Bloating with MSM?

[whodathunkit]

Does anyone know if having a CBS mutation mean bloating when taking something like MSM? Has anyone else tried MSM and experienced weight gain/bloating? I've read accounts here of people feeling bad but I don't feel bad. Except for my new, smaller jeans are about to cut me in two at the waist, that is.

I just starting taking it for my hair and skin, and I've bloated up something terrible. Gained five pounds in 2 days, so I know it's all water.

It's also a weird time of the month so that could account for some of it. This happens occasionally but not to this extreme.

I'm wondering about possible CBS mutation and what symptoms that could cause. I don't know my genetics and don't seem to have a problem with other sulfur compounds like ALA.

Anybody got any ideas?

 

[ahmo]

I can't say whether it contributed to the general level of bloating I had at the time, but for me MSM was an excitotoxin. My recent adrenal over-load experience makes me wonder if that might be a mechanism contributing to bloating: MSM hammering your adrenals??

 

[whodathunkit]

@ahmo, how strung out did it make you? How recently were you taking it? Did it contribute to your recent problems? Do you have problems with other sulfur compounds like ALA or glutathione? I can't remember right now.

FWIW, I drastically upped my water intake this afternoon and that seemed to help somewhat with the bloat. I pee'd some more and my pants loosened up considerably. I was able to eat supper without unzipping them.

Apparently MSM makes oxygen when combined with water, and if you're not hydrated enough that can cause symptoms like bloating. Not entirely sure why. I haven't really researched it yet, so don't understand all about it. Right now I'm relying on the guidance of someone I trust.

 

[ahmo]

@whodathunkit This was a few years ago. Yes, it happened w/ ALA. As for glutathione, I only worked out this year that this is what pushed me into a toxic psychosis. I might have been taking either of the others at the same time, this was in 2008 and I can't recall. But I was following Teitelbaum's protocol, using denatured whey (not only pushes glutathione, but hi sulfur), D-Ribose, possibly 5HTP as well. Very nasty, I was extremely fortunate to only end up with a week-long stay in the psych unit, could have been dangerous.

I'd obviously been escalating for a period of time, as I requested a second sleeping rx from my GP, in addition to the Klonopin, as per Teitelbaum's recommendation. And I was in enough of a state to not have researched the med. The shrink in hospital pointed his finger at me, "Didn't you know there were amphetamines in the sleeping pill??" Don't you love doctors?!

Hope you're feeling better by now.

 

[whodathunkit]

Geez, @ahmo , what a story! You really have been through the mill, haven't you?! I'm so happy you're doing so well now.

Yeah, some doctors are really...pills. Pun intended. That's crazy. Yes, *of course* patients with impaired cognitive processes are going to osmose the fact that there are amphetamines in a sleeping pill when the concept is an oxymoron to most of the general population, regardless of cognitive status. I didn't know it until just now. Although it does make sense now that you mention it. Only time I've ever taken amphetamines or even just caffeine pills they put me to sleep. I got really jittery for a couple of hours and then wham. Down for the count.

But to expect patients to "know"...tsk.

Anyway...yes, much better today! As I said, I radically increased my water intake and the bloating ameliorated almost immediately. I slept like a rock last night and had a very nice "constitutional" this morning Sorry for TMI, but that hasn't necessarily been the case so much lately, so I'm thrilled.

So I wonder now if some of the problems people have with MSM might not be because they're not drinking enough water for it to work?

Not that everyone can handle MSM because of problems with sulfur, genetics, or general health status. I know that. But it's kind of amazing to me that just drinking 30 ounces of water could make that much of a difference that quickly.

Also, I learned that you need to take it in pure powder form, no fillers like in caps, and take it only with water at least 30 minutes before a meal on an empty stomach. The recommended way is to hold pure MSM powder in your mouth for a few minutes until it dissolves. But probably not everyone can do this, either, regardless of sulfur tolerance...it's pretty vile stuff. Gah. But I have a fairly high tolerance for short-term yuck so this is the way I'm taking it for now. Dunno how long I'll be able to keep it up, though. ha

For whatever that's worth. Just throwing it out there for anyone who might want to try it, as long as we're talking about MSM.

 

[ahmo]

I radically increased my water intake and the bloating ameliorated almost immediately. I slept like a rock last night and had a very nice "constitutional" this morning

Excellent

But I have a fairly high tolerance for short-term yuck

Probably means you' do ok w/ MMS if you ever decided to take that path. I did that some months following the psych incident, for 2-3 months. Eventually I was so unable to eat that I lost way too much weight. Now that I think of it, this must have been before the above incident, because the nurse on the psych unit looked at me and said, "You've really lost condition", like you'd say about a horse. And it was true. I was scrawny. So, that could have been in the mix, too, tho my recall has them separate. Wow!

