I need to hear from people who really know supplements

Hey guys, so last night I went out and bought an assortment of supplements to help with my erections and overall health. Here is what I bought and the recommended dosages which I followed today.

First, this is what I’ve been taking before last night that I am still taking:

3,000mg of Omega-3 fish oil (1 1,000mg capsule 3x daily)
120mg of Ginko Biloba (1 60mg tablet 2x daily)

This is what I bought last night and added to my supplement intake today:

3,000mg of L-Arginine (1 1,000mg tablet 3x daily)
500mg extract of Asian (Chinese Red) Ginseng (1 250mg capsule 2x daily)
Super Goat Weed With Maca- It doesn’t have the mgs on the front but on the back it says 2 capsules contain 500mg of Super Goat Weed and 300mg of Maca Pure and it says to take 2 capsules twice daily.

So those are all of the supplements I have right now that I took today and followed all of the recommended dosages. I also have centrum multi-vitamin but am weary to take it because Ive heard multi-vitamins can be bad for you. Here are my questions, are all of these supplements going to be good for me and my overall health? are there any I should’nt be taking in combination with any others? and are there any that you feel I should be taking a different dosage of than the recommended one? Anyone who has alot of knowledge in the health and supplement fields any information you can give me and all answers I greatly appreciate regarding this. Thanks!

Marley

Hi Marley;

I will tell you what I know; maybe it’s the same you know; anyway, let’s go :

- Omega 3 is a polyunsaturated fatty acid; it’s scientifically proven that helps reducing cholesterol and hypertension, helping prevent heart diseases. As testosterone is created from fats, Omega 3 or 6 are a healthy way to give our body fats free of cholesterol. You’re taking a high dosage supplement, I’d recommend you to take less capsules and drink soya milk, eat more fish, eat chestnuts and use olive oil as a natural way to take this fatty acids.
- Ginkgo is a bit controversial; it claims to have hundreds of properties, but the only which are scientifically proven are that ginkgo helps peripheral blood circulation, for example hands, feet or brain, and also helps with pain associated with blood circulation problems because of its high content in flavonoids. The best effects have been proven in the brain blood circulation, being a weapon against dementia for people who had a brain thrombosis or infarct. Some studies claim that ginkgo is good for memory, concentration, tinnitus or sexual erectyl dysfunctions in sane humans, but is not clear. Ginkgo is good for blood circulation in general, and 120mg per day is the right dose: don’t take more.
- Arginine is also very controversial; it claims to have a lot of properties and only a few are scientifically proven. Arginine helps liberating growth hormone and helps the body clearing ammonia too. There are some studies which claim arginine helps to control blood tension, erectyl dysfunction or heart diseases, but there is no strong evidence about it. Arginine as a way to improve physical resistance during sport is a total fake. If you wanna take arginine, I’d recommend you to take 5g before going to sleep.
- Ginseng is again a controversial plant; it’s supposed that ginseng increases concentration, memory, physical and psychic resistance, being good to fight against depression or anxiety, but there is no strong evidence about it. In some cases ginseng has proved to be a stimulant, but the effects were no stronger than caffeine effects, for example. Ginseng for hair loss is a scam, so don’t use it for that. Ginseng acts like caffeine increasing blood pressure, so if you’re taking ginseng just to get some energy I’d recommend you to drink one cup of coffee or a RedBull energy drink with taurine, it will work better assuming the same risks. Don’t do it if you are hyper sensible to caffeine.
- Horny Goat Weed and Maca claim to be sexual boosters, but this is only based in traditional use. One thing is true, and it’s that maca contain a lot of amynoacids, carbohydrates and proteins, it means it has a high nutritional value. About horny goat weed… it’s up to you, you will have to report yourself if it’s being useful or not with your own experience. Make me know if it works so maybe I will get some, hehehe.

I’d recommend you not to take any vitamin complex. Last I read a scientific article in a Spanish newspaper about the vitamin complexes, which are reported to be only a marketing promise and a way for pharmaceutical industry to get millions per year. If you have a good diet including fish, vegetables and fruit you don’t need any vitamin complex. Some people think taking this supplements will help feeling better because is the marketing promise of this product, but this is a total fake, instead you can harm your kidneys saturating them with too high doses of minerals.

Only take vitamins after blood analysis and under doctor’s prescription, cause vitamin complexes are only recommended in certain diseases or temporally health status. If you do heavy sport I’d only recommend you to take 2 or 3 grams of vitamin C before starting your routine because avoids catabolic hormones which destroy muscle fibers and convert testosterone into estrogens.

I hope it has been helpful. Greetings from Spain!

Testosterone (as well as estradiol and other estrogens for females) is created only from cholesterol.
Condemning cholesterol as being bad is gross simplification.
3g of fish oil a day is moderate dosage for average male on typical western diet.

Vitamins - prescription? Bloodwork? Care to elaborate on this one?
Vitamin C is antioxidant, it has no anti-catabolic effects and catabolic hormones have nothing to do with converting test to E2, I agree on heavy supplementation however, but dosage should be split trough the day.

Taken from a Spanish sport journal, “Sport Life”…

“La testosterona se fabrica a partir del colesterol por lo que las dietas bajas en grasa inhiben la producción de testosterona. Para evitar los inconvenientes de la grasa animal escoge alimentos con ácidos grasos omega-3”.

