Did you really mean 9000 units daily of Vitamin d3? That seems very high.
Also, where do you get the benfotiamine? I didn't think it was available in the US.
Thanks for asking! No, that wasn't a typo. A year or two ago it would have seemed high to me too. But I have researched Vitamin D3 very carefully (see my article here, which I linked in "My Supplements" at http://www.healthcentral.com/diabetes/c/17/3112/vitamin/). Also, an endo whom I respect very much, Dr. Joe Prendergast (who wrote the forward to my most recent book) also recommends a dose at least that high.
David
David,
I want to recommend D2 over D3. There now appears to be some advantages.
According to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cholecalciferol, D2 not being as potent as D3 is no longer believed to be true. The listing also mentions that "The human body does not tolerate vitamin D3 as well as vitamin D2, limiting the maximum efficacy of vitamin D3 supplementation compared to vitamin D2. Besides D2 is a vegetarian friendly form derived from fungus; D3 is from an animal source. 
Benfotiamine 150mg.
Benfotiamine.net,Inc. 6542 Hypoluxo Rd.Ste.114
Lake Worth, Florida33467 1-888-493-8014 www.benfotiamine.net
To: Boulder Diabetic. Actually any holistic M.D. who knows her vitamins will state just the opposite of what you are telling readers. D3 is known to be more readily absorbable than D2 could ever be. Some primary care physicians prescribe 50,000 units per week. But this only comes in D2 form. I do better on 8,000 units of D3 per day.
Also fish oil 2-4 per day will drastic lower trigerlicerides if one is low-carbing.
Lee
Do you recommend chromium, cinnamin or cider vinegar to help control blood sugar. I didn't see them on your list. I know you said you are no expert but, I've read a lot about these 3 supplements and wondered if maybe you took them in the past and found them helpful or not. Thank you in advance for your response.
I've been taking Chromium Picolinate based upon my physcian's advice. I ran out on one occasion and my count jumped 20 points until I resumed. ALSO-
The same physician showed me an article in JAMA (2-3 years ago) showing beneficial results from Red Korean (Panax) ginseng. Have taken it ever since and definitely feel better !
Thank you David, this is the first list of supplements that I feel have some relevance to my situation, a recovering diabetic after three years as of today on Byetta. I appreciate having your take on this uncharted and difficult area to know what is best for a person with diabetes.
I have taken 10,000 units of D3 for several years and have felt it was very effective in helping with my balance and other areas of concern. You are correct, the studies do show that D3 in larger amounts is safe and effective. It is important to add that if you are considering taking a larger amount of D3 that you have a blood level test run to determine what your present level of D3 actually is. Most older people are deficent in D3. I was way below acceptable levels when I began to add D3. My Endo put me on 50,000 a day for several months until I reached an acceptable level and then continued at 10,000 units a day. It is also good to have a physican monitoring the D3 level.
For more information Google the Vitimin D Council and see research being conducted.
John
Ia your advice the asme for woman?
Interesting that you mention iron. I try to be a frequent blood donor but often fall one lousy point short on the hemoglobin test. I began taking an iron suppliment, Femiron, and still sometimes fall short. I take the iron in the morning and my statin in the PM as I understand the two can bind within two hours of each other. I'm not a vegetarian but am on the usual diabetic pills and blood pressure pills. I've had this problem before beginning insulin and Byetta. My doctor isn't concerned but as I want to "pay back" from when I needed blood, it is frustrating.
When I tried Ashwaganda my blood sugar improved substantially, unfortunately after about a week I suspected it was also the cause of my worsening eczema. Trial and error substantiated both the allergy :( and the blood sugar improvement :) ...if you're not allergy prone, I believe Ashwaganda is well worth trying!
I cannot afford many of the supplements that you take. I do take fish oil (for obvious reasons; I take milk thistle, because it protects the liver, and kidneys; and chromium picolinate, as I feel better when I take it medium/long term; I also take a high quality vitamin B complex, as well as magnesium.
Officially type 2, but almost certain I'm type 1.5, (or type what the ????).
Steve
I have been using banaba leaf extract (1% corosolic acid) for some time and find it very effective to reduce the occaisonal sugar spike quickly. I am using the 300 mg version sold by vitacost.com. I have seen it reduce blood sugar by 30 points within an hour. I also use it at bedtime to reduce waking blood sugar. My AC1 is ~5.0 so it must be helping!
