119 replies to this topic

[goku]

Have people been hearing about this very exciting bit of breaking news. The venerable science publication NATURE has published a article on a study on Coleus Forskolii Extract (Forskolin, an indian herb) applied topically to the skin to induce a real tan without ANY UV exposure at all in only a few days. In a few weeks, subjects skin was almost black b/c melanin production went up so much. Talk about the ultimate skin cancer preventitive drug if this turns out to be as good as it might be. Here's some links:

http://www.boston.co..._cancer_shield/

http://www.forbes.co...cout535043.html

http://news.bbc.co.u...lth/5359524.stm

Or just google Forskolin. The pubmed version already exists as an abstract. I haven't ben able to see the entier article though yet, so if anybody has a link or access to that if they could post it here that would be great.

[Shepard]

Yeah, check out the Feedback Section of Mind & Muscle. A couple of people are already testing this out. Another user that used to post here claims to have noticed similar effects from higher oral dosing.

[xanadu]

How much does the stuff cost and who sells it? Is it a real tan that protects you from sun? I've seen so many fakers that didn't work out.

[the big b]

I wondered if this was going to be posted here. I've been excited about this for the last couple days, I have very fair skin, I'm about as white as it gets. And atleast twice a year I get severly burned.

Xanadu, you can get 30 grams Coleus Forskholli (20% forskolin) for $15 on Bulk Nutrition, and a guy on Mind & Muscle put 10 grams into a bottle of lotion and just started applying it, he has stated that there are mild effects so far, but longer use is needed before drawing a conclusion.

I myself plan on trying something like this in the future.

Edit: I overlooked part of the question, yes, appearantly it is a real tan. Displaying all the benefits.

[goku]

where's this feedback section in mind and muscle?

[zoolander]

Sweet. Soon I will be the only white boy on the block.

Alright stop! collaborate and listen...............

[Shepard]

where's this feedback section in mind and muscle?

http://www.mindandmu...showtopic=25552


Such wonderful things...pills for laziness and lotions in place of the sun.

[hallucinogen]

I can't wait for to finally get a real tan without the damaging effects of tanning!!!!

[xanadu]

Thanks for the info, big b. It seems too good to be true if it gives you a real tan with no damage or side effects.

[starr]

I can't wait for to finally get a real tan without the damaging effects of tanning!!!!

Or the glycating effects of DHA.

[goku]

So oral dosing works too for protecting skin from skin cancer and inducing a tan? How much was required? Did he say?

There seems to be a lot of ancillary benefits of Forskolin like slightly incerased testosterone levels, less body fat, improves cardiac function, lowers blood pressure, and the list goes on from everything I'm reading in Pubmed.

[Centurion]

Nice one. I suit a tan, gives me a nice healthy appearance. Sadly we rarely see much of the sun in this permanently darkened hobbit hole.

[curious_sle]

um, anyone knows more? If a realistic oral dose is fine for tanning and maintatining a decent/mild tan i'd be game :-) but i'd like to know what amount we're talking and what other effects this dose would have

[Shepard]

Try ~60-75mg of the active. Be aware that you're going to want to cycle this.

I agree with liorrh that some sun is necessary. You aren't going to be able to sit inside all day taking forskolin and expect to be bronzed.

[curious_sle]

whoa that is *a lot* indeed...

/me reconsiders

[syr_]

Remember that orally forskolin is a powerful thyroid stimulant. I would never take more than 3-400mg a day of the 20% extract = 60-75mg of the active.
Funnily its the recommended dose for tanning.

Edited by syr_, 16 October 2006 - 12:23 PM.

[curious_sle]

Try ~60-75mg of the active. Be aware that you're going to want to cycle this.

I agree with liorrh that some sun is necessary. You aren't going to be able to sit inside all day taking forskolin and expect to be bronzed.

