Supplements

"Step into the supplement aisle of any pharmacy -- or, worse yet, health-food store -- and you see them: the dazed and confused. Lured by claims of health benefits available at the drop of a Dixie cup, they pick up 100 of these, 50 of those, a bubble pack of the other -- and, wait, did that say suppository? They yearn to swallow a cure, any cure, all the while wondering, Are any of these any good, really?" ~ Men's Health Magazine


I have reintroduced some supplements back into my diet. As always I did quite a bit of research online. I've often found "Men's Health" magazine to be very helpful, accurate, and more importantly conservative when reporting on supplements. After a quick google search I found a very useful article on supplements on their website titled "The Best Supplements For Men".

Of their 17 supplements, here's the one's I chose:

1. Ginkgo Biloba --> helps combat the 3 o'clock slump
   
2. Glucosamine + Chondroitin --> helps reduce knee pain
   
3. Vitamin D --> helps your body detoxify & prevent colon cancer
4. Green Tea --> helps increase resting metabolism
   
5. Fish Oil --> helps with depression
   
6. Melatonin --> helps get a better nights sleep
   

After a bit more research, I found the following:

Ginkgo may increase the risk of seizures if combined with other drugs or herbs that do the same, such as antidepressants, bupropion (Wellbutrin, Zyban), certain antibiotics such as penicillin and cephalosporins, Corticosteroids, fentanyl (Actiq, Duragesic), theophylline, methylphenidate (e.g. Concerta, Ritalin), drugs that suppress the immune system, such as azathioprine and cyclosporine, borage, evening primrose, and wormwood. ~ about.com Alternative Medicine

Since I'm on Wellbutrin I consulted with my family doctor before taking it. She concurred with these findings, so I removed Ginkgo Biloba from my list. It's really important to do your research before taking any supplement.

I've only been taking them for about 1 1/2 weeks so I'll have to report back later on with my findings.

Knee News

"Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever." ~ Lance Armstrong

As a person dealing with ongoing knee pain caused by arthritis, due to multiple past knee injuries and surgeries, I'm always on the lookout for new information that might be helpful.

Here are some tidbits that I read about recently:

---

The best over-the-counter pain reliever for joint pain and arthritis is Naproxen.
- Men'sHealth ("Clutch Relievers", April 2006)

---

"Keep your joints forever young: In a study of nearly 1,000 men and women, University of North Carolina scientists found that people with the highest blood levels of selenium are nearly half as likely to develop arthritis."

- Men'sHealth ("Ageless Knees", April 2006)

---

Eating cherries are a great way to reduce joint pain. Why you ask?

"A team of researchers led by the USDA's Agricultural Research Service fed tart cherries to a group of people with arthritis, the fruit's antioxidants and natural COX-2 inhibitors reduced several markers of joint inflammation."

- Men'sHealth ("Fix It With Food", April 2006)

---

New research has uncovered a possible way to repair cartilage damage in the future:

"Stem cells may be the best thing to happen to sports injuries since the ice pack. For the first time, researchers at the University of Bristol have successfully grown human cartilage using stem cells derived from bone marrow. The Discovery may eventually enable doctors to replace damaged cartilage with tissue grown from a patent's own stem cells, reducing rejection risk.

- Men'sHealth ("New Knees In No Time", April 2006)

---

Hopefully you find this information as useful as I did....better yet I hope it's useless to you because your knee's are in perfect shape.

Knee'd A Reason To Lose Weight?

"A wise man should consider that health is the greatest of human blessings, and learn how by his own thought to derive benefit from his illnesses." ~ Hippocrates

If you have suffered through numerous knee injuries and surgeries like I have, then dealing with osteoarthritis is just a way of life.

Yes, there are options such as over the counter pain relievers or anti-inflammatories.

A second option is something called NeoVisc which is an injection that goes directly into your knee to improve the "natural viscosity and elasticity of synovial fluid" - just like oiling a hinge. Injections are needed every 4-12 months (depending on pain tolerance & severity), if your willing to flip the $300.00 plus bill yourself because its not covered by health care.

As a last option you can get a Knee replacement, but this is really only something that should be considered if you're +60 yrs.

So, my options are popping pills, expensive painful injections or surgery...ahhhhhh, no, no thanks & no way.

Sound familiar? Well, yesterday and today opened my eyes to something new and something that needed reinforcing.

First off let's discuss the more obvious option...losing weight! I knew long ago that my excess weight was putting excess strain on my knee, and therefore putting me through excess pain. After all this blog was started in part due to my reoccurring knee injury as a way to prevent it from happening again.

So, what reinforced my goal to lose weight and relieve my knee? A short article in Prevention titled "A pound lost is 4800 saved" which states:

"In a study of 142 overweight men and women with osteoarthritis of the knee, researchers found that every pound patients lost equaled 4 fewer pounds of pressure on their knees--that's per step.