If you ate a wee bit of crome daily, your bodys craving for processed carbohydrates might disappear totally.
BTW, how about taking a mouthful of the pasta you like right now, chew it slowly, let it around your mouth slowly, and let yourself taste it very carefully? - I bet, you won´t like the stuff after having done so.
If you want to live "Iralian" with say spaghetti, you might also consider to replace the spaghetti with some canned bean sprouts.
Same taste(actually none), much the same structure, but better for you than the highly processed pasta-
Inger
from Denmark
In Dr. Witakers alternative newsletter, he recommends the better form of lipoic acid,R-dihydrolipoic acid ( R-DHLA, a search will give you information,,Also he recommends acetyl-L-carnitine at 500-1,000 mg daily. I am going to start both, along with my many other supplements. In one double-blind study carried out in seven medical centers, 480 mg of evening primrose oil taken dail for one year proved bendficial to patients nerve health.
David,
Do you find the brand of krill oil you are using to act as a laxative? We have tried the Swanson brand and one of us found the krill to be too laxative and the other found one pill per day was helpful as a laxative. I plan to try your brand after these are finished.
Many thanks for all of your help. Thanks to you I have managed to control my diabetes by using a high fiber diet - steel cut oats in the morning, salmon frequently for the noon meal, and hulled barley with vegetables, in the evening, and exercise.
My physician wanted me to take medication which I declined. My readings are about 5.5 at the present time.
"Primum nil nocere. It is one of the principal precepts all medical students are taught. It reminds a physican that he or she must consider the possible harm that any intervention might do. It is most often mentioned when debating use of an intervention with an obvious chance of harm but a less certain chance of benefit."
We seem to be throwing darts at a laundry list of substances & doses that may or may not have a benefitial effect. Worse then throwing away good money is the possible undesirable/harmful effects that these compounds might have. (From the comments posted I read - allergies, laxative effects, blood thining, increased risk of cancer. I'm afraid that it wouldn't take much searching to find others.)
So many questions come to mind here: the balance of the compounds/drugs taken in concert (someone mentioned that), possible synergistice effects w/ other compounds/drugs, compound putrity, gender differences (mentioned about iron), age, health status (e.g., do you have a well functioning liver?, type 1 or 2?), the concern that you may be putting a functioning liver at risk (we are at a greater risk of liver problems and yet we are asking our liver to process these unknown substances), and I already mentioned dosage (e.g., at what dose do you see a therapeutic effect?).
Also, I can't help but notice the willingness of people to take these unknown compounds but decline those perscribed by their MD. This may be the belief that "natural" drugs are better than synthetic. Or that a vegitarian drug is a better choice than an animal derived drug (comparing vitamin d2 to d3). These compounds are not snack foods. Their intent is to alter the function of our body. I would think long and hard before ingesting an unknown substance with the promise that it will "improve memory," "protect my heart," "prevent micro-vascular complication," etc.
Also mentioned, "this list changes regulary as I learn about supplements . . ." Would we be so ready to do that with "synthetic" pharmaceutical drugs?
Dan
I'll sit in a doctor's office and see wall-charts and knicknacks all with various drugs and drug companies names on them. My doctor will have a shelf full of drug samples. One reliable source will say a drug should be put into the drinking water and other reliable source says it is next to being a poison. One Nobel winner will say to take a ton of one vitamin and another renowned expert will say it messes with other things.
People are desperately trying to improve their quality of life but there is little consensus on what to do and what to take. Loose weight and get plenty of exercise is all that works? Perhaps that is ultimately the only remedy, but for many of us....that remedy is a bitter pill.
David,
As I type 1 I agree with most of your list. I also read your blogs and several other folks. A lot has happened in research on vitamins, minerals and supplements in the last year since your original posting. Is it time for you to post an official update yet?
In any case, thanks for all you do for us.
Dear David,
Thanks for prompting me! I have had that in the back of my mind as I cut way back on the number of supplements that I take.
Currently, I am down to a multi-vitamin (the Alive brand without added iron), psyllium husk caps (for fiber), magnesium citrate (because people with diabetes are generally low in it), krill oil (see my article at http://www.healthcentral.com/diabetes/c/17/20232/krill-oil/ ), alpha lipoic acid, and of course vitamine D-3.
