Supplements for a better life

Raw garlic is awesome for many, many reasons. Damiana is also worth looking into for eq and increased energy!

I want to try taking celery seed/stalk, but I want to make sure I get one that other people are feeling effects from. Which/where do you get yours? Does it help with both EQ and libido?

Sorry I haven’t had the time to comment guys, it’s been a little hectic these past few days.
So, let’s get started.

Tootyfisty, I’ve come to the conclusion that a lot of the things that we eat are at least moderately saturated in Omega 6. That would mean that a normal person (not a fanatic when it comes to foods) would need to supplement his daily meals with no more than a tablespoon of olive oil (around 2 grams of Omega 6) and simply stay of other types of oils (fried foods, junk food, etc.). The advised daily intake of Omega 3 is ~1.5 grams for grown men. And that multiplied by two, as the ration for Omega 6 : Omega 3 that you advised was 2:1, that means that 3 grams of Omega 6 are enough for a grown male. 2 of those one would get from the fore mentioned tablespoon of olive oil and the other 1 would probably come from the other stuff we eat (nuts, eggs - two eggs contain around 1 gram of Omega 6, etc.). Correct?

Also, does chia have any additional benefit other than being high in Omega 3? Because in my country chia is almost 5 times more expensive than flaxseed and according to Nutrition Data they contain around the same amount of Omega 3. So should one prefer chia to flaxseed for another reason?

And lastly - 98 F (36.6C) sounds like a fine body temperature to me, despite the fact that I’m often hot in a T-shirt when it’s below 10 degrees Celsius.

Sricardo, do you suggest I take all of those or chose one? Bacopa monnieri (Brahmi) seems acknowledged as a mind-boosting supplement. The other two also seem popular but for other things (f.e. Gotu Kola seems popular for improving blood circulation).

Also, Indian cuisine a couple of times per week sounds wonderful. :p

Allnighter, damiana was a nice supplement, I forgot about that.

There are many good brands. The one I take is the Solaray brand standardized extract (it’s got a purple top on the bottle) . Other brands can be good too, like nature’s way, or Natural factors, are ones I have personal experience with. These are all standardized to the same amounts and have high quality ingredients with no contaminants.

I find it’s great for both EQ and libido, though my libido is naturally high to begin with.

You are on the right track about supplementation, but if you look at total dietary fat intake should be about 100g daily. That means your tablespoon of olive oil is only 3% of your total fat intake. What I’m trying to get across is the other 97% of your fats, where are they coming from? You are correct that our diet is full of Omega-6 but is that omega-6 processed and degraded? If you eat a salad dressing with soybean oil in it I can assure you the fats and omegas have been oxidized and are quite unhealthy. So really you want to change the source of that 97% to a healthy wholesome source. If you are taking an oil supplement most are also oxidized in the processing and if it’s in a plastic bottles it will continue to oxidize on the shelf. Pressing oils from the seed removes all the protective qualities of the seed, so great care needs to be taken afterward to maintain its healthy state. I usually don’t advocate the pressed oil supplements, the exception being Udo’s.

As for chia, it’s price went up because demand has gone up. It used to be dirt cheap here (US) and now it can be as high as $16/lb but it has many more benefits including protein and fiber (also in flax I know) but the muculagen it produces is very good for the GI tract. Historically the Mayan and Aztec relied on it to provide their warriors with strength and endurance. Flax, well, they used to make paint out of it (still do for some oil paints) and they used to feed flax seed to cattle to fatten them for market before they found it gives them severe thyroid disorders. The oil has less of this effect but can easily turn into a rancid state if precautions are not taken.

Here is an experiment you can try. Take some flax oil and pour it into a paper towel and leave it on a dish on your window will. Within a couple of weeks you should notice a very strong paint like odor. Before that you may notice it becoming very thick and sticky this can also happen in your body. You can try this with all the oils you eat. Notice butter and coconut oil never spoil (an exception may be butter from a cow fed mainly soy and corn as these fats will be incorporated into the butter, but a pasture fed cows butter will be very healthy and last on your counter for a very long time). Olive oil also stays fresh for a very long time. But any of the poly-unsaturated oils will go quickly.

Not that we should totally avoid them we need the omega’s, just be aware of what actually happens to our food and choose high quality oils (fats) that have been maintained properly.

And lastly, your temperature, 98F is pretty good, 98.6F (37C) is even better. In a healthy thyroid adult an afternoon temp of 99F is considered a good sign. But if you don’t have any symptoms, weight gain, tiredness, depression, sleep disorders, hair loss, dry skin, anxiety, joint pain, brain fog, memory problems, menstrual irregularities, infertility, this list goes on as there many man symptoms associated with hypothyroidism and you may exhibit one or many of them, the point is, if you feel healthy and vibrant with a 98F temp then by all means don’t supplement with desiccated thyroid. Your diet changes may restore thyroid function anyway.

One last note on oils, almost all of the cooking oils are processed under high heat, removing the telltale rancid odor and removing any health benefits it may have had. They are exceptionally bad for you, soy, corn, peanut, canola, oils all have had this processing done to make them suitable for cooking with medium or high heat. Coconut oil and butter naturally have a stable molecular structure and can be used up to 350F so you can even make fried chicken with coconut oil and it will still be in a relatively healthy state to consume.

At live strong it says that fish oil helps with testostrone production and other hormones . Why would you say it lowers it ? Do you have any link so we can read it ? Please and thank you .

