Supplemental Regimen

Q: Rachel, should I buy Ionic Fizz with or without the calcium?

A: First, you know if you want to be able to take it in the evening, get it without calcium.

Second, compare the two products for the D3 and K2 amounts and determine if you need your Ionic Fizz to have those or not. Are you getting any Vit K from anything else? What is your total D3 intake (and try not to get D2 products like fortified milk as it is an artificial type of D and therefore toxic in high levels and I don't know if this is additive to your D3 amounts--This goes for my almond and rice milk beverages also, and I try not to take in too much of those, or blend up leftover rice or nuts to make my own. Ha! Just add cooked rice to your smoothie.) As for the D3, if you choose the Ionic Fizz that doesn't have the D3 and you're not getting your dose of D3 in any other source, that's okay. Just purchase Carlson D Drops and add that on for about $0.02 per day.

The biggest question is are you getting calcium in other ways, like if you eat a dairy product each day and you have another multi-vitamin with calcium in it, then No, you don't need more calcium. It's not having high calcium that counts, but having a proper ratio of cal-mag. Note that I am now dairy free and I'm not concerned about calcium as per my veggies and my supplements below.

The following is duplicative, but since this blog is a space for my thoughts and I will end up revising things later, here is a re-iteration of my supplemental regimen, which continues to evolve.

You could re-evaluate your multi because it has stearates in the "other" ingredients. It is an anti-nutrient in that it is a "bad" fat that coats your intestine. You then say, what's the trade off in a more expensive multi without stearates, cost vs. benefit? There are things in the multi you might need (probably not all of it because you could get those things from food fairly easily, like if you soak some nuts and eat some each day (brazil, almonds, hazelnuts) and eliminate peanut butter and rotate other kinds of nut butters. Also, try to add a dark green veg every day with wide variety of vegetables. You might do better with a multi-mineral if it didn't have stearates (I don't know if Carlson brand puts stearates in their stuff--so many do it's hard to dig up a company or product that doesn't. You can also look for things which are all whole-foods based which don't usually give the high amounts of particular nutrients that other supplements can deliver, because they only include whole food in powder or juice.Liquids are an easy way around this, though the issue is either taste or what they sweeten it with. Peter Gillhams brand has a liquid "Vitality" which is pretty darn good overall as a multi-vitamin (I haven't explored other whole food liquid multis). Other multis without stearates might be found in the gummy (candy type) variety which are now made for adults. Hero Nutritionals is one brand in gummies that I know of.

If you create a list of the nutrients you know you want to ensure you are getting, you can work on your supplementation plan over time. It's probably a good thing that we don't settle on one product over and over. It would be good if you know a few products that can cover your bases and alternate throughout each year. This way, each may help bridge any gap the others are leaving.

I have decided that I am going stearate-free from now on, even if I have to go without an added nutrient, on the

My approach, again, is currently to use Dr. Ron's Doc's Best Multi. It is more expensive, but I am eliminating other bottles and probably saving money in the end. My regimen looks like this:
-Doc's Best Multi, one per meal and any in between, for Erik and me. I often don't take the 6 recommended full dose per day. I try to give the kids one or two caps per day.
-Cod Liver Oil, 1 tsp. in a.m. and one at night.
-Extra Vit D Drops possibly, not every day. (will get tested and adjust to build up to proper stored amount over time)
-Magnesium, Peter Gillham's CALM on fairly regular basis before bed.
-Magnesium and Sulfur bath - Just use 2 cups of Epsom Salt in your bath for 20+ minutes. This bypasses digestive problems by absorbing through the skin, and it's relatively cheap and relaxing. Works well for stress, too. I went from taking very few baths to taking one almost every day (Jan 2010).
-Enzymedica Digest cap before each meal, approx.
-Herbal teas such as peppermint, horsetail, chai (I'm restricted until I can test them on myself, I may be allergic to cassia cinnamon)
-Vit C - Thompson brand in orange bottle Ascorbic Acid is very cheap. Can take high doses an 4,000 mg per day was recommended to me by a doctor who tested some of my nutrient levels
-Probiotic - I like the concept of the Garden of Life Primal Defense, but I believe I may in particular be allergic to something in it, possibly the dairy residues, or having a reaction to soil organisms or maybe just to the cultures. Not sure. I may have to go to taking one strain at a time. But, you can also drink Kefir and other probiotics daily in order to get it from your food. Note that cultured foods, especially dairy, can have high histamine amounts. This is why I am dragging my feet on my own probiotic. If you are not having itching reactions, then you can probably proceed with a probiotic. Just remember that you can have reactions to supplements and that if you are doing an elimination-and-test diet like I am you should test the supplements too.
-Maca - I think this is a good whole food supplement to consider. I have some on hand. I read that there are taste differences between brands and types. I don't love the one I have, Maca Magic, as it tastes a little smoky or like ashes, but I have blended with banana and it's "okay." Amazing Grass is a great product that would combine the greenfood with maca, but I can't take it because of the FOS, which I will test again later. My son takes Amazing Grass almost every day.

I'll be researching Dr. Gerson's coffee enema. The caffeine absorbs directly into a vein which passes through the liver. I can't remember what this does, but something beneficial, obviously, and has helped to cure a bunch of cancer patients in the Gerson method.

I'll also be looking at detox maintenance through juicing vegetables and fruits and making sure I supply my 6 detox pathways with the right nutrients (folate, B12, etc.). I just need to do more reading.