Hip
Senior Member
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I've been experimenting with the energy-giving supplement glucuronolactone in recent weeks, and have noticed some good results. Glucuronolactone is naturally found in the body (it is an important part of connective tissues), and is an ingredient in some energy drinks.
The Red Bull energy drink in the past contained glucuronolactone, but it's not included in the new formulation of Red Bull (or at least not in the US formulation). But Monster energy drinks still contain glucuronolactone.
I've found glucuronolactone has several useful and pleasant effects as an ME/CFS treatment. It noticeably combats fatigue and provides energy; and I find it reduces brain fog and increases cognitive clarity and mental focus.
But nicest of all, I find glucuronolactone provides a mood-boosting effect, and in particular, it seems to put me in a positive mood, melting away negative symptoms such as grumpiness and irritability, giving an improved sense of well-being.
I find these antidepressant effects useful, especially as it also reduces my anhedonia, which is normally a near impossible symptom to treat. And like many with anhedonia, I am no stranger to suicidal ideation, but found while taking glucuronolactone the suicidal ideation disappeared.
And I find while taking glucuronolactone that my mental health generally improves, and my mind becomes more emotionally robust and stable. Like many ME/CFS patients, I suffer from the emotional sensitivity symptom, so stress or social discord can be hard to cope with. But when I take glucuronolactone, my mind becomes more robust, so it can handle stress a little better.
So I find all-round benefits from glucuronolactone.
In terms of quantifying the degree of improvement: I would not say that glucuronolactone has shifted my position on the ME/CFS scale of severe, moderate, mild, remission. So this is not some major ME/CFS treatment that makes large difference.
But the combination of being in a more uplifted, positive mood, more stress-resilient, along with more energy and more mental focus, makes this supplement a useful treatment for my ME/CFS.
I've been taking glucuronolactone doses in the range of 600 mg to 1200 mg daily, which equates to one or two cans of the original formulation Red Bull, which previously contained 600 mg of glucuronolactone in each 250 ml can (ref: here).
The effects of glucuronolactone kick in within an hour or so, and last for the whole day.
There is a mild stimulant effect to glucuronolactone, so possibly it may keep you awake if taken at night. But I take it in the morning, and I'm not having trouble sleeping. Though on several occasions I found myself so task focused that I stayed up late a few hours extra, because I was so focused on the work I was doing, and did not want to go to bed.
The stimulant effect of glucuronolactone is steady; it's not like caffeine which gives you a boost for 45 minutes and then wears off.
Red Bull also contains 1 gram of taurine in each can, so I tried taking both 1200 mg of glucuronolactone and 2 grams of taurine together, but I did not notice any extra benefits from adding in the taurine. So taking glucuronolactone on its own seems good enough.
Surprising, given its ubiquitous use in energy drinks, there is very little research into the biological effects of glucuronolactone. I wanted to try to figure out the mechanism by which glucuronolactone was providing these various benefits, but was hampered by the lack of available research.
Glucuronolactone is thought to increase body detoxification, but if it does, I would not think that's the mechanism behind the benefits I experience.
You can buy glucuronolactone powder at $10 for 100 grams from Pure Bulk in the US, as well as on Amazon or eBay. You can also find glucuronolactone in capsule form.
Some links:
Wikipedia glucuronolactone
SelfHacked glucuronolactone
Examine.com glucuronolactone
The Red Bull energy drink in the past contained glucuronolactone, but it's not included in the new formulation of Red Bull (or at least not in the US formulation). But Monster energy drinks still contain glucuronolactone.
I've found glucuronolactone has several useful and pleasant effects as an ME/CFS treatment. It noticeably combats fatigue and provides energy; and I find it reduces brain fog and increases cognitive clarity and mental focus.
But nicest of all, I find glucuronolactone provides a mood-boosting effect, and in particular, it seems to put me in a positive mood, melting away negative symptoms such as grumpiness and irritability, giving an improved sense of well-being.
I find these antidepressant effects useful, especially as it also reduces my anhedonia, which is normally a near impossible symptom to treat. And like many with anhedonia, I am no stranger to suicidal ideation, but found while taking glucuronolactone the suicidal ideation disappeared.
And I find while taking glucuronolactone that my mental health generally improves, and my mind becomes more emotionally robust and stable. Like many ME/CFS patients, I suffer from the emotional sensitivity symptom, so stress or social discord can be hard to cope with. But when I take glucuronolactone, my mind becomes more robust, so it can handle stress a little better.
So I find all-round benefits from glucuronolactone.
In terms of quantifying the degree of improvement: I would not say that glucuronolactone has shifted my position on the ME/CFS scale of severe, moderate, mild, remission. So this is not some major ME/CFS treatment that makes large difference.
But the combination of being in a more uplifted, positive mood, more stress-resilient, along with more energy and more mental focus, makes this supplement a useful treatment for my ME/CFS.
I've been taking glucuronolactone doses in the range of 600 mg to 1200 mg daily, which equates to one or two cans of the original formulation Red Bull, which previously contained 600 mg of glucuronolactone in each 250 ml can (ref: here).
The effects of glucuronolactone kick in within an hour or so, and last for the whole day.
There is a mild stimulant effect to glucuronolactone, so possibly it may keep you awake if taken at night. But I take it in the morning, and I'm not having trouble sleeping. Though on several occasions I found myself so task focused that I stayed up late a few hours extra, because I was so focused on the work I was doing, and did not want to go to bed.
The stimulant effect of glucuronolactone is steady; it's not like caffeine which gives you a boost for 45 minutes and then wears off.
Red Bull also contains 1 gram of taurine in each can, so I tried taking both 1200 mg of glucuronolactone and 2 grams of taurine together, but I did not notice any extra benefits from adding in the taurine. So taking glucuronolactone on its own seems good enough.
Surprising, given its ubiquitous use in energy drinks, there is very little research into the biological effects of glucuronolactone. I wanted to try to figure out the mechanism by which glucuronolactone was providing these various benefits, but was hampered by the lack of available research.
Glucuronolactone is thought to increase body detoxification, but if it does, I would not think that's the mechanism behind the benefits I experience.
You can buy glucuronolactone powder at $10 for 100 grams from Pure Bulk in the US, as well as on Amazon or eBay. You can also find glucuronolactone in capsule form.
Some links:
Wikipedia glucuronolactone
SelfHacked glucuronolactone
Examine.com glucuronolactone
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