After years of taking alpha lipoic acid, I stopped.....and I feel SO much better!
For those that don't know, alpha lipoic acid is one of the most powerful natural antioxidants available. It's one of the few antioxidants that can cross the blood brain barrier, and it's both fat and water soluble. It also helps to control blood sugar levels, increases cellular energy and aids in the body's glutathione production.
So with all of these health benefits, why did I stop taking it?
OK let me first state that I've been having joint pain in my right knee, the index finger on my right hand and a mild case of Achilles tendonitis in both legs for years due to working out with heavy weights. I knew it had something to do with the supplements I was taking, because reducing intake got rid of the pain.
Rather than stop completely though, I decided to narrow it down. After quite a bit of experimentation, I decided that it was the Vitamin C that was causing these problems. While Vitamin C is an anti-inflammation fighter and collagen builder, I discovered that using it in large quantities can cause metabolic imbalances since it chelates copper and increases the absorption of iron, which can affect other minerals.
So I cut my dosage down from 3 grams a day, to 2 grams, and then to 1 gram. This improved my pain substantially, but never completely got rid of it. Eventually I cut back to 500mgs a day, and with extra copper (2 mg), I thought I had finally solved my problem.
But something gnawed at me. I know people that take WAY more Vitamin C than I do, and they never had these issues. One guy I know, a body builder, takes 6 grams a day, but he never complained about joint pain.
So something else was definitely afoot.
I started to examine my other supplements, in particular zinc. Zinc I know for a fact has an inversely proportional relationship with copper. When levels of one goes up in the body, the other goes down as they both compete for absorption using the same channels.
I went from taking 60 mg of zinc a day, to 45 mg and then finally to 30 mg. All the time, I noticed improvements. Still, cutting back on zinc never returned me to being 100% pain free.
I knew my pain had to do with low levels of copper though. Something I was taking was causing my copper stores to be depleted. So what else was there?
I started reading up on supplements that chelate copper and other trace minerals, and to my surprise, alpha lipoic acid popped up. In fact, there are people that take large doses of alpha lipoic acid to chelate heavy metals like mercury, or to get rid of excessive copper in the body.
Also, not only does alpha lipoic acid chelate copper, it also INCREASES the amount of Vitamin C in the body by recycling it.
I had been taking alpha lipoic acid for a long time, specifically the natural R-form, but I've also used the S-form as well. At any rate, I stopped taking the alpha lipoic acid, and voila! After years of waking up in the morning with pain and stiffness in my Achilles tendons, my right knee and my right index finger, the pain was completely and utterly gone!
It took a few days for the pain to go completely, as it takes a while for it to clear completely out of the system.
But I feel so much better and stronger now! My energy levels have increased, and I recover faster after working out.
I increased my Vitamin C dosage to 1 gram a day, something which would have caused my pain to flare up in the past, but there's no pain now whatsoever!
I hope that someone will benefit from my posting this, even if you don't take alpha lipoic acid.
Too often we forget that taking extra natural supplements like vitamins, minerals and antioxidants can have long standing effects on the body in a myriad of different ways.
For those that don't know, alpha lipoic acid is one of the most powerful natural antioxidants available. It's one of the few antioxidants that can cross the blood brain barrier, and it's both fat and water soluble. It also helps to control blood sugar levels, increases cellular energy and aids in the body's glutathione production.
So with all of these health benefits, why did I stop taking it?
OK let me first state that I've been having joint pain in my right knee, the index finger on my right hand and a mild case of Achilles tendonitis in both legs for years due to working out with heavy weights. I knew it had something to do with the supplements I was taking, because reducing intake got rid of the pain.
Rather than stop completely though, I decided to narrow it down. After quite a bit of experimentation, I decided that it was the Vitamin C that was causing these problems. While Vitamin C is an anti-inflammation fighter and collagen builder, I discovered that using it in large quantities can cause metabolic imbalances since it chelates copper and increases the absorption of iron, which can affect other minerals.
So I cut my dosage down from 3 grams a day, to 2 grams, and then to 1 gram. This improved my pain substantially, but never completely got rid of it. Eventually I cut back to 500mgs a day, and with extra copper (2 mg), I thought I had finally solved my problem.
But something gnawed at me. I know people that take WAY more Vitamin C than I do, and they never had these issues. One guy I know, a body builder, takes 6 grams a day, but he never complained about joint pain.
So something else was definitely afoot.
I started to examine my other supplements, in particular zinc. Zinc I know for a fact has an inversely proportional relationship with copper. When levels of one goes up in the body, the other goes down as they both compete for absorption using the same channels.
I went from taking 60 mg of zinc a day, to 45 mg and then finally to 30 mg. All the time, I noticed improvements. Still, cutting back on zinc never returned me to being 100% pain free.
I knew my pain had to do with low levels of copper though. Something I was taking was causing my copper stores to be depleted. So what else was there?
I started reading up on supplements that chelate copper and other trace minerals, and to my surprise, alpha lipoic acid popped up. In fact, there are people that take large doses of alpha lipoic acid to chelate heavy metals like mercury, or to get rid of excessive copper in the body.
Also, not only does alpha lipoic acid chelate copper, it also INCREASES the amount of Vitamin C in the body by recycling it.
I had been taking alpha lipoic acid for a long time, specifically the natural R-form, but I've also used the S-form as well. At any rate, I stopped taking the alpha lipoic acid, and voila! After years of waking up in the morning with pain and stiffness in my Achilles tendons, my right knee and my right index finger, the pain was completely and utterly gone!
It took a few days for the pain to go completely, as it takes a while for it to clear completely out of the system.
But I feel so much better and stronger now! My energy levels have increased, and I recover faster after working out.
I increased my Vitamin C dosage to 1 gram a day, something which would have caused my pain to flare up in the past, but there's no pain now whatsoever!
I hope that someone will benefit from my posting this, even if you don't take alpha lipoic acid.
Too often we forget that taking extra natural supplements like vitamins, minerals and antioxidants can have long standing effects on the body in a myriad of different ways.
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