My current yuk is white vinegar. Ran out of HCL, it's totally N/A at the chemists ('oh yes, I remember making these drops up 25 years ago. It's pretty old-fashioned').

And it's true, I've been through a lot, tho don't usually think of it that way. The psych incident and my 3-week runaway detox of the last month were the low-lights. I've had a lot of intense periods in my life, nothing comes close to the last 3. But, thankfully, my rejuvenated adrenals carried me through w/o any freak-outs, irritability, agitation.

But mostly over the 8.5 years I lurched from crisis to crisis, totally unaware that these ongoing incidents were primarily potassium deficiency. Once I found GAPS Jan 2012, then pyroluria, Freddd's protocol, Klinghardt's detox, the whole trajectory has been forward into healing. I'm so happy, happy, happy

Hope you're continuing to feel good today.

 

[Little Bluestem]

Is MSM methyl-sulfonyl-methane? If so, I have taken the pure powder for over 20 years. I reduces my respiratory hypersensitivities. I just dump it in my mouth, add some water, swish it around, and swallow. Since it is anti-inflammatory, I think it might be good for my gums (maybe I even read that somewhere ).

 

[whodathunkit]

@Little Bluestem: yep, that's the stuff. It's supposed great for all connective tissue, so it wouldn't surprise me if it had a good effect on gums.

It's great to know your success with it!

I've actually taken it on and off for years, but always with food or with other stuff. I never really saw any benefit with it. Come to find out it's pretty sensitive to other things when in the stomach so should be taken by itself, or maybe just with vitamin C.

Also, I never took it like you said you do, pure powder straight into the mouth, water, swish and swallow, before a few days ago.

It's too early to tell, but so far I'm liking it. It seems to have beneficially affected my sleep, although that may just be coincidence. I sleep differently at different times of the month. I think this is typically a good sleep week in the rhythm of my life, if that makes sense. But even at that, sleep quality seems a little better than normal. Only time will tell.

Interestingly, I heard that MSM is actually better to *increase* the dosage if you get symptoms from it. Sort of like methylfolate. I have radically increased MSM, and so far so good. Main thing is to drink enough water with it. I'm beginning to think that dehydration/not enough water may be the biggest problem some people have with it. Even if you think you drink enough water, if you get symptoms from it, you're not drinking enough.

We'll see. Everything I've been doing lately is a gigantic experiment. Hope MSM pays off like my experiment with Freddd's protocol.

BTW, do you think it positively affected your hair?

 

[Little Bluestem]

It has been so long since I started taking MSM, that I do not recall if it improved my hair. It did improve the coats and hooves of the ponies I was giving it to.

Someone here wrote that MSM interfered with his/her sleep. That surprised me, as I have never had any problem with it. Then one day I forgot to take it until late in the day. I slept badly that night. I then realized that I have always taken MSM in the morning.

I now skip it if I forget it. That does not happen very often. If I miss it two or three days in a row, I start developing a cough, so I have become trained to remember it.

The veterinarian had me give the pony with respiratory problems a loading (double) dose to start. When that did not help he double the dose again. He said that when I could see the effect on her coat and hooves, it would mean the MSM was active in her system and was doing as much as it was going to.

 

[whodathunkit]

@Little Bluestem, thanks for all the great info on MSM. Can't wait to see if it's going to have an effect on my coat and hooves , as that's what I'm taking it for!

One thing I noticed with MSM is I slept badly the first night I took it. I think sleep problems with MSM have to do with hydration. If you do not drink enough water with it, especially when first starting it, it will give you adverse symptoms, including bloating and insomnia. I hydrated myself after that and haven't had any problems since.

FWIW, I took a dose later in the day on Monday ( like around 6p, I think), loaded up with water, and slept fine.

Interestingly, all the water doesn't seem to be sending me to the bathroom any more than usual now. It did for the first day or two, but not since.

That said, I'd rather be safe than sorry. I value my sleep too much to take chances with it. I'd prefer to take MSM always earlier in the day unless I forget.

 

[pela]

I started taking MSM a week or two ago and take it in the evening because I want it to work on my stiff joints overnight. No sleep problems. I buy it at the feed store, BTW.

 

[L.A.]

I'm late to trying MSM but for those researching it like I am and finding this thread, I just want to add that it's definitely making me more bloated, and so far, I am not losing weight as I need, but may be gaining weight as well.

Conversely, my nails are getting stronger, and I have had some pain/inflammation reduction.

For those of you here, what are your thoughts on MSM now? Did you keep up with it? Or move on to something else more helpful?

 

[Judee]

MSM is a sulfur thiol. For some reason some of us have issues with those. My stage one and two liver detox genes have a lot of polymorphisms so I wonder if that may be why.

Andy Cutler talked a lot about sulfur thiols.