Is there a doctor in the house? (dietary supplements, opinions and personal experiences sought)

    So... I find myself often saying things like " well, I'm not 35 anymore" and  other mid-life complaining in general. I also find myself on the receiving end of the previous generations age related complains as well. As I would like to minimize age related ails in my own future, I have begun looking into supplements. Thus far I have had some general success(and noticeable effects) with Acetyl L carnitine, Creatine Mono-hydrate,and multi-vitamins. Where things start to get complicated is with the b vitamin group i.e. NMN,NAD,Nicotinamide ribose.As well as randoms like B-alanine,L-theanine,CoQ-10,lipoic acid, and propionyl-L-carnitine among others.

I realize that this a car related forum and that this is beyond those parameters. But "you people" seems to know just about everything and represent a broad cross section of varied ages,interests and disciplines. So I figured I would ask.

Thanks in advance.

P.S.  this is kinda like a daily driver maintenance/build thread.

P.P.S. On a personal note I have been a lurker for years and "joined" the forum when it seemed likely i would be able to contribute to the car stuff general and maybe even have a go at the "20xx" challenge. However, men make plans and god laughs. I am in the process of closing a real estate deal that includes 3 1900's houses and 20+ acres, that more than most likely, relegates my automotive endeavors to "appliance" status.

So... wow. I didn't realize. Upon having done more research, some of the supplements that I asked about are riddled with some dubious associations and questionable characters.  Long story short I went down a pubmed/NIM/NIH wormhole and it was very intriguing. Then later I did a general googling and  discovered the depths  "bro-science".

I think I'm just gonna be more mindful of my diet and get some more exercise and sleep.

bro science is a thing, bro.

Currently my "max gains" are the bags under my eyes

This has the potential to turn into the biggest canoe magnet.

Especially if I mention Keto.

In reply to Cooter :

Thanks. 

The only supplement I have used with any noticeable changes is collagen peptides, which is a goofy name but makes a huge difference for me for my joints. Way less crunch in my knees!

bustedplug said:

I think I'm just gonna be more mindful of my diet and get some more exercise and sleep.

Wise.  'Dietary supplements' are essentially all snake oil.

In reply to EastCoastMojo :

In reply to EastCoastMojo :

And where do you find those peptobismol collagen thingies?

Amazon's got 'em, or the vitamin shop.

codrus said:

bustedplug said:

I think I'm just gonna be more mindful of my diet and get some more exercise and sleep.

Wise.  'Dietary supplements' are essentially all snake oil.

 

Most.  Not all, but it’s pretty hard to tell the snake oil from the real without lots of research or a trusted source.

one of the bigger issues with supplements (aside from determining what you actually need) is actually getting what you pay for and verifying potency, there’s a few companies that do that voluntarily, but it isn’t a requirement so unless the manufacturer pays for that testing and validation, it doesn’t happen.

So yeah, unless you see someone who has a degree specializing in it, it’s probably best to focus on fixing the underlying issues with diet and exercise before going the supplement route.

BTW, the main issue with supplements is their unregulated nature means that occasionally people can get sick because the wrong stuff is included.  Had a friend of the family who took an L-tryptophan supplement to help her sleep.  There was a bad batch, she and a few others got sick.  Class action lawsuit.  Life altering debilitation, including full disability.  Large payout.  Shortened life span. Etc.

I need pre workout.    

EastCoastMojo said:

In reply to Cooter :

Thanks. 

The only supplement I have used with any noticeable changes is collagen peptides, which is a goofy name but makes a huge difference for me for my joints. Way less crunch in my knees!

Try taking Knox gelatin  its basically the same stuff. 

bustedplug said:

 

I think I'm just gonna be more mindful of my diet and get some more exercise and sleep.

Yep, that's a pretty good summary. Most of the "supplements" out there are badly regulated pharmaceuticals; unless your doctor recommends one for something specific, I wouldn't bother. I'm always suspicious of "miracle superfoods" that either seem to only show up as pills or as additives in processed food. If it's so great, why can't you buy fresh ones in bulk? (Note - I will accept "Because it doesn't ship well fresh - but you can get it frozen / canned / dried / otherwise minimally processed" as a good answer.)

Exercise.   Walk around the block every evening if nothing else.  

  Lay off sugar and sugar supplements. 

Especially high fructose corn syrup.   Mrs Jharry3 is an MD who treats Type 2 diabetes a lot and works in a Wellness clinic a few days a week.  She is convinced HFCS is a big contributor to the boom in Type 2 diabetes in the US.  Sugar may be worst than fat for causing heart issues besides the diabetes issues. 