—> Testosterone is made from cholesterol, so low fat diets can reduce testosterone producing. To avoid this matter, change animal fat in your diet into fatty acids like Omega 3. My mistake was to not specify difference between LDL and HDL: sorry.

“Se ha observado que los niveles bajos de vitamina C aumentan la enzima aromatasa encargada de convertir la testosterona en estrógenos. Además, ingerir 3 g de vitamina C antes del ejercicio, disminuye los niveles de cortisol después del esfuerzo”.

—> It has been proved that low levels of vit. C are responsible of high levels of aromatasa (don’t know name in English) which performs testosterone into estrogens. Also, taking 3g of vit. C before sport reduce cortisol after workout; cortisol is a catabolic substance”.

If this is wrong we will need to complaint the journal.

My meaning about vitamins is that normal people in normal conditions and with a good diet don’t need extra vitamins or minerals. If you are in a special condition like illness, pregnant woman, over 65, high stress, high competition sport, anemia, etc. you will need extra vitamins, but if it’s not your case, you don’t.

About blood tests it’s because maybe you have a low level of minerals or vitamin B types, causing different kinds of anemia which decrease energy from the body, and which can only be specified via blood tests. In that cases the doctor will need to prescript a vitamin/mineral supplement.

In UK and USA vitamin supplements are almost a “fashion” way of life, you can buy thousands of kinds almost everywhere, and for almost everything; it has become a multi-million dollar industry. Here in Spain this practice is not so strong, doctors and health specialists don’t recommend extra vitamins if you don’t really need it, because it’s a waste of money and also a way of fulling up with shit your liver and your kidneys, just for nothing.

Maybe it’s because of the Mediterranean food, known worldwide as one of the healthiest, that doctors recommend an equilibrated diet in place of supplements.

I didn’t write this post using my imagination, just what I’ve read and already knew. Take care mates!

Quick search have nothing to support your journal’s writers theory, you might consider (multiple) cross-referencing your sources - for your own good, before you believe in something, especially if it comes from paper or tv ;)

Scholar.google.com And even en.wikipedia.org/wiki :)

I don’t know what Spanish doctors/’health professionals’ (oh, another abomination of greedy industry) advocate and why, but general scientifically supported consensus is that vitamins are good and more often than not need to be supplemented. That doesn’t affect the fact, that vitamins are part (tho not exclusive) of supplement industry, which can generally be summarized as peddling snake oil, neither does it changes that doctors and science been wrong before, more often than not to be exact :D

Thunder bookmarks 7i’s post.

A :worthy:

If you are studying/working in something which is in relation with health/nutrition/chemicals/pharmacy/science and you are investigating this fields, I will consider your answer much better than mine, I will respect your sources more than mines, and I will take note of it very pleased. Seriously.

If it’s not the case… my friend, I will just consider that you did the same I did: read some information, compare that information with some other sources, and just believe what you’ve wanted. Seems logical, not?

I’m sure that it’s case one, so let me retire what I said about vitamins… me silly ignorant.

Oh, and silly ignorants this Spanish professionals… what a waste of time spending 8 years studying just for nothing.

CREON
Men of my age are we indeed to be schooled, then, by men of his?

HAEMON
In nothing that is not right; but if I am young, thou shouldest look to my merits, not to my years.

/Antigone, by Sophocles

What is that part about?

Anyway, you can choose whatever you believe in, but when you are providing advice for others, if it’s not supported my multiple sources and more or less accepted - either state that it’s you personal opinion/experience and that it does not coincide with generally accepted one, or provide some good reference for it, sports journal just don’t qualify as scientific reference, whether unnamed or signed by 666 Ph.D’s, Spanish or not.

You know that this is going to come back and bite you in the ass 7i.

Yeah, actually I just reread previous posts and noticed.

Sorry islord, you stated fairly clearly where does that come from. :)

:up:

No ass biting ThunderSS, maybe you love this kind of practice in your private life… but I’m sorry, it’s not my style.

To 7i; I would never give advices for things which can be harmful, as you could read I said something about caffeine and immediately I put an advice, cause I know caffeine can be dangerous for some people. And, for example, I’ve seen lot of members giving tips of how to use steroids or other serious supplements (I don’t know if supplement is the right name), and I think it would be weird that some of them are specialists. Going further, when I posted about FS side effects in this forum “somebody” suggested me Proviron, and as I can see he wasn’t a real specialist… no comment about this, ok?

I agree with you about using multiple sources, I think all of us here do this and, if you really have a better one and you find an opinion which is supported by more people than mine… men: I respect it. It would be wonderful if I can learn more for my own benefit too.

In this case the thing is that somebody -our friend Marley, almost we forgot him- is having doubts about taking a vitamin complex, and he wants an opinion of somebody who knows about supplements. Ok: I’m not an expert -like 99% here- and I tell him what I’ve read and what I think is logic, and I believe that a vitamin complex must be taken if it’s really necessary, not just because “you think” it will be good for you. I support this explanation in this article, in other people’s experience, in some other things I’ve ever read in the past and in my logic thinking of “only take X if you really thing you’ll need it” and “health is also business”.

You thing I’m wrong? Bravo 7i, I’m down with you. Tell us which source you’ve got and what you believe about vitamin complexes, so we can help our friend Marley to take a decision and finally can say he decided A or B but having enough information. That’s why this is a forum, an open way to share ideas and knowledge… and in my personal opinion it’s also a place where moderators should be the most serious and diplomatic ones.

Greetings from Spain