There are studies showing that it both increases free T by lowering SHBG (or sex-hormone-binging-globulin) as well as studies showing that it lowered free T by increases in SHBG.

If you want to take it and your body likes it then by all means, but be aware of the effects it may have on you. Effects like lowered sperm count and lower hormone production. I would say this is more common (also more common the longer you take it) that fish oil lowers hormones due to it’s mechanism of lowering cholesterol. It forces your liver to sequester it thereby lowering the blood serum levels. Looks great on a blood test but now you don’t have the cholesterol to make your hormones out of, including Testosterone. Livestrong also has a nice article explaining how testosterone production works.

Something like coconut oil will lower blood serum cholesterol by increasing the conversion of cholesterol to testosterone and other hormones. A much healthier way to do the same thing. So will going in the sun, sunlight converts cholesterol into vitamin D. I also never wear sunscreen as it has been linked to skin cancer and lowered vitamin D production.

Here’s a great article from a doctor about fish oil complete with citations to well done studies if you want to check it out.
The Great Fish Oil Experiment

There are a lot of great articles on that site so it’s worth poking around and reading. I practice many of the health philosophies found there, although I was aware of them long before finding the site.

Just some anecdotal evidence here but I witnessed first hand the complete cessation of severe joint pain simply by having the person stop taking fish oil. Now, not everyone has this happen to them as I also met a man who was 83 years old and took fish oil every day for a large portion of his life. He was fit and happy with a grip stronger than mine and hardly had any gray hair. This is in my experience, however, the exception to the rule as more often is like the first case at least for the people I deal with. It would stand to reason too that I would not see as many healthy people taking fish oil as they would have no reason to seek council.

O wow thanks man cause I been taking it for the past 5 months and my last blood work my shbg was 52.3 and the top range was 55 and my free test was on the low side . No wonder I been feeling more horny this past 4 days I haven’t been taking it . And I was taking only cause I thought it would helped I guess they are right when they say not all supplements help . What about milk thistle ?

I take fish oil everyday and have had two sperm analyses done. Both showed much higher than average sperm counts. Just wanted to provide anecdotal evidence that fish oil does not necessarily negatively effect everyone.

You are correct, different bodies are different. The brand and quality may have a lot to do with it as well as the total fat intake etc. It’s good to be aware of the potential like with Bignik up there having been more horny after stopping.

My choice to eat how I do has given me great benefits, including looking younger than many of my friends who are 10 years younger than me. Also weighing the same as I did in high school with out having to think or do anything other than light exercise. I thank my parents often for going me this type of foundation. But you guys all have to decide for yourself what type of diet you perform best on. My only really blanket statement will be about quality, wholesome, organic, whatever you choose to eat should fall into those guidelines.

Milk thistle is great for protecting the liver from damage. But it also interferes with the most drugs on the market so be aware of that if you are on any medications.

I also like aspirin for anti inflammatory, it mimics some of the body’s natural process so if you aren’t allergic I would choose this over other pain relievers.

Ginkgo biloba, it’s too obvious not to mention. It’s also a very effective blood thinner so you can choose this instead of a pharmaceutical. I like nature’s way brand Ginkgold the best.

Probiotics, these little guys do amazing things for us. They inhibit the growth of bad bacteria and candida yeast, they produce anti inflammatory compounds and H2O2, they can block the receptor sites for bad bacteria thereby limiting the pathogenic effects. They digest our food for us, consume the extra cholesterol and toxins in the bile that the liver is eliminating so we don’t reabsorb them later in the GI tract. The benefits go on. In my opinion Flora makes the best ones on the market.

Enzymes, both digestive and systemic enzymes give the body a great assist in all it’s processes. These catalysts are essential for producing certain hormones, breaking down fats and proteins, and many other things. Your immune system uses them to fight infection and cancer. The types you find on the shelf are mainly digestive so they don’t fight cancer or anything but I take them all the time because my body can spend less energy producing them and more energy producing the systemic enzymes that do fight cancer and infection and aging etc. Any cooked food is also devoid enzymes as they are destroyed by heat. So your body must provide them or you can take a supplement of digestive enzymes. Most people find their heartburn relieved simply by taking these. No Zantac required. Actually those acid blockers really lower your absorption of nutrients I recommend avoiding them always. Even if you think you need to take them for an ulcer or something, you don’t. There are more effective and healthy ways to deal with ulcers or acid reflux.

Beets! Yes beets. They are a fantastic food that cleanse the liver and builds the blood. I eat 6-12 beets a week, cooked and raw. On salads, in meatloaf, anything I want to sweeten a little I use beet juice or dehydrated beet crystals. They are a great red or purple food coloring with no chemicals. To make it red add paprika or turmeric or both, it’s a beautiful way to color your food. Screw that fd&c bullshit.

I’ll think of more stuff later.

While you are touting the positive effects of coconut oil, fair warning should be given as well. The highly stable nature of coconut oil is due to its extremely (~90%) high percentage of saturated fats. Saturated fats are good in the correct proportion, but as with everything moderation and balance is the key. The ability of an oil to go rancid does not make it unhealthy, it simply implies it has unsaturated fats.

Actually, Coconut oil is primarily Medium chain triglycerides.. They’re converted directly into ketones by the liver for use by the body. In any diet where carbohydrates are restricted, these fats are almost as good as carbs for immediate energy availability.. There are spectacular health benefits from consuming coconut oils.. google it