studies indicated doses of 12 grams produced an immediate anti-depressant and anxiolytic effect. And it did so indeed. I felt great.

I was also peeing out of my ass and stinking up the place. Had to stop after a couple days.

Phosphatidylserine - terrible fatigue and brain fog

Relora - terrible fatigue and brain fog

Anything That Reduces Cortisol Levels - terrible fatigue and brain fog

....

Olive Leaf Extract - consistently terrible reaction to this, severe fatigue, brain fog, anxiety, not sure if its a side effect, allergy, or herx reaction

Same thing here, cortisol is our friend! As for the olive leaf, wtf, more or less the same experience, + elevated HR and BP, not fun at all. Maybe I have lyme disease? No, but seriously, it's horribly underdiagnosed.

Bromelain: stripped my stomach lining, leaves my GI feeling raw and angry, plus it doesn't relieve inflammation (for me).

By far the worst, and the stupidest supplement choice I ever made (a year and a half ago, back before I understood sh*t about biological chemistry, and before I did my homework) was long-term high-dose DIM (diindolylmethane). Long story short, I tanked my estradiol, leading to arrhythmias, fatigue, susceptibility to infection, broken sleep, irritability, libido death, and connective tissue issues. I've seen some improvement, and all these symptoms are confounded by having been poisoned by ciprofloxacin, but I think I may have (semi?)-permanently upregulated the enzymes responsible for the conversion of estrone into 2-OH estrone and estradiol into 2-OH estradiol. Any thoughts on creative ways to reverse this condition are welcomed, as are derisive laughs at the folly of uninformed supplement choices.

No problems with fish oil, vitamin D3, or vitamin K2, or magnesium yet... sigh.

By far the worst, and the stupidest supplement choice I ever made (a year and a half ago, back before I understood sh*t about biological chemistry, and before I did my homework) was long-term high-dose DIM (diindolylmethane). Long story short, I tanked my estradiol, leading to arrhythmias, fatigue, susceptibility to infection, broken sleep, irritability, libido death, and connective tissue issues. I've seen some improvement, and all these symptoms are confounded by having been poisoned by ciprofloxacin, but I think I may have (semi?)-permanently upregulated the enzymes responsible for the conversion of estrone into 2-OH estrone and estradiol into 2-OH estradiol. Any thoughts on creative ways to reverse this condition are welcomed, as are derisive laughs at the folly of uninformed supplement choices.

Don't know much about enzyme conversion path w/regard to estrogen, but maybe a progesterone cream shutdown would work for you. I know it initially wakes up lazy estrogen receptors, and eventually balances out estrogen/progesterone ratio. Also look to detox your liver as the cipro probably stressed it. Milk thistle and hot water/lemon work the best for me (AM Detox tea is great too).

Phenibut - Fell asleep for 20 hours when I didn't want to sleep nearly that long.

Ashwaghanda liquid: acutely enhanced the startle reflex so that I was on pins and needles.

The worst reaction I've gotten from a supplement was from, believe it or not, Resveratrol

A week after starting it I got a lower back ache that would not go away, then I started getting other pains in my joints. I discontinued use and it took months for these problems to go away.

do you think the lower back pain was a kidney problem? resveratrol has been seen to be toxic for kidneys in very, very high doses. and there was that one study indicating it might raise homocysteine levels... (in the CBS deficient mice).

No idea, but I didn't take it in high doses. In fact I took it in very low doses compared to what some people here take.

I believe it was similar to the joint pains many people experience with resveratrol. I have noticed that many people with similar experiences also seem to be physically active and relatively healthy. I work out 6 days a week so no doubt that has something to do with it.

P-5-P gave me horrible nightmares, so don't take it at bedtime!

ginkgo spiked my blood pressure, paradoxically. Might have been something else in the pill, because it doesn't make sense.
blueberry extract caused insomnia.
lipoic acid gave me orthostatic hypotension
creatine made my hair fall out.

I wouldn't be surprised if different versions of the same supplements did not show these effects, with the possible exception of the ALA.

Tyrosine - anxiety attack

Relora - terrible fatigue and brain fog

Anything That Reduces Cortisol Levels - terrible fatigue and brain fog

Curcumin - killed libido dead at higher doses (mTOR inhibition?)

Taurine - high dose (4 grams) long-term (over a year) caused anxiety

Hey, Funk. Seems like most of your side effects are due to overdose would you say? On anti-cortisol supps, do you think your cortisol levels are normal/borderline low to begin with? Just wondering since I'm about to take Phosphatidylserine. Thanks And the Tyrosine anxiety attack is not surprising, it may cause hyperthyroidism (increased ft4) and since you're already pretty tall, i'd safely assume yours is way up there.