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    Created in 2008, Phoenix Rising is the largest and oldest forum dedicated to furthering the understanding of and finding treatments for complex chronic illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia (FM), long COVID, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and allied diseases.

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    Best sources of retinol?? (can't convert Beta-Carotene)

    I'd be very careful with Quercetin, I came across a study that showed it causes cancers in rats. I tried it for allergies too, it seems to work a little bit against them, but it's not worth the possible cancer risk. Did you get a blood test to measure vitamin A? That would be way more reliable...
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    How did your CFS start?

    True, and talking generally, I don't believe CFS is only one disease with only one mechanism behind it.
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    How did your CFS start?

    I wasn't aware CFS can develop very slowly and it seems most CFS cases start with "flu-like illnesses": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronic_fatigue_syndrome#Onset I was especially interested in how many cases started with a known infection, "simple" flu-like symptoms or an allergy. If I...
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    How did your CFS start?

    Hi, I'm wondering how CFS starts for most of us. Would you like to take the poll?
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    Morning Spike in BP

    As you already have seen your doctor and you suspect your amino acid supplement, I wouldn't worry too much. Blood pressure can vary a lot. Mine was quite stable and suddenly it was higher without any reason I could think of, and now a few months later it is getting lower again. For people with...
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    Need advice on hormone testing

    Ah ok, my insulin tests were not normal, so I had the GTT. Yes I know, Home BG testers can be off by 15 mg/dl, so I use the tester only as a rough indication.
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    Confused about the amount of potassium to take, please help!

    Did you have a look at your diet? It's better correcting your diet than taking potassium supplements. With food, you should get around 4700 mg of potassium - many people are way too low in potassium. http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals/potassium/index.html#rda Try to eat potassium...
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    Morning Spike in BP

    What's your normal blood pressure in the morning and how high is it now (in the morning)? If it is really high, and this together with "your heart pounding in your ears" , I'd see a family physician / GP asap.
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    Need advice on hormone testing

    As to your feeling of hypoglycemia, did you have an oral glucose tolerance test? And how much does the BG meter show when you have these feelings? I am diagnosed as having hypoglycemia, and 8 out of 10 times when I feel symptoms of hypoglycemia, my meter shows 80 mg/dL or less. 80 mg/dL is not...
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    how much coq10 do you take

    I can't remember how much I took. I think it was 200 mg daily in two doses of 100 mg or something like that. I tried it because according to a study it could lower blood pressure. Well, it didn't for me. It also did nothing for my CFS. I think Q10 is a very over-hyped nutrient.
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    Does Molybdenum lower Ferritin levels?

    Unless you're a vegetarian your ferritin level isn't really high. It may go up to 400 and between 100-200 is very normal for meat-eaters. Are you using vitamin C? That might enhance non-haem iron uptake, too.
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    Our magnesium experiments

    I'm sorry but it is madness taking so much magnesium. http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals/magnesium/index.html#safety If you take 350 (upper limit) to 420 mg of elemental magnesium and you take care that there is enough magnesium in your food, you get twice the RDA of magnesium and...
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    Results are back, 23 and me, any observations would be welcome

    I would forget about 23andme. It's unreliable at best and a scam at worst: "The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is sending you this letter because you are marketing the 23andMe Saliva Collection Kit and Personal Genome Service (PGS) without marketing clearance or approval in violation of the...
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    Supplements?

    True, I made a mistake in calculating elemental magnesium.
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    Vitamin C Dosing and Megadosing

    I'd be careful with taking anti-oxydants in high doses. Anti-oxydants are supposed to protect us against cancer but latest research shows that anti-oxydants in high doses could promote cancer. There is nothing really against taking a high dose vitamin C for a few days to a couple of weeks, but I...
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    Supplements?

    Hi Tom, Vitamin D. 5000 a day is rather high. Especially if the vit D level in your blood isn't checked regularly, I'd definitely take 5000 iu of vitamin D only every other day. be sure to take your vitamin D with the fattest meal of the day and refrain from dry pills, use the oily capsules...