Stevia is really the only sweetener substitute that has no calories and no track record of bad outcomes.

Lay off fast food.  Try to stick with food you cook from fresh as much as possible.     

EastCoastMojo said:

In reply to Cooter :

Thanks. 

The only supplement I have used with any noticeable changes is collagen peptides, which is a goofy name but makes a huge difference for me for my joints. Way less crunch in my knees!

This is EXACTLY the type of stuff I am looking for. thanks!

As to the general " supplements bad,diet and exercise good". I get it. really. for the most part I am "relatively" fit. However I could be fitter.

Backstory: During the flu season of '13/14 in my area 100+ people died, I was lucky, I was in a medically induced coma for just about a month. In that month I lost nearly 75 lbs. I was ravaged. Lost a lot of my core. I had become generally a  shell of myself. That was 5 yrs ago and I'm better. During recovery I was on a bunch of stuff, some of that stuff was vitamins, and some of that stuff was supplements. Creatine Monohydrate was used to help me regain some muscle mass. Gigantic horse pills o' vitamins were used to replenish the nutritional deficits incurred.

Looking forward the next 6 months of my life are gonna be rough. Long hours of hard labor. Lotsa stress. I would like to mitigate the effects of both,all the while trying to remain clear and focused.As well as trying to not be "unpleasant" to people both professionally and personally.

My car analogy: I am getting prepared for the Paris-Dakar rally on foot and I intend to win.If I can shave tenths I want to

Ok, in that case lets look at what you really do need. First of all, a multi-vitamin supplement would likely be a good idea and safe bet. I use the Kirkland brand. It is probably not doing anything for me since, at least recently, we eat a mostly plant based diet, but it isn't hurting. Same would likely be true for you. 

What would you be deficient in? Well, assuming you're American, probably Fiber: Less than 3% of Americans get the recommended fiber intake daily. Source. So eat your hummus, eat your beans, eat your plants. There are also supplements you can take for this.

What are you likely even more deficient in than fiber? Potassium. Less than 2% of Americans get the recommend potassium intake daily. Source. And bananas aren't even on the top 50 list, although I can't find my source for that right now.

You also should probably be taking a vitamin D supplement. That keeps you happy! Seriously, it does--it really can combat seasonal depression. If you work outdoors in Florida all year round, not really a concern, but if you spend most of your time indoors I'd take it. I take it year round. 

Assuming you can't or won't give up animal fats and go to a plant based diet, here is what I recommend: 

1. Multivitamin Daily
2. Vitamin D Daily or weekly (ask your pharmacist or doctor, but probably about 5,000-10,000 IU's weekly)
3. Daily smoothie in the morning for breakfast
   1. Raw oatmeal, blended to a fine powder (protein and fiber)
   2. a cup of a dark green leafy (arugula, chard, spinach, kale) (Protein, fiber, iron, potassium). I like to freeze them before blending
   3. Berries! for flavor and antioxidants, vitamins, etc. Vary them in your smoothies. Freeze them before blending
   4. Apples, Banana, Oranges - mostly for taste and texture, nutritionally they pale compared to berries
   5. Water

If you have one of those smoothies every day, you'd be getting more essential nutritents in your daily diet by 9AM than the average American gets in a week. I also throw beets in mine (nitrites!) but that is such a strong earthy flavor that I don't recommend it to everyone.

EDIT: My background, I'm not in the medical or nutritional field, but I read more Scientific studies on nutrition than most people in the industry do. My wife is a Dietitian, and I read most of what she brings home. You see a LOT of bad diets out there that have little to no research behind them. Show me the research, then show me more, then show me more. If you see someone make a claim (i.e. a XYZ diet is good for you) ask them for the studies to back that up.

Fueled by Caffeine said:

EastCoastMojo said:

In reply to Cooter :

Thanks. 

The only supplement I have used with any noticeable changes is collagen peptides, which is a goofy name but makes a huge difference for me for my joints. Way less crunch in my knees!

Try taking Knox gelatin  its basically the same stuff. 

Well, yes and no. The end result of receiving collagen is the same, but the delivery method is what works for me. The powder I use goes from the container to a drinkable form mixed with water in about 10 seconds. In order to make gelatin palatable I would need to make something like homemade jello with fruit juice, which is fine if I have fruit juice and 4 hours to wait.

