How should you take supplements?

**enfys** · June 15th, 2009, 02:14 PM

I see a lot of information on here about what supplements are good, but not much on how to optimise them.

I know biotin is aided by vitamin c, so it's good to take it with orange juice. Some recommend taking them with a meal etc on the bottle.

Every day I have my pill box with me for lunchtime with biotin, silica and msm, then before bed I take epo and my multivitamin. The dose I get for my biotin and msm comes from a few pills so maybe these should be spaced through the day?

It just occured to me that maybe I'm not getting the most from the supplements and that maybe people here with more chemical knowlege or just good old trial and error could recommend combinations that work with each other.

Any suggestions?

**Natalia** · June 15th, 2009, 02:32 PM

Originally Posted by enfys

I see a lot of information on here about what supplements are good, but not much on how to optimise them.

I know biotin is aided by vitamin c, so it's good to take it with orange juice. Some recommend taking them with a meal etc on the bottle.

Every day I have my pill box with me for lunchtime with biotin, silica and msm, then before bed I take epo and my multivitamin. The dose I get for my biotin and msm comes from a few pills so maybe these should be spaced through the day?

It just occured to me that maybe I'm not getting the most from the supplements and that maybe people here with more chemical knowlege or just good old trial and error could recommend combinations that work with each other.

Any suggestions?

I wish i had an answer for you. Really we only know for certain what is enough and whats is too much. What might be effecitve for enhancing growth or any other trait is very individual. So its somewhere between the DRI (daily reccomended intake) and the upper tolerable intake. I dont know all the best combos off the top of my head but the internet should be able to help plenty with that. Most all bottles say take with meals but that usually doesnt have much to do with upping absorbtion. It has alot more to do with stomach upset. As for absorbtion the basic guidline is eat balanced and you will be fine. I know typical but a balanced meal has a little fat for the fat soluble (A, D, and such) and food is moist and you usually drink so that takes care of the rest lol. Eating well also gives you those complimentary substances from you meal. Eating also obviosuly involves stomach acid which aids in breakdown to allow for absorbtion.

I dont know a whole lot about MSM dosing but biotin should really be broken up. Its a water soluble which means you wont store it if you get to much like with fat solubles tou will just pee it out. Thats the extent of my currently retrivable knowlege lol but i would be happy to help look things up for you.

**chrissy-b** · June 15th, 2009, 02:50 PM

I don't have much of an answer for you either. I do know that flax is best assimilated when taken with protein, so whatever meal of the day has the highest protein content is when I take my flax oil or ground flax seed. Also, iron affects calcium absorption (or is it the other way around?).

See. I have no idea. I hope someone else has the answers.

**enfys** · June 15th, 2009, 02:58 PM

Thanks Natalia, I never thought about the stomach upset side of things. Also, thanks for the biotin tip, I'll start spacing it out. Would that mean I'm better off taking 4x300mcg rather than 1x1000mcg? Darn it, that works out cheaper.

Chrissy B, I don't take flax but I'm sure that could help those who do.

**jera** · June 15th, 2009, 02:59 PM

I have no helpful advice to offer on biotin since I can't take it due to its triggering of migraines.

But I take the vitamin D for my hair with a Tums tablet. It helps to take them together for max calcium absorption and Vitamin D can aslo help prevent hair shedding.

**Norai** · June 15th, 2009, 03:54 PM

I try to take multivitamins with whole milk, because I know some vitamins are fat soluble - I don't know if it really helps or not. I figure if they put vit. A and D into all milk, maybe milk helps with vitamin absorption (or maybe they figure everyone drinks milk so its a good place to put it? haha).

**MsBubbles** · June 15th, 2009, 04:10 PM

I just had a conversation today with someone about this very same subject, since reading on the hairloss support thread about taking iron with vit c for better uptake. I also have to take thyroid replacement hormone as far away from the iron as possible and on an empty stomach. In addition I've got others: calcium, the B's, etc.

Anyway, I was wondering/thinking 'wouldn't it be great' if there were an interactive table on line somewhere, where you could plug in your vits plus common meds to see what's ok to take when, or even if it's ok to take certain ones at the same time.

Toddles off to search...

**enfys** · June 15th, 2009, 04:37 PM

Originally Posted by MsBubbles

I just had a conversation today with someone about this very same subject, since reading on the hairloss support thread about taking iron with vit c for better uptake. I also have to take thyroid replacement hormone as far away from the iron as possible and on an empty stomach. In addition I've got others: calcium, the B's, etc.

Anyway, I was wondering/thinking 'wouldn't it be great' if there were an interactive table on line somewhere, where you could plug in your vits plus common meds to see what's ok to take when, or even if it's ok to take certain ones at the same time.

Toddles off to search...

It would be amazing if a computer could work it out for us! Let us know if you find anything. There doesn't seem to be a lot of information out there.

**HoneyBeeMissy** · June 16th, 2009, 08:27 AM

It's interesting about the vit. D and thinning. I was so deficient I had the adult form of Ricketts (which I cannot spell or pronounce). I had broken my wrist a year ago and the type of fracture was a give away for the lack of vit. D. I also started having hypothyroid symptoms because vit. D helps the body convert T4 into T3. One of my symptoms was thinning hair. Now that I've corrected my levels the shedding has stopped and I've also started gaining length (21" in April and 24" today!).

Sorry to hijack the thread, I just thought my vit. D issues might be relevent for someone who might be shedding and not know why or how to stop it.

Here is my personal vitamin schedual

Morning
Calcium (citrate)
B-12 (sublingual)
Vitamin D3 (dry form and also sublingual 5,000 iu as per my doctors instruction)
Vitamin C (chewable)
Biotin

Afternoon
MSM
Iron
Multivitamin

I do occasionally take Evening Primrose Oil but I don't take it daily. I also take Vitamin A once a week although there is some in my multi.