5 replies to this topic

[Matthew Butler]

I wanted to increase my In take of ALCAR (Acetyl-L-Carnitine) for brain health, and LCLT Carnitine-L-Tartrate for hairloss. I was wondering If taking base carnitine would synthesize into into those forms, or should I just take each individual supplement?

[niner]

Tartrate (and fumarate) are just salt forms that are more stable in storage than the base. In the body they should all act about the same, although the different salt forms may have some effect on bioavailability (or not). I would expect the fumarate or tartrate ions to dissociate when dissolved in water. Acetyl carnitine is a little different, in that it's an ester form. The acetyl group is covalently bound to the carnitine, so it will not immediately dissociate in water. However, it's not that strong of a bond, and if you take a large dose of acetyl carnitine, much of it will be hydrolyzed to the plain old base form. Not all of it will, though. It will increase your natural acetyl carnitine levels to some extent. There is interchange in the body between carnitine base and various ester forms, like acetyl or propionyl. In the end, whichever form you take it in will increase your carnitine pool.

[Matthew Butler]

So, if I wanted to increase my carnitine "pool" what would be the most efficient way increase my body's levels of the various forms of Carnitine? Should I take the base form or ALCAR or both?

[niner]

That depends on what effect you want. What do you want it to do for you? Are you a carnivore? Carnitines might present a cardiovascular disease risk through the formation of trimethylamine oxide. We had a big thread about it some months back.

[Matthew Butler]

I want to raise my ALCAR and LCLT levels as mush and as efficiently as possible.

[niner]

I want to raise my ALCAR and LCLT levels as mush and as efficiently as possible.

You have a natural alcar level, and it's possible to raise it by taking alcar. This will also raise your carnitine base level. There isn't a natural LCLT level, since the L-tartrate counterion wouldn't stay attached to the carnitine. A reasonable goal might be to raise your carnitine level. You could do this with either fumarate, tartrate, or base. Examine.com might have some pharmacokinetic info on these. It's not clear to me that alcar will actually improve the health of the brain in a young person, although it might in the elderly. You should be aware that there are downsides to raising carnitine levels. It might raise your risk of CVD.