Just a practical note before I continue the list. I use pill sorters that have seven days with AM and PM. I have four of these so I only need to sort pills once a month. After I fill them I wrap them in plastic wrap and store them in plastic bags because the humidity in Alabama can be absorbed by pills ruining them and making a mess.
Homocysteine Factors by Pure Encapsulations 1 Capsule Daily
This capsule contains four ingredients for dealing with the MTHFR defect and it is from a reputable supplier. You get an active form of B6, Methylfolate, methylcobolamin, and trimethylglycine.
Red Rice Yeast 1200 mg, two capsules morning and two evening
I am taking this instead of a prescription statin. I had a classic reaction to statins in the form of muscle pain, lack of exercise tolerance and brain fog so the doctor switched me to red Rice Yeast. I am ready to test statins again using a different drug and a smaller dose. When I do the Red rice Yeast will go away. I think our family history warrants statins but they should be used int he context of all of the other recommendations for max effect.
Beta Sitosterol 800mg
Lowers LDL and has a rather long list of other possible benefits.
Fenofobrate 160mg (Prescription Drug)
Cuts risk of heart attack in half. Reduced bad cholesterol and triglycerides while raising HDL.
Levothyroxine 150mcg (Prescription)
Thyroid hormone replacement for a thyroid gland gone missing.
Omega 3 Acid Ethyl Esters 1 Gram 2X a day (Prescription kept refrigerated)
Omega 3 fatty acids are extremely important for brain nerve and heart health. Eating small fatty fish harvested in the wild from cold waters could provide all you need. If like most people you are not eating sardines daily and you can get your doctor to prescribe Omega 3s, you will be getting many benefits. These gelcaps have cut my triglycerides in half and they serve to reduce platelet adhesion and therefore the formation of clots that cause heart attack and stroke.
Methylcobolamin 5mg injection One shot IM weekly (Prescription compounding pharmacy, must be refrigerated and kept in the dark)
Call it placebo effect if you wish but I feel so much better when I get my shot weekly. If I run out and have to wait a few days for a shipment, I experience a noticeable decline in wellbeing. Sub-lingual forms of methylcobolamin may work just as well. I have no way of converting my dose to oral because I am not sure how the rate of absorption of oral forms. Injection into a muscle means 100% absorption. Some people cannot bring themselves to self-administer injections. The inconvenience of refrigeration and injection paraphernalia might be enough to motivate most to seek other forms of delivery.
I am considering adding some things to this list when I drop the red rice yeast and go back to statins. Right now my pill sorters are maxed. I am conducting what is known as an “N of One” experiment constantly. The “N” refers to the number of subjects in an experiment. The more you have the more confidently you can generalize to a larger population. N of One experimental results apply to one person and no generalizations are scientifically possible. I generally change something with my doctor’s concurrence about a month before my next round of blood tests. that way I can see if I am moving in the right direction of not with the change. One challenge I am struggling with is competition between treatments for lipid problems and treatments for elevated homocysteine. The two tend to fight each other. For example, high dose Niacin is great for cholesterol by bad for homocysteine. I’ll keep tweaking and tuning and let you know what works for me.
N of one experiments also do nothing to control for dumb luck. Have I lived 14 more years than my dad and 18 more years than my brother because of all the crazy supplement, exercise and diet things I have done? Who knows? Joe is the one who should be writing this blog since he has me beat by 15 years and he still plays a mean game of tennis.