Health Supplements
20 years of supplement experimentation for ADHD, brain fog and stomach problems. Here are the results.
*This is not medical advice. I am not a doctor. The information and conclusions here are specific to me only and you should consult your own medical professional before doing anything involving your health or nutrition.
INTRODUCTION
I think we’ve all become more aware of bio-hacking, longevity, dopamine-fasting and any number of conditions brought about by modern life and highlighted by an enormous health-media apparatus. Is this because life is becoming more hectic and there are more adverse effects on our health? I think so.
We also can communicate far better and more deeply with other people on extremely esoteric health and science philosophies. There is a forum for every supplement, and real or imagined malady that people could have.
As I got older, it became unavoidable to ignore that all the members of my family shared similar ailments and sicknesses at similar times of their life. Clearly the gene combinations are doing something beyond a “normal” person. Looking ahead at my parents or grandparents, it became clear that I needed to solve these problems when I was young instead of just waiting for the breakdowns to occur later. I don’t know for sure if it will be effective, but if I’m fixing the symptoms early, I hope that the end result will be different.
I have spent decades using my body as a scientific testing ground for just about any over-the-counter supplement or herbal remedy. Most things had no perceptible effect, some were overtly negative, and a few have been extremely important in changing my daily life.
It’s my hope that if you notice some of the same conclusions in my supplement journey that you might gain a missing piece that I’ve already found. Perhaps just reading about my unique story will inspire you to try to figure out just one small improvement for yourself.
SUPPLEMENT LIST
| Supplement | Rating | Description |
|---|---|---|
| L-Tyrosine | 10 | Massively increases motivation and energy levels. I usually take an hour before exercise and the difference in stamina and endurance is shocking. It also almost completely eliminated ADHD procrastination. Supposedly a precursor to Dopamine. Interestingly L-Phenylalinine has negative effects. |
| Ginger | 10 | Extremely effective at moderating digestion as well as shortening all colds and flus. Is it the reason I never got covid? |
| Glycine | 9 | Taken before bed it has a strong sedative effect. Without it I would often wake up at 2 or 4am with anxiety. The feeling of sleeping on Glycine is like when you were sleeping in the car at 4 years old. |
| Vitamin B1 | 9 | Benfotiamine seems to be the most effective. Yields a 25% energy and focus increase about 1 hour after taking. When taken before drinking alcohol it seems to massively improve alcohol metabolization and reduce drunk effects. |
| Holy Basil Extract 280 mg, Siberian Ginseng Extract 120 mg, Rhodiola extract 120mg, Ginkgo leaf extract 20mg | 9 | This combination of herbs is frequently cited as a cure or brain fog and I think it largely works. It's supposed to moderate blood sugar and increase blood flow to the front of the brain. I notice definite speed and ability increases with repetitive tasks and language. |
| L-Lysine | 9 | This amino acid is supposedly an anti-viral and in my experience it is extremely effective at shortening or preventing colds. I took it throughout Covid and perhaps it prevented me from getting Covid. It also is frequently cited as the only effective natural remedy for Epstein Barr Virus. |
| 5-HTP | 7 | 5-HTP is a precursor to serotonin and I find when taken minutes before bed, it does allow me to wake up with a sense of calm and restedness. It also seems to moderate digestion and unusually produce vivid dreams, often nightmares. However the nightmares always end in a positive resolution on 5-HTP. |
| Creatine | 7 | Creatine has long been used in body-building but recently some studies have clearly showed benefits in ADHD and Dyslexia. I've noticed increased lanuage ability and memorization and a general clarity of mind. |
| Coffee (caffeineated) | 7 | Regular coffee, especially in lieu of a meal seems to have a regulating effect on digestion. Is this due to constricting blood flow or speeding up the digestive tract? Who knows. But the repetition day-to-day does seem to bring benefits. Sudden starting and stopping or wildly different amounts have negative effects. Obviously there are downsides for sleep quality and I think drinking more than 1 cup a day reduces blood flow to key organs such as the brain. |
| Curcumin | 7 | Nature's aspirin. It thins the blood and provides a relaxation effect. Especially good on hangover days or before long flights to counteract blood clot issues. |
| NAC (N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine) | 7 | NAC supposedly cleans the liver, however I found it has noticeable effects at improving lung function and reducing mucus. I was shocked after 2 months to wake up with dramatically clearer breathing. |
| Betaine HCL | 7 | Betaine HCL supposedly stimulates bile production and effective digestion. It gives me heart burn but if I find my digestion is slow or I've overeaten, it seems to get things moving quickly. My guess is it temporarily augments insufficient stomach acid, or fixes sludgy bile. |
| Cod Liver Oil | 6 | Cod Liver contains natual Vitamin A & D. It seems to generally help improve mood especoally in the winter, however the biggest surprise was a 50% reduction in my seasonal allergies. |
| Magnesium Citrate | 6 | General calming effect, smooths digestion and relaxes muscles. Probably has a small overall positive effect on all body processes. Greatly reduces body odor. |
| Zinc | 5 | Noticeably effective at shortening colds and skin healing. Does upset stomach if taken in too high doses. |
| Vitamin E | 5 | Vitamin E seems to help skin healing, but it also seems to reduces gallbladder and liver problems due to some kind of antioxidant properties. |
| Potassium | 5 | Seems to work in tandem with Magnesium to offset too much calcium and sodium in diet. Keeps body relaxed and energy levels higher. |
| Choline | 5 | Seems to have similar effects to Creatine. Increases mental acuity and language ability. Upsets stomach however. Take with food. |
| French Pine Bark | 5 | Seems to reduce brain fog and make decisions clearer. |
MY TESTING PROCESS
I’ve been through well over 100 vitamins and supplements most of which are not included here because they don’t work for me. How can I tell if something is working? This is how I do it:
Research the supplement. I usually watch 5-10 hours of YouTube videos from doctors such as Dr. Berg, Dr. Alok Kanojia, Dr. Jarred Younger etc. They often quote research papers or cutting edge studies long before any mainstream health practitioner adopts the info. I’ve read over 500 books on health, psychology, nutrition and digestion.
