11 replies to this topic

[bobalou]

when the fog comes in.this helps me clear it out..triple strength lecithin,phoshatidyl choline 420 mg ,add ginkgo biloba 60 mg. and gotu-kola 250 mg. a place for a good price.,I use puritan's pride..www.puritan,com..they put on sales buy 1 and get 2 free,from time to time.I think it's good stuf.using them for yrs.

[hiker]

lecithin, which is a natural ingredient in soy, contains choline which is vital to the chemistry that makes our brain work. Article by Elson Haas:

http://www.healthy.n...cle.asp?ID=2131

excerpt:

Choline is also an integral part of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Its availability preserves the integrity of the electrical transmission across the gaps between nerves, and this helps the flow of electrical energy within the nervous system. It is also important to the health of the myelin sheaths covering the nerve fibers. Choline helps the liver and gallbladder function and is vital to brain chemistry, as it seems to aid thinking capacity and memory.

Edited by hiker, 17 September 2005 - 10:50 AM.

[calmcookie]

Hiker ... I don't know much about the supplements mentioned (except Gingko, mentioned by Babalou ... which I used for altitude adjustment in Colorado) ... but they seem to work for you. You're obviously one sharp cookie (hey, that's my name ... or Sir Cooker).

Kidding aside, the problem I have with recommending any kind of supplement is that people tend to overdo it. They latch on to some sort of magic solution in a bottle and usually end up spending a lot of money jumping from one "cure" to the next ... and never sticking with anything long enough to do any good. I've also come to believe that the human body, in it's ideal, is a very finely balanced system. Too many vitamins (even vitamin C) or minerals tends to set off a metabolic cascade that pushes ones internal environment OUT OF BALANCE.

I rarely recommend exotic supplements, vitamins or minerals ... with a few exceptions (specific disease states). But, that is only my view ... and I remain open to both personal experience and claims to the contrary.

Best, C.C.

Edited by calmcookie, 17 September 2005 - 11:09 AM.

[bobalou]

this is true .if you use them all the time ,they stop working..good pt cookie..

[hiker]

CC - regarding Gingko...will it work quickly to help with altitude adjustment? A family member is leaving next weekend for a two-week hiking trip to be spent over 16,000 feet elevation....and has lived at sea level for years. Whatever your reply, I will forward it to that person. A week to prepare for the adjustment is inadequate I know. The person has been told by others to expect to be sick all the time and make sure to eat and drink regardless of not feeling well.

[calmcookie]

Hiker,

I don't know much about altitude sickness, except a few blurbs read before going to Breckenridge. An MD (not who I'd typically listen to ) said that Gingko has been shown to be as effective as acetazolamide (common prescription). I just bought the dried leaves and drank the tea, daily, for a week, before going. Had no problems, but have no idea whether I would have gotten sick at altitude, with or without the Gingko.

Alkalizing, however, .... (lots of green leafy veges) ... several weeks before going to altitude can improve the bloods capacity to hold oxygen (and since it's low oxygen that causes the symptoms ... makes sense to test ph and push toward the bluer end of the scale).

And you probably already know that ascending as slowly as possible will decrease the risk of unpleasant symptoms.


Best, C.C.

[OEXCHAOS]

BTW, on the Ginko thing, I'm absolutely convinced of the improvement in mental acuity. My wife and I play the jumble together after lunch just to have a bit of fun before we get back into work. She's very, very fast. We race and most of the time she'll beat me on 3 out of 5 of the puzzles. If I take 2 ginko the night before and 1 the morning before most of the time, I'll beat her not just by a little but typically by a lot. If I don't, she beats me. It's hard to say it's a placebo, since I don't tell my wife that I'm taking my Ginko so she can't be losing on purpose. Further, I'm just plain faster. BTW, she's taken to hiding the Ginko from me! True story. Mark

[calmcookie]

Mark,

Thanks for your experience. There's probably some value in Gingko.
I ran a seminar 10 years ago called "Herbal Remedies" and found a
lot of support for Gingko (especially from German researchers).
But finding a good quality, potent source at your local health food store
is another story. Whenever possible, I try to buy loose / dried herbs.

Dr. Varro E. Tyler, PhD ScD and Eli Lilly scholar has written several good
books on medicinal herbs.

Unfortunately, there's so much rubbish written on the topic ... sometimes
hard to sift through all the junk. But he's one author I've found to be
sensible and scientifically based.

I've also heard Gingko is a good aphrodesiac - just kidding

C.C.

Edited by calmcookie, 19 September 2005 - 11:26 AM.

[OEXCHAOS]

Cookie, They say the brain is our largest sex organ! Seriously, I've noticed some effect. Just getting better circulation, however, probably explains it and you can do that lots of ways. I'd say that exercise is an equally good aphrodisiac, and sun, at least for men, can work some wonders too. Mark

[hiker]

thanks, CC, for the helpful reply above. The leafy greens has been on the menu.

Deepak Chopra, MD has a good section in one his earlier books naming a few select herbs he thinks most enhance the quality of life and functioning....Gingko is one of them.

His newer book, The Chopra Center Herbal Handbook, Forty Natural Prescriptions for Perfect Health is linked below.

http://www.amazon.co...=glance&s=books

-----------

Now, CC, on the final subject of your recent post...for an aphro effect one can try Deepak's CD called a Gift of Love in which the ancient poet Rumi poems are put to music. Rumi anything is good for various things. Link -

http://www.amazon.co...=music&n=507846

Edited by hiker, 19 September 2005 - 11:45 AM.