I've been experimenting with supplements but I need help with dosages. Any advice?

B12 and vtimin D3 are the two most common deficiencies in geriatric people. B12 needs to be cleaved off of a protein to which it is bound, which requires stomach acid that many older people do not make well, and then bound to a protein manufactured in the stomach, which also is not made in as great a quantity in older people. That is why most doctors recommend that B12 be given as a supplement to older adults or even as a B12 injection. BTW, stomach acid reducers such a cimetidine can reduce the absorption of B12, as the stomach acid is required to get the B12 off the protein in the food.

Most elderly adults stay inside a lot and require D3. We give 2,000 I.U.'s a day to my father in law and 500 micrograms of B12, the lowest dose we could find. Higher doses do no good, as it has to be bound to the protein made by the stomach and the stomach only produces, at best, enough protein to bind about 10 micrograms of B12. Anything else is just passed on through.

Certainly smoothies with fruit and vegetables are always helpful for everyone. Lots of nutrition in an easy to swallow form. There are some good premise ones out there or you can make your own. Fruit juices help to make it more palatable and, if my father in law is any guide, elderly people seem to love sweet food. Add some powdered supplements, like nutritional yeast and chia seeds for more nutritional boost. It is easier to swallow than pills, though if you add too much of the powder and it does not dissolve well, it can become gritty and not pleasant. Always be sure that any powdered supplement is well mixed and dissolves well.

Turmeric should be taken with pepper. The pipeline in the pepper increases the absorption of the anti inflammatory molecules in the turmeric by about 100%. It makes a huge difference in the activity of the tumeric.

Coq10 is always good for everyone. As we get older our bodies make less of it and it is also anti inflammatory. Scientists are now discovering that inflammation and oxidation are at the root of many problems, such as heart disease. If you keep the fats from oxidizing, they don't stick to the arteries and if they are already there, inflammation is what sets the process of a heart attack in motion. Use lots of antioxidants and antiinflammatories!

Wow!!! Many good answers.....Think I'll just have us eat the dog food!!marymember

Magnesium L-threonate the type you need. I'm giving my husband and myself, 667mg twice a day. No ill effects thus far. DefinitelyTurmeric. Doctor should have prescribed potassium with diuretics. Don't think over the counter dose is adequate. Husbands Dr. Prescribed POTA CHOLRIDE 10MEG ER TAB ZYD ONCE DAILY, when taking diuretic.
Husband has dementia. My Dr. suggested for mood swings,(anxiety, sun downing, etc.) rather than antidepressant, 5htp 500mg twice a day, L-tyrosine 500mg twice a day, phosphatyl-serine 200 mg. instead of starting all these at once. Try 5htp first. It could cause drowsiness. Then you could add l-tyrosine, then phosphatyl-serine. I'm taking all these supplements myself, I need calming (stress) too. These are supplements and the doctor was comfortable recommending them. I don't notice any drowsiness, but I don't have dementia.

Wow great job! I am happy to see you using nutritional options and I wish more people would try this!
You can increase the use of coconut by using can coconut milk in recipes or mix half with regular milk if it's too much change, to use in everything.
Also use coconut oil, for cooking and even on toast. It's really delicious. Be creative and try new ideas! Very healthy with many benefits for you and your husband.
CoQ10 usually 100-200 MG is a standard dose. I have never heard a doctor say not to take it.
For B-12, use foods rich in B vitamins and no need to worry about doses.

My father died in June 2008, I started taking care of Mom on that day. She started taking memory Meds in 2005, she stopped the memory meds in 2015 and all the side affects went away. I don't think they ever helped her anyway. In June 2008 I cut out all processed food and started cooking for her from scratch. I have been taking supplements my whole life and started mom right away with her Doctors approval.
Vitamin D3 4000 mg. After Breakfast
Aspirin 81 mg. After Breakfast
Multivitamin 1 tab After Lunch
Fish Oil 600 mg DHA 3 PM, Break open Mix in yogurt W/ blueberries
Vitamin C 1000 mg. 3 PM, Break open Mix in yogurt W/ blueberries
Colon Health Probiotic 1.5 Billion Cells 3 PM, Break open Mix in yogurt W/ blueberries
Stool softener stimulant free 100 mg. Bed Time
Stool softener W/stimulant 100 mg. Bed Time, if no BM for 24 hours
Always check with the Doctors and make sure they have a record of everything your doing.
Ended Cholesterol Medication to help retain memory in 2015
Mom has gotten sick only once in 7 years.
Good luck and God bless, Gary

Seek out help from a holistic doctor. You may be overloading his system with too many supplements that he doesn't need. Have extensive blood tests done to see what he is missing. Do not do the regular doctor blood tests as they only give a general information and not a detailed one. He may have thyroid issues that don't show up in normal blood tests.
I think you have great intentions but you are going about it with too much gusto. Just because something is natural and claims to do this and that doesn't necessarily mean it is good for him. He may need more protein or good carbs. You just don't know and experimenting with supplements doesn't help. You don't know what you are doing. Like others here I suggest using coconut oil and olive oil to your cooking and taking coconut oil orally once in the morning and once in the evening will benefit with memory loss, digestive problems and a whole host of others. Olive oil can be used on the skin to help exfoliate dead cells, helps keep the moisture locked in and has antioxidants along with vitamins A and E.

Just remember more is not necessarily better. You would need to dose by weight and adjust for interactions with existing medications. The suggestions for a Naturopathic MD are sending you in the right direction.

