19 replies to this topic

[NIMh714]

I was wondering if there is any absorption issues etc with these supplements...

Zinc citrate ( 1 tab: 15mg , I would take it twice a day )
Vitamin D3 ( 1 soft gel: 1000ui, Id take it twice a day )
Fish oil ( 1 soft gel 2-3 times daily says the bottle )
Magnesium Malate ( 1 tab 2-3 times daily. Id shoot for 2 maybe three times daily )
Lutein  ( 1 soft gel daily )

I was wondering if there is any issue with taking this with that and so on. Obviously avoid calcium when taking them, but I wasn't sure if they competed with each other at all, or hindered anything.

Thanks.

[NIMh714]

While this question is basic to many, to me its not. Id appreciate any and all help regarding what I should avoid when dosing any of the above supplements. Also which ones can be taken together etc.

 

 

Also, maybe I dont need to take the Zinc twice a day or the Magnesium. Im trying to find their half-life but having a hard time so far..

Edited by NIMh714, 19 April 2015 - 11:58 PM.

[Strelok]

Neither zinc nor vitamin D are necessary to split up throughout the day.  As far as the best time to take them, that comes down to the individual.  We all have slightly different chemistry, neurotrasmitter balances, and activity of various enzymes.  For most, it's probably best to take the vitamin D in the morning.  But remember, vitamin D is fat soluble.  If you're taking 2000IU/day, that's 14,000IU/week.  You'd be safe in taking 7000IU twice weekly.  But daily or weekly dosing would also be fine.

 

The zinc may not matter as much as to the time of day you take it.  30mg in the morning, or 30mg before bed.  It would be individual to you as to how any of these may affect your sleep if taking them before bed.  It may hinder or help, but you'll have to determine that.

 

Fish oil is probably best split up for enhanced abosorption.  But this is only theoretical, and you may not actually see any real world difference in the dose that you're taking.  So taking a gram with each of your major meals per day might be a decent plan. 

 

Magnesium is probably better absorbed if consumed throughout the day.  Large single doses may cause loose stools, and decrease the overall percentage of Mg that ends up being absorbed.  However, a lot of people find that a single large dose (400-800mg) before bed helps them sleep.  I am not one of those people, but, again, try it out for yourself

 

Lutein is also fat soluble.  So you may try taking the lutein, vitamin D, and a dose of fish oil with breakfast for enhanced absoption.

 

Finally, you are correct that you might want to avoid taking the Mg with excessive amounts of calcium since they will compete for absorption.  I would just say avoid taking the Mg with dairy or Ca supplements.

 

As you can tell, none of this is set in stone and can be variable from person to person.  Anyway, hope this helps.

[NIMh714]

Thanks. I was just worried about if anything had to be split up to maintain a better homeostasis and if anything competed when taken together. Seems like that is not the case. THanks again!

[niner]

I don't think responses are profoundly variable.  Of course there are minor genetic variations between people, but we are all mammals, not to mention humans.  I agree with most of what Strelok says.  I'd cut down the zinc dosage to 15mg/day to avoid messing with copper absorption.  (Don't supplement copper at greater than 1 mg/d)  The half life of D is so long that it doesn't matter when or how often you take it, within reason.  Weekly dosing is fine.  I like the 7000 IU / week recommendation; Ideally you should get your blood level of 25-OH-D3 checked.  I target a fairly low level of 30-35 ng/ml due to the association of higher levels with prostate cancer, but good arguments can be made for higher levels.   I don't think there's much need for frequent dosing with fish oil.  They're fatty acid precursors, and will contribute to membrane HUFA pools.  Once a day should be fine. 

[NIMh714]

Thanks Niner.

 

So all in all, pretty much doesnt matter what I take and when I take it?

 

How long is Magnesium's half life? Can it too be dose once daily?

[niner]

So all in all, pretty much doesnt matter what I take and when I take it?

 

How long is Magnesium's half life? Can it too be dose once daily?

 

Yeah, pretty much.  There are some pharmaceuticals that shouldn't be taken with divalent cations.  They will usually warn you not to take them within a couple hours of an antacid, but magnesium and zinc are both divalent cations.  As far as the half life, the body does a pretty good job of storing essential micronutrients to get through periods when they aren't available, so the amount you take on average over multiple days or weeks is the important thing.  You don't need to worry about the half life unless you are looking for a pharmacologic effect.  For most people, once daily is fine for magnesium.

[NIMh714]

 

So all in all, pretty much doesnt matter what I take and when I take it?

 

How long is Magnesium's half life? Can it too be dose once daily?

 

Yeah, pretty much.  There are some pharmaceuticals that shouldn't be taken with divalent cations.  They will usually warn you not to take them within a couple hours of an antacid, but magnesium and zinc are both divalent cations.  As far as the half life, the body does a pretty good job of storing essential micronutrients to get through periods when they aren't available, so the amount you take on average over multiple days or weeks is the important thing.  You don't need to worry about the half life unless you are looking for a pharmacologic effect.  For most people, once daily is fine for magnesium.