It's kind of like comparing sex to artificial insemination. The end result may be the same, but one of those options you will probably enjoy more. 

EastCoastMojo said:The only supplement I have used with any noticeable changes is collagen peptides,

In reply to mtn :

Thanks. Good tip on freezing the greens, I'll try that.I like to put a good hunk of ginger in my smoothie, it might be able to tame those beets.

Whats your take on the"mitochondrial health" angle ?

Only supplements that I know work for me are.  

Vitamin D. 

Cholestoff(plant sterols/stenols). Helps reduce cholesterol. 

Both backed by bloodwork. 

mtn said:

Ok, in that case lets look at what you really do need. First of all, a multi-vitamin supplement would likely be a good idea and safe bet. I use the Kirkland brand. It is probably not doing anything for me since, at least recently, we eat a mostly plant based diet, but it isn't hurting. Same would likely be true for you. 

 

What would you be deficient in? Well, assuming you're American, probably Fiber: Less than 3% of Americans get the recommended fiber intake daily. Source. So eat your hummus, eat your beans, eat your plants. There are also supplements you can take for this.

What are you likely even more deficient in than fiber? Potassium. Less than 2% of Americans get the recommend potassium intake daily. Source. And bananas aren't even on the top 50 list, although I can't find my source for that right now.

You also should probably be taking a vitamin D supplement. That keeps you happy! Seriously, it does--it really can combat seasonal depression. If you work outdoors in Florida all year round, not really a concern, but if you spend most of your time indoors I'd take it. I take it year round. 

 

Assuming you can't or won't give up animal fats and go to a plant based diet, here is what I recommend: 

1. Multivitamin Daily
2. Vitamin D Daily or weekly (ask your pharmacist or doctor, but probably about 5,000-10,000 IU's weekly)
3. Daily smoothie in the morning for breakfast
   1. Raw oatmeal, blended to a fine powder (protein and fiber)
   2. a cup of a dark green leafy (arugula, chard, spinach, kale) (Protein, fiber, iron, potassium). I like to freeze them before blending
   3. Berries! for flavor and antioxidants, vitamins, etc. Vary them in your smoothies. Freeze them before blending
   4. Apples, Banana, Oranges - mostly for taste and texture, nutritionally they pale compared to berries
   5. Water

 

If you have one of those smoothies every day, you'd be getting more essential nutritents in your daily diet by 9AM than the average American gets in a week. I also throw beets in mine (nitrites!) but that is such a strong earthy flavor that I don't recommend it to everyone.

 

 

 

EDIT: My background, I'm not in the medical or nutritional field, but I read more Scientific studies on nutrition than most people in the industry do. My wife is a Dietitian, and I read most of what she brings home. You see a LOT of bad diets out there that have little to no research behind them. Show me the research, then show me more, then show me more. If you see someone make a claim (i.e. a XYZ diet is good for you) ask them for the studies to back that up.

I just got back from the grocery store and remembered this thread while I was there. I bought some ingredients to make this mtn smoothie.

Would it be too much to ask to get some measurements for the amounts of various things?

Well, I'm happy to do it, but really can't right now--our Vitamix is waiting on a replacemnt "pitcher" after we melted it in the Great Dishwasher fire of '18 (actually, I think I just had it too close to the stove and it warped a little). One other tip: A vitamix or blendtec makes a smoother smoothie. Totally worth it if you have issues with texture. I'll take actually estimates when it comes back.

If I had to guestimate, I'd say its 1/2 cup of oatmeal in the blender first. Blend to a powder. Then add in the veggies - a "handful" of the green leafys. It'd be a side salad at a dinners worth of the leafy's. Probably 2 cups of the frozen berries, and a banana. Put in probably 2 cups of water, and blend away. Add more water if it is too thick. More fruits/veggies if it is too thin (bananas are great to thicken it). Put more veggies in it if you can stand the taste and still enjoy it. More fruit if it is too bitter. 

I honestly have never measured other than the oatmeal, and the only reason for that is that it is easy to scoop with a measuring cup. I eyeball everything. Be ready to have made too much the first time, they keep in the fridge alright for a few days.

Other great things to put in there: flaxseed, chia seed, spinach, kale, apples, pears, pineapple (really is excellent at neutralizing bitter veggies), melons... Really anything that will blend. 

In reply to mtn :

Thanks man that's plenty good enough for me. The oatmeal was the only thing I was worried about getting close. I figured everything else would be kinda to taste so to speak. Gonna try it out in the morning.