Best regards,
David
Thanks for sharing your supplement useage, David. I particularly liked Diaxinol by Ortho Molecular products because it contains chromium, gymneme leaf, alpha lipoic acid, cinnamon and vanadyl sulfate -- all said to be important to controlling blood sugar. I also take Quercetin, 500 mg. 3x per day. A respected holistic M. D., Ronald Hoffman recommends most of the above. His articles can be found on drhoffman.com
Lee
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David,
As you may know, I've been collecting diabetes magazines to review... however I've moved the stack from my dining room table to... the bathroom. I've found that I've learned more from you and reading your articles than I have from the popular diabetes publications... So thanks for all the information that you pass on to readers.
Ironically, I need to mention that the article I'm currently perusing quite coincidentally happens to be, "Vitamines and Supplements: Taken for health or Taken for a Ride? by John White Jr. PA, PharmD on page 18 of the June July 2008 Diabetes Health publication. No doubt you've probably already read it also. I wanted however to stimulate the dialogue with your readers, by mentioning the ones he recommends in the article. They are: Vitamin C for neuropathy 250-1000mg/day, Alpha-Lipoic Acid for neuropathy 600mgs once or twice a day, Chromium Picolinate for glucose metabolism and blood fats 400micro grams/day, Cinnamon for possible reduction of fasting glucose and triglycerides 1.5-2gms/day, Gamma-Linolenic Acid for neuropathy 350-500 mg/day, Magnesium not more than 350 mgs/day, Omega 3 Fatty Acids to reduce triglycerides 3-5 grams/day, Pycnogenol for retinopathy 50mg/3xday, and not recommended are Selenium and Vanadium.
I happen to take some but not all of the ones you've mentioned. In addition, ones on my daily intake list that you or the article did not mention are: b12 (vegetarians/vegans may come up short on these, saw palmetto for enlarged prostate, and gymnema sylvestre, because I need to use em up. I gave them to my daughter after I learned that they might reduce cravings for sweets. I've since learned that the best remedy is to reduce carbs and forget about sweetners (cept stevia) and the cravings go away themselves.
I too would enjoy what others have to say about what they've learned. Anyone out there taking herbal supplements such as, Devil's Club, Coccinia indica (ivy gourd), holy basil, fenugreek, or bitter melon? Those are ones that show some promise also.
Dear Barry,
Thanks for that. Particularly for mentioning omega-3 fatty acids. I totally forgot to mention that I take 2 capsules of krill oil, high in omega-3, every day.
David
The bigges problem is that vitamins and minerals need to be taken in balance with other ingrediants. Vitamin A doesn't work independantly of Vitamin B. They work hand in hand with each other. When we balance livestock rations for cattle and hogs, we balance the whole ration.
What happens with humans is we often don't know exactly what nutrients the food we eat contain. Especially with fruits and vegetables, the location and weather where they were raised can change the levels for protein and vitamins etc from the " average " that we use to balance diets.
Also, Iron found in steak is absorbed better than iron in spinach. Which leads to the question on the quality of the supplements, and which form of iron they use.
The last issue about supplements is the dosage. Super large doses of Vitamin C alone acts similar to a drug, and the body must get rid of the excess, which may put extra stress on the liver.
So in effect what I do is take a mult-vitamin, that tries to have everything in balance, which helps to keep the system working properly. Then wonder if I really have a good company making the vitamin.
Mark, good points. in Nutrition Action's June 2008 edition, the featured cover article, "Multi Complex: Picking a Multivitamin gets Tricky" by Bonnie Liebman & David Schardt, reviews multivitamins. In the article (page 4) I noticed that they recommend watching for no more than 400 mcg of folic acid due to increased risks of cancer. I've noticed that many have higher doses. I've recently returned some I purchased at Costco because it contained 800 mcg's. What brand are you taking? As I learn more about multivitamin balances, I'm discouraged and disappointed. I've also run out of the one I've used and wondering which brand to purchase next. Any recommendations?
Hello All,
I've found some new high quality vitamins on the market that I really like and highly recommend. Here's the link:
http://www.mymangosteen.com/distributors/pcordova/product/3SIXTY5.asp
Click on the supplement facts link to see the supplement facts and percentages.
I've been using them for about 2 weeks now.
Dear Patrick,
I have SERIOUS doubts about any mangosteen products. Please see:
www.mendosa.com/mangosteen.htm
David
That's too bad. Very interesting read though, thanks for the link. I once had the same viewpoints as well, but changed my mind after trying it for myself.