 

 

So what exactly is a divalent cation? I tried to search online but didnt get a clean cut answer.

[OneScrewLoose]

I would just stick with Zinc 15mg at any point in the day. You should be getting a good amount from you're diet as well.

 

I recommend the 7000IU/week suggestion for Vit D.

 

I was taking 25,000IU at one point and my 25-OH levels measured 85ng/dl. Quite high. If you're gonna supplement D, the only real measure that tells you how much is in your system is 25-OH levels. Optimal is around 50 ng/dl.

 

How much EPA and DHA in your fish oil?

I recommend taking magnesium at night on an empty stomach. It can help some with sleep.

What's your Lutein dosage?

[NIMh714]

 

I would just stick with Zinc 15mg at any point in the day. You should be getting a good amount from you're diet as well.
 
I recommend the 7000IU/week suggestion for Vit D.
 
I was taking 25,000IU at one point and my 25-OH levels measured 85ng/dl. Quite high. If you're gonna supplement D, the only real measure that tells you how much is in your system is 25-OH levels. Optimal is around 50 ng/dl.
 
How much EPA and DHA in your fish oil?

I recommend taking magnesium at night on an empty stomach. It can help some with sleep.

What's your Lutein dosage?

 

Thanks OneScrew. I'll drop the zinc down to 15mg as I planned on doing that at some point anyway. Thats why I bought eh 15mg pills. The EPA is 400mg and DHA is 200mg, per cap.
For the Magnesium Malate, you say to just take 3 tablets ( in 3 caps: 425mg of magnesium, and 833mg of malic acid ) So I was spreading it out the day to just get a more balanced absorption, but the poster above said its not as critical like pharmaceuticals are

[OneScrewLoose]

If you get 400/200 EPA/DHA per capsule, then 1 is all you need. I would take the the Magnesium at night, at once, and see if improves your sleep.

[discopig]

I take almost the same supplements as you.

 

I take 50mg zinc gluconate, 1g magnesium glycinate, 2500 UI vitamin d3, 100-200mg l-theanine and a fish oil gel. I take all of them when I wake up in the morning and don't bother splitting doses.

 

I've been considering taking the magnesium and theanine before sleep, but they don't seem to help me sleep that much. I've also been considering adding taurine and ginkgo or bacopa to the stack, though I have to do some further research first.

Edited by discopig, 27 April 2015 - 09:35 PM.

[niner]

So what exactly is a divalent cation? I tried to search online but didnt get a clean cut answer.

 

An ion with a +2 charge, like Mg++ or Zn++.

[OneScrewLoose]

I take almost the same supplements as you.

 

I take 50mg zinc gluconate, 1g magnesium glycinate, 2500 UI vitamin d3, 100-200mg l-theanine and a fish oil gel. I take all of them when I wake up in the morning and don't bother splitting doses.

 

I've been considering taking the magnesium and theanine before sleep, but they don't seem to help me sleep that much. I've also been considering adding taurine and ginkgo or bacopa to the stack, though I have to do some further research first.

 

Ginkgo will not help you sleep. Taurine and Bacopa might. Just make sure you've had no caffeine around the Taurine, otherwise it becomes activating instead of sedating. The magnesium seems overkill. Not that it would be harmful, just rather expensive, and a buttload of pills to take. Bacopa might help, it's hard to say.

I would honestly start with 500mg of L-Tryptophan on a relatively empty stomach. Amino acids don't work too well on a full stomach.

Try these in this order:

L-Tryptophan
Taurine

Valerian Root
Melatonin
GABA (yes I know it doesn't cross the BBB but it still seems to have a sedative effect for some)
5-HTP + EGCG

Do it one at a time, and see if anything sticks.
 

[NIMh714]

Thanks guys! The lutein is 20mg/Zeaxanthin 1mg. I take that once a day in the AM with the VitD and the fish oil. So you're saying I only need to take 1 fish oil capsule daily?

[OneScrewLoose]

The dose of fish oil you need is whatever amount of capsules gives you about 400mg of EPA and 200mg of DHA. Avoid Fish Oil and Omega 3s that don't specify amounts of EPA and DHA.

Edited by OneScrewLoose, 29 April 2015 - 04:43 PM.

[NIMh714]

Gotcha... Here is the fish oil: http://www.iherb.com...0-Softgels/2717 Looks to be the ratio you said per capsule.

[OneScrewLoose]

It doesn't have to be that exact ratio. I actually recommend Trader Joes (the one in the red bottle) or Kirkland Signature (careful, there are two Kirkland/Costco ones and the bigger bottle doesn't specify EPA/DHA). You get around the same dose of EPA and DHA and the turnover in the store is high so you know it's going to be fresh.

[NIMh714]

Thanks OneScrew.

[OneScrewLoose]

No problem.