Dropping just 10 pounds could spare each knee 48,000 pounds of pressure per mile, says Stephen Messier, PhD, study author and an exercise science professor at Wake Forest University. 'People with osteoarthritis often avoid exercise. But this research shows that exercise and a little weight loss can reduce pain by 30%.' "

- Prevention. Written by Selene Yeager author of New Foods for Healing (Rodale, 1998), the book from which this story was excerpted.

Considering that I have currently lost 14.9 lbs and that I still have +28 lbs to go, that's a lot of pressure taken off my knee. Oh, and now that I think about it -- yes, I know Prevention is a chic magazine...but it contains a lot of useful information, and so does their website.

As for the second option....in yesterday's post "The Best Supplements For Men" I featured an article from Men'sHealth by the same name. In this article was the following write-up on knee pain:

"The remedy: Glucosamine plus chondroitin

Why it works: Glucosamine is a building block of connective tissue, while chondroitin helps cartilage retain water so it stays flexible. Together they soothe sore joints by keeping cartilage supple and in good supply. A recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine reports that 79 percent of men who took 1,500 mg glucosamine and 1,200 mg chondroitin daily felt a significant reduction in chronic knee pain."

-Men'sHealth

Excited by this new information I took a visit to my local GNC store, where I found a product called GNC Triflex

• Triple action formula.
• Combines glucosamine, a natural component found in connective tissues and joint cartilage with chondroitin and MSM.
• Glucosamine and chondroitin provide many benefits:
  

1. Supports the body's natural ability to support joint tissue/function*
2. Helps rebuild cartilage and lubricate joints*
3. Support the body's ability to support joint health integrity*
4. Supports the body's natural ability to regenerate cartilage*

• In addition to Glucosamine and Chondroitin this highly effective product also contains MSM which is an organic sulfur found within connective tissues and joint cartilage.

* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

- GNC.com (for complete product information)

I figured I'd give it a whirl for a few months and see if it helps....but for heaven's sake please heed the following advice:

"PROCEED WITH CAUTION

Supplements and prescription drugs have a lot in common. Both can help you feel better and avoid common ailments, and they're readily available at the local CVS. But natural remedies are missing something their Rx counterparts come with: a Patient Package Insert. This FDA-approved document provides vital information on how to take a drug safely, identify its negative side effects, and avoid potentially dangerous interactions with other drugs. However, because the FDA doesn't regulate supplements under the same guidelines as prescription medications, the only watchdog over your intake is you. So follow these three rules to make sure you do the job right. After all, you can't improve your health if you're compromising it.

DON'T IGNORE SYMPTOMS

"Even too much vitamin C can cause diarrhea," says Ruch Kava, Ph.D., R.D., director of nutrition for the American Counsel of Science and Health. "If you reduce the dosage and the problem goes away, you're in the clear." Doesn't help? Stop using it. Upset stomach and skin rashes are the most common complaints; glucosamine and saw palmetto are two likely culprits.

AVOID AN OVERDOSE

Large amounts of water-soluble vitamins, such as B12, are seldom harmful, because your body can easily excrete any excess. But high doses of fat-soluble vitamins -- specifically vitamins A, D, and E -- are stored in organs and tissues, and can cause dry skin, nausea, joint pain, and depression. The safe limit for men is 3,000 mcg of vitamin A, 2,000 IU vitamin D, and 1,000 mg of vitamin E per day.

MIX WELL

"If you're being treated for heart disease, you're crazy if you don't talk with your doctor before starting a supplement," Kava says. For instance, Ginkgo biloba and ginseng both thin your blood. As a result, they can exacerbate the effects of some heart medications and cause dangerously low blood pressure. To be safe, always read both product labels and double-check with your pharmacist."

- Men'sHealth

Hopefully this post helps out someone other than myself...or is at least an interesting read because it took a long time to complete.

Happy Bloggin'

The Best Supplements For Men

"Don't dig your grave with your own knife and fork" ~ English Proverb

So if you eat right are you missing out on anything from a nutritional point of view? Ever wondered if there is a legitimate supplement to help with knee pain? While reading this month's Men'sHealth magazine, I came across a plug for their website advertising a few of the online articles available (one of which was on supplements).

"The Best Supplements For Men" was an interesting read. I was particularly happy to read the following (Since I use this one):

"Green tea is a bona fide fat burner because it contains epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), an antioxidant that increases resting metabolism and stimulates thermogenesis -- the process by which your body burns fat. In a Dutch study, researchers helped 76 people successfully lose weight, and then asked them to consume either a placebo or a 270 mg capsule of green tea daily for the next 3 months. The group who supplemented with green tea continued to lose weight, but the placebo poppers soon regained their flab."

- Men'sHealth

Here's a list of the supplements that I'm currently taking:

- GNC's: Natural Blend Green Tea Extract
- GNC's:The Total EFF (Omega 3-6-9)
- GNC's: Mega Men Multivitamin