I agree with others that supplements should be used sparingly and only if needed. There are some supplements recommended for people with Alzheimer's -- Vit B12 and Vit E. Many older people who don't get out in the sunshine or drink enriched milk may also need Vit D3. I give my mother these three things, because her blood panels showed she had deficiencies in 2 of them -- D3 and B12. I added the E after reading a recent study that indicated it had a protective effect against Alzheimer's.

I give her 500 mcg B12 and 400 IU E each day. I give her 2000 IU D3 three times a week. D3 is stored in fat tissues, so I don't want to give her the dosages recommended on the bottle. I suspect it would cause a buildup.

I much prefer the suggestion of a balanced diet supplemented if blood panels show there is a deficiency. We don't really want to start adding chemicals that aren't needed to the diet.

Many chiropractors are trained in nutrition, supplements and their interactions with medicine, so you may want to check with them if no osteopath is available. Now for my 2 cents, speaking as a layman:
- I understand that ubiquinol is a more bio-available form of CoQ-10.
- Sublingual B-12 would probably be easier to absorb than other forms.
- 3 tablespoons of coconut oil are good for serious cases. You can cook with it, put it on food like you would butter, or take it by the spoonful if you're tough! It's more economical to buy it by the jar, although capsules are convenient for some people.

Tumeric capsules a must. You are on the right track, what you are trying will be much more helpful then prescription AD meds, and PCDrs are not taught to speak of anything but prescription meds. Everyone, For an real eye opener, when you have 90 minutes to spare watch this
youtube/watch?v=km2cqQNFtEs
then you will know why you will not leave the Drs office without a prescription

aaudrey, if your husband is eating balanced meals, there should be no need for any vitamin supplements, the body has a benchmark for how much of each vitamin one needs and anything over that benchmark will just get peed out.

As other had suggested, have your husband's primary doctor run a blood test for the vitamins [make sure hubby hadn't taken any for awhile or that would throw the test off] and if the doctor says he is low on a certain vitamin, then get that supplement. Many of us are low on Vit D because we aren't outside in the sun much any more... cable TV and computers have us hunkered down inside.

There are medical doctors who are Board Certified in Holistic medicine that one's insurance might take. Worth looking into. Check before you go.

I have found so many of the natural supplement being sold are not what they say.
Having a ND can be helpful ,,,but no guarantee along that path.

I totally agree on the suggestions above and will add that you could also check out the american osteopathic association website for doctors in your area. Many are both medical and osteopathic doctors (meaning whole body wellness not just here's a problem and a pill to fix it mentality). I found one for my dad and husband and it works out great to have someone with a more balanced approach to care. Found one for my mom recently also. Depending on where you live there's also The Center for Healthy Living and Longevity founded by Dr. Pamela Smith. If you Google that there are links where you can see if there are doctors affiliated with her in your area. I still find that doctors don't test well for common deficiencies like low vitamin D, magnesium, B vitamins, etc so it pays to find someone that does and takes it seriously. I've also started getting copies of my blood test which I do look at and found a wonderful book by James Lavalle called Your Blood Never Lies which explains in plain English what they mean and what you can do nutritionally and supplementally to support your health and does always say discuss with your doctor as a precaution. I'm learning you have to be on top of these things more and more and become an educated health consumer for your sake and those around you. All the best. Jacky

The People's Pharmacy books by Joe and Terry Graedon are a great guide to medications and natural remedies. He is a pharmacist and she is a medical anthropologist.

I agree with last post. Supplements can interact with meds he maybe taking. Like the coconut oil that was talked about on another thread. American Alzheimer's site says no problem but the UK Alzheimer's says it's only temporary and and can cause other problems.

Talk to your gp (doctor). He has no incentive to sell you vitamins. Proper blood test can detect deficancies. Stop wasting your money if its not necessary.

I have the same questions. The integrative medicine doctors don't take insurance and are so expensive! Magnesium will give a person loose stools if they take too much. I wonder how much potassium to give Mom to offset her diuretics. We need a better primary care doctor, one who also does alternative medicine.

Some people can't absorb regular B-12 or folic acid/folate and have to take the methylated version. There is a genetic mutation called MTHFR. Testing available through 23 and Me or just buy the methylated B's.

What kind of neuro-optimizer are you buying? It sounds like you are on the right track!

Hi Aaudrey

Do you have any naturopathic physicians in your area? I don't think the supplement store clerks are trained enough to know what to tell you, even if they can tell you about the individual items if you come in asking for them. If you can't find a naturopath, I'd suggest looking for a medical dietitian who has experience with nutrition for the elderly.

In terms of knowing interactions, there are some good drug interaction checkers around online, try searching for "drug interactions checker" and see what you can find.

Now, amateur opinions here: The veggie drinks sound fantastic. I wish I could get both of my parents to drink that kind of thing! Not a chance. The only other suggestions, based on my personal experience, would be to drop the coconut capsules and instead use organic coconut oil (fry eggs with it, put it in coffee, use it in place of other oils whenever you can) and find a magnesium that isn't magnesium oxide. Citrate, orotate, or some combination of those, would be much better than oxide. I have seen a lot of improvement of stability of mood with my dad after beginning him on magnesium, though, and he's on the oxide version because it was all his doctor would prescribe and the pharmacy would provide.

Good luck and stick around the board, I'm sure other people will chime in!