ScienceDaily.com site excerpts:

* The study, to be published by the journal Nature in its Sept. 21 issue
* "These animals couldn't tan,"
* If cAMP levels are low, the melanocytes make red/blond melanin. If cAMP levels are high, they make brown/black melanin.
* Further experiments showed that not only can red-haired mice be given tans without exposing them to UV light, but this sunless tanning process is virtually indistinguishable from that in dark-haired mice that tan naturally.

Yeah well...

[Shepard]

Yeah, well, try it and see.

[Centurion]

Anyone know of a good UK supplier of this stuff?

[syr_]

bulkpowders.co.uk should carry it.

[caston]

Forskholli and HGH and I can finally be tall, dark and handsome

[the big b]

I've been taking 500mg of the 20% extract daily, which is of course 100mg of the active stuff. I've noticed very little of a difference in skin color, and I've been supplementing for 10 days now, perhaps more time is needed. Though I have read that lipoic acid can inhibit Forskolin's tanning ability.

[syr_]

On M&M they are saying now that Astralgus extract would be as good if not better than forskolin.

hmmm

[xanadu]

Has anyone been using it and seen dramatic results? Any results? Before I fork over my money I'd like some assurance it's not baloney. Maybe it works with injections but I want something that works in a pill. No needles for me.

[goku]

This stuff is definitely the real deal. And internal works, but you gotta use quite a bit and it takes a while. Take it orally for a few weeks at 300 mg a day and get a little sun, you won't be dissapointed.

DO NOT use with lipoic acid of any kind, either r, DH, or whatever. And don't use with resveratrol -- all these will inhibit forskolin. Try to cycle off other supps while using forskolin as many healthy antioxidants will inhibit tyrosinase from my reading.

The good news is you only need to cycle on with this stuff for a couple weeks, get tan, and then go back to your supps and enjoy the skin protection for a month at least.

One quick question though for those using -- anybody notice any hyperpigmentation anywhere? I didn't, but when I used Melanotan I did, so hoping others had good results with Forskolin.

[Centurion]

We dont have much natural sun here. Should I use a few minutes on a sunbed while taking it?

[xanadu]

So you aren't supposed to use ALA, resveratrol or any antioxidants or supplements when you use the stuff? I say horseshit to that! I'm not going to stop all supplements to fool with forskolii. Goku, has it worked for you or are you repeating what you've heard? How much difference has it made? If you have to get sun before it works, I wonder if it's a placebo? When it sounds too good to be true, it's usually not true.

[the big b]

I still don't understand why you need any sun to attain it's effect if your using the transdermal application. Because it was clearly stated that the mice in fact did not have an UV exposure when the tanning took place.

Like Allen01, I could not find where it stated that Astragalus was equal or better than Forskolin.

Xanadu, I too feel that it is an unfair trade off to stop ALA supplementation for Forskolin's effects to work. However, I do not believe that the article stated 'any antioxidants' or 'supplements', simply lipoic acid, resveratrol, and DHLA.

But, I am a simple man and do not have the understanding to read such articles, so I will post the latest article link here so that you way find answers to your own questions: http://www.nature.co...df/5603342a.pdf

[goku]

It's real, it works. But yeah, you have to cycle off aforementioned products. It's really not a big deal as I've long suspected cycling antioxidants is wise anyway, so a 10-14 day break while you tan with Forskolli seems reasonable at least to me. The cutaneous protection of a false but real tan will help your skin enormously in terms of avoiding premature aging.

This discovery is still very new, but nonetheless, exciting.

I have no experience with the Astragalus, so I'm just repeating what a study said for that chemical.

[goku]

The nature article isn't the one to point out the inhibiting effects of LA et al, it was an earlier study. Actually, we've known that Forskolli activates cAMP and tans mammals for at least a few years, which begs the question why wasn't all the press going nuts for the original study I saw.

Don't have a link now, but there's extensive discussions with links at

Melanotan.org in the forum section under the Melanotan II general discussions threads.