Posted by Larry Hoover on April 26, 2003, at 12:02:38
In reply to Supplements for a near-beginner?, posted by Ame Sans Vie on April 25, 2003, at 11:11:56
> Okay, now I've taken supplements in the past before, but I'm not sure I was doing it right... nor if there were other things I could add to improve the results. Right now I'm taking a daily multivitamin (Theragran-M), a B-complex with added vitamin C, vitamin E, picamilon, B-6, l-tyrosine and chromium polynicotinate. I'm sure I should add fish oil back in to my regimen, but what dose? Also, should these supplements be taken with or without food? I know l-tyrosine should be taken on an empty stomach, and the vitamin E and fish oil with food. I also take gamma valerolactone occasionally. I'm sure I should be taking a calcium supplement, as I'm on Atkins (coral calcium?) and probably a potassium supplement, though they don't manufacture them in high enough doses for OTC use. The prescriptions I take are Lexapro (30mg), Tranxene-SD (44.5mg), Neurontin (2400mg), and Soma (700mg). Any insight? The herbal thing (valerian, passion flower, kava, etc.) never seemed to work for me, so I'm not a big fan of those.
>
> Thanks in advance!When I see abstracts like these, I've got to wonder about the "standard wisdom" that a balanced diet provides all the minerals we need. If you take into account the possibility that mood-disordered populations may require enhanced levels of some nutrients, the "standard wisdom" falls flat on its face.
Exp Gerontol 1993 Jul-Oct;28(4-5):473-83
Does diet provide adequate amounts of calcium, iron, magnesium, and zinc in a well-educated adult population?
Hallfrisch J, Muller DC.
Metabolism Section, National Institute of Aging, Baltimore, Maryland 21224.
Standard advice from dietitians, nutritionists, and physicians is that if one eats a well-balanced diet containing a variety of foods, supplements are not necessary. Little information is available, especially in those over 75, to determine whether actual diets do provide adequate amounts of these minerals. The participants of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging provide seven-day records which include vitamin and mineral supplement intakes. Median daily dietary intakes from diet in all 564 subjects and from diet plus supplements in those who use them were analyzed by age group and gender. More women than men took supplements. Median intakes of calcium from diet were below the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for unsupplemented women and for supplemented women over 60. Approximately 25% of women under 50 and 10% of women over 50 consumed less than two thirds of the RDA for iron from diet. For both men and women, all groups had median diet intakes below the RDA for magnesium. Forty percent of men and about half of women consumed less than two thirds of the RDA. These results indicate that many people in this well-educated, presumably well-nourished population did not consume adequate amounts of calcium, iron, magnesium, and zinc from diet. More women than men are at risk. Even those taking supplements did not consume adequate levels of some minerals.
J Am Diet Assoc 1986 Jul;86(7):876-91
Mineral content of foods and total diets: the Selected Minerals in Foods Survey, 1982 to 1984.
Pennington JA, Young BE, Wilson DB, Johnson RD, Vanderveen JE.
The 234 foods of the FDA's Total Diet Study were collected four times per year form mid-1982 to mid-1984 and analyzed for 11 essential minerals. Daily intakes of the minerals were estimated for eight age-sex groups of the U.S. population. Levels of calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, copper, and manganese were low (less than 80% of the RDA or below the low end of the Estimated Safe and Adequate Daily Dietary Intake range) for some or all age-sex groups. Those most at risk of low intakes were young children, teenage girls, adult women, and older women. Non-discretionary sodium intake exceeded the upper Estimated Safe and Adequate Daily Dietary Intake range for two age-sex groups, and iodine was considerably above the RDA for all age-sex groups. Levels of potassium, phosphorus, and selenium were adequate for all groups.
Really, supplement recommendations may vary substantially between individuals, in that symptoms associated with certain nutrients may indicate a requirement for substantial increases in baseline intakes.Some nutrients, like fish oil, will benefit most anyone, due to the broad dietary imbalance in omega-6:omega-3 ratios seen in most "civilized" countries. About fish oil: take as much as you can tolerate.
Increase your mineral intake. Zinc inhibits copper uptake, but your body stores both, so you may want to alternate one mineral per week. Magnesium will likely enhance the mood stabilization effects and encourage sound sleep.
There are so many possible unique characteristics to consider. What are your symptoms?
Lar
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:222291
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030423/msgs/222577.html