Find a good source for the supplement. Many supplement companies are just no good. I’ve come to like CanPrev, AOR and NOW particularly, both because of their reputation and logical production methods, but also because their supplements more than the others have seemed to work for the claimed effects.
I add one supplement at a time only. I take it for at least a month and note if there are any effects, good or bad. Many times there are bad effects. After a month I’ll stop for a week. Usually it becomes very clear after the week if the bad effects went away, nothing happened, or I missed the good effects.
Many supplements effects are short-lived. The body adjusts to them for better or worse. A supplement might have appeared to solve one problem because it was adjusting an unrelated source issue. This can yield interesting clues to deeper and deeper causes for seemingly unrelated issues. Things like serotonin and digestion for example seem much more linked than most doctors would propose. Unless you experiment with your own problems, it’s really hard to know what specific linkages you have.
Reaching a conclusion at that point is very tricky because all these supplements interact with each other in unpredictable ways and life and diet can vary a lot over more than a month. There are probably too many variables for any scientific study to definitively draw conclusions, but that’s not very important to me. What is important is trying to admit clearly enough that there is a difference or not based on 20 years of trying stuff out. If there is, I simply keep doing it. The longer I do it, usually the more noticeable the change is if I stop.
LIFE FACTORS
Of course, there are obvious extra factors like the quality of food, water and air you ingest, sunshine, exercise, socialization, life goals and love that all have dramatic influences on conditions and happiness. For better or worse, I have isolated my baselines for all these things and can accept them in a relatively honest relationship with the supplements I add. I’d encourage you to also make experiments in each other these non-supplement areas first so that you can rule them out of the equation when you add some new vitamin or nutrient. Everything can make a difference, but some things go a lot further to solving particular problems than others.
CONCLUSION
My general goal in making myself a guinea pig for supplement experimentation is because I want to live a healthier, more energetic and happy life and I believe that there is room for improvement. In general I am at the healthiest I have ever been and continue to get happier as well.
Problems that were written off by doctors as “unknown” or “psychosomatic” actually had very simple vitamin or nutrient remedies. I remember clearly, after 3 months of rigourous testing for being tired all the time, a doctor said “we can’t find anything wrong”. On the list of 100 tests we’d been doing, I noticed one outlier for Recurring Epstein Barr virus to which the doctor said “probably nothing.”
After a 30 second Google search it was obvious that EBV’s dominant symptom is being really tired and only 3% of the population has recurring EBV. A few hours more googling and I came across a 20 page forum post on the benefits of L-Lysine on EBV symptoms. A day later I’d bought a $15 bottle of L-Lysine. Since starting taking it 15 years ago, most of my symptoms are gone and I rarely get sick anymore. Coincidence? Does L-Lysine have any side effects? Almost zero. Downside of trying? Zero. Upside? Wondrous improvements in life.
I’m not saying the doctors aren’t trying their best, but it seems in general the medical profession is not equipped to deal with the exponential uniqueness that occurs when combining an individual’s specific symptoms and the myriad of interactions they can have. Just think generally of the number of hours you have to pay attention to your body vs. the hours that a doctor can reasonably monitor you? I think on a fundamental level, it’s up to us to truly be our own saviours and use whatever resources we can find-doctors, books, YouTube, studies, online forums etc.
As I said before this is just me relaying my experiments on me. Your mileage may vary and you should be careful, especially if you’re taking larger than recommended doses or mixing with commercial drugs. If you aren’t scientifically minded and deeply tuned in to your body, don’t do it. If you’re the type of person that can confidently work on your own car or figure out how to make your own web page, then I think it’s within your ability to prudently experiment in a similar way to how I have done.
In all cases, be thorough in your research and consult your own doctor first.
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