acetyl carnitine for my grand mother

[toums]

Do you think it is a good idea to buy acetyl carnitine for my grand mother,it is supposed to be good for memory,well being and for the eyes,she has an inflamation of both eyes and she also goes to the gym twice a week

 

[Timmo]

how old is she?

 

[Eiselt]

Do you think it is a good idea to buy acetyl carnitine for my grand mother,it is supposed to be good for memory,well being and for the eyes,she has an inflamation of both eyes and she also goes to the gym twice a week

Yes, why not? She could stack it with lipoic acid.

 

[toums]

she is 70

 

[Resolve]

Clear it with her Dr. before hand and if they give the go ahead, yes it could really benefit her, especially if stacked with r-ALA as mentioned above. I have actually had my own grandparents try such a regimen and they did notice increased mental faculties

 

[stefang]

Get her some fish oil as well, which will not only improve her memory, but her heart as well. Then you can also add some CoQ10 for added benefit.

 

[Timmo]

Definately run it by her doctor just be sure it doesnt conflict with any other meds she might be on if she is on any. At 70 she could potentially live for another 30 years, and smart supplementation would help especially if she is hitting the gym a couple days a week.

 

[ncangey0513]

CONSULT HER PHYSICIAN BEFORE STARTING ANY KIND OF SUPPLEMENTATION!!

ALCAR should be very beneficial for her, as it has many benefits, especially in older patients. There are NO known interactions between ALCAR and any Rx/non-Rx drugs in the U.S. but, ALA (the fatty acid, not alpha lipoic acid) has been speculated to possibly interact negatively with blood thinning medications, cholesterol lowering medications, Cyclosporine, and NSAID's (1, 2). Also, one study has actually linked ALA to progressing macular degrenation (3). Another thing to consider with ALA is that individuals with Schizophrenia and Diabetes may be unable to convert ALA into DHA and EPA, the particular fats used in the body, which can result in additional health issues (4). Also, high doses of omega 3's may actually increase LDL (bad cholesterol)(5, 6), but this is not definitive. There are many studies documenting the efficacies of ALCAR (6, 7, 8, 9), though:

1. Brinker F. Herb Contraindications and Drug Interactions. 2nd ed. Sandy, Ore: Eclectic Medical; 1998:71-72.

2. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and eicosanoids in human health and pathologies. H. Tapiero, , a, G. Nguyen Baa, P. Couvreura and K. D. Tewb. a Université de Paris – Faculté de Pharmacie CNRS UMR 8612, 5, rue Jean Baptiste Clément, 94200, Chatenay Malabry, France b Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Received 28 April 2002; accepted 30 April 2002. Available online 21 June 2002.

3. Eunyoung Cho, Shirley Hung, Walter C Willett, Donna Spiegelman, Eric B Rimm, Johanna M Seddon, Graham A Colditz and Susan E Hankinson (2001). "Prospective study of dietary fat and the risk of age-related macular degeneration". American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 73 (2): 209–21

4. D. F. Horrobin and C. N. Bennett. "Depression and bipolar disorder: relationships to impaired fatty acid and phospholipid metabolism and to diabetes, cardiovascular disease, immunological abnormalities, cancer, ageing and osteoporosis Possible candidate genes." Prostaglandins, Leukotrienes and Essential Fatty Acids. Volume 60, Issue 4, April 1999, Pages 217-234

5. Harris WS, Ginsberg HN, Arunakul N, Shachter NS, Windsor SL, Adams M, et al. Safety and efficacy of Omacor in severe hypertriglyceridemia. J Cardiovasc Risk 1997;4:385-91.

6. Harris WS. N-3 fatty acids and serum lipoproteins: human studies. Am J Clin Nutr 1997;65:1645S-54S.

7. Montgomery SA, Thal LJ, Amrein R. Meta-analysis of double blind randomized controlled clinical trials of acetyl-L-carnitine versus placebo in the treatment of mild cognitive impairment and mild Alzheimer's disease. Int Clin Psychopharmacol 2003 Mar;18(2):61-71

8. Iossa S, Mollica MP, Lionetti L, Crescenzo R, Botta M, Barletta A, Liverini G. Acetyl-L-carnitine supplementation differently influences nutrient partitioning, serum leptin concentration and skeletal muscle mitochondrial respiration in young and old rats. J Nutr 2002 Apr;132(4):636-42

9. Hagen TM, Liu J, Lykkesfeldt J, Wehr CM, Ingersoll RT, Vinarsky V, Bartholomew JC, Ames BN. Feeding acetyl-L-carnitine and lipoic acid to old rats significantly improves metabolic function while decreasing oxidative stress. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2002 Feb 19; 99(4): 1870-5.

10. Kraemer WJ, Volek JS, French DN, Rubin MR, Sharman MJ, Gomez AL, Ratamess NA, Newton RU, Jemiolo B, Craig BW, Hakkinen K. The effects of L-carnitine L-tartrate supplementation on hormonal responses to resistance exercise and recovery. J Strength Cond Res. 2003 Aug;17(3):455-62.