This blog is a way of sharing the information and resources that have helped me to recover my son Roo from an Autism Spectrum Disorder. What I have learned is to view our symptoms as the results of underlying biological cause, which can be identified and healed. I say "our symptoms" because I also have a neuro-immune disorder called Myalgic Encephalomyelitis.

And, of course, I am not a doctor (although I have been known to impersonate one while doing imaginative play with my son)- this is just our story and information that has been helpful or interesting to us. I hope it is helpful and interesting to you!


Tuesday, June 15, 2021

General Supplement Notes

Favorite resources for information:
Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center
NIH office of dietary supplements
Examine.com

Dictionary of Dietary Supplement Terms (from NIH site)
Nourishing Hope (Site for Julie Matthews, a nutritionist who specializes in using nutrition to heal health conditions, particularly neurological ones such as autism, ADHD, anxiety, OCD, etc).

Favorite Sites for Ordering:
Frontier supplements and nutritional foods
Medicine of the People (native american made)
Oregon's Wild Harvest
Mountain Rose Herbs
PureBulk Supplements
Nootropics Depot 
VitaCost (frequent sales, Cheap "house" brand, very large selection)
Thrive Market

Additional Favorite Brands:
North American Herb and Spice
Oregon's Wild Harvest
Pure Encapsulations
Nutiva 

Enzymedica
Eidon liquid minerals in low-dose but highly absorbed ionic form.
Trace Minerals

SUPPLEMENTS FOR SPECIFIC NEEDS AND DISORDERS:
Immune Function and Micronutrient Requirements Change over the Life Course
My post about supplements for mitochondrial support

Blood sugar, Diabetes, and Insulin - chromium picolinate, cinnamon, vitamin B1

Cardiovascular health - CoQ10 supports energy production in heart muscle, lowers blood pressure,it reduces the side effects from statins (meds given to lower cholesterol that have a side effect of damaging muscles by lowering levels of CoQ10), potassium (and other electrolytes)

Connective Tissue Support see this post

Supplements to Treat Pyrroluria - vitamin B6 (majority in P5P activated form), zinc, manganese.

Digestion, G.I. Disease: betaine HCl, zinc, and ACV (apple cider vinegar) to increase low stomach acid.  Glutamine heals leaky gut.  Rutin reduces intestinal inflammation. 

Mast Cell Support - NeuroProtek (combo of rutin, luteolin, ), vitamin C,
Aller-Aid™ with Quercetin Capsules

Neurological and Cognitive Support - NeuroProtek, GABA, l-theanine, magnesium threonate, zinc
New Creatine & Brain Performance Study Results Released! 
In this video Dr Brad Stanfeld presents research suggesting that creatine supplementation, already widely used for supporting muscle performance and recovery, can also enhance cognitive performance. Creatine is stored in our cells as phosphocreatine which can then be used to produce ATP to power our cells.  The hypothesis is that because brain cells require high amounts of energy to function, increasing creatine stores in the brain can increase brain function.  While creatine does cross the BBB, there is less uptake by the brain of creatine then other tissues such as skeletal muscle.  This may be because the brain is able to synthesize creatine itself whereas skeletal muscle is not.  In a well-conducted meta-analysis of studies looking into creatine and brain function, there were mixed results.  It seems probable from the research that creatine supplementation might improve memory for older adults or for people during times of increased demand on the brain, such as certain brain disorders. 

Treating yeast overgrowth - methyl B12, GSE (grapefruit seed extract), biotin.  Yeast thrives in an alkaline environment so acids such as ACV (apple cider vinegar) help, as well as the probiotic acidophilis, which are acid-producing bacteria. 

PMDD - Pre-Menstrual Dysphoric Disorder  (supplement recommendations from this video)
Calcium                 1200mg/day
Vitamin B6             50-100mg/day
Magnesium             200-360mg/day
Vitamin E                400 I.U/day
Also, the herbs Agnus Castus Fruit Extract (aka Chasteberry) and Ginko Biloba

Specific Supplements

Melatonin -
Melatonin: Buffering the Immune System

Combination Supplements:
Aller-Aid™ with Quercetin Capsules

NeuroProtek FAQs

Coromega 

BrainChild Nutritionals

SPEAK

Potential Future Supplements:
Charlotte's Web Hemp Oil 

Parasym Plus 

Agmatine (a metabolite of arginine)
"It shows promise for alleviating neuropathic pain and drug addiction and shows some potential in protecting against strokes and benefiting cognitive health."