Syndrome X: supplements.
You need to replenish a lot of minerals, vitamins, etc.
Paul Bergner goes into details on doses of needed supplements:
60 mg zinc
800 mg magnesium
600-800 μg chromium
B-100 complex, complete
lots of antioxidants: Vitamin C, E, etc
L-carnitine, from 500-4000 mg
That's 40-60 mg B6 + the other B-vitamins.
Add vitamin C to bowel tolerance: take 1 g today, 2 g tomorrow, 3 g day after tomorrow, and so on until you get diarrhoea. Back off 1 g, and that's your daily dose. I've forgotten what you'd need to do to protect your teeth from all that ascorbic acid, though, sorry.
Elsewhere Paul has said to take 800-1200 mg magnesium, as magnesium citrate.
Vitamin E is a disgusting sticky mess, but I expect it's better in capsules. And perhaps even better in high-vitamin-E cold-pressed cooking oils, like olive, sesame seed, or rapeseed oils.
You'll also need 1-4 grams of fish oils a day. A tastier alternative is to eat 2-3 meals of fatty salt-sea fish a week. I'm told that salmon oil doesn't come back up to announce for the rest of the day that you've taken it in the morning, but alas, I haven't been brave enough to try it. I do know that codliver oil is disgusting that way. I'm also told that the citrus-flavored codliver oil is even worse, but that the menthol-flavored one is fairly nice, as fish oils go.
Those fish oils should be rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Farmed fish is not.
Unfortunately for vegetarians, plant-based oils (including flax seed oil) simply won't cut it. You can do evening primrose oil to enhance the absorption of omega-3 fish oils, though.
--
You can take more normal amounts of magnesium, chromium and zinc if you're pregnant and have the diabetes which comes with that. Above levels are meant to get rid of the gut absorption problems that come with too much insulin, and those levels should be kept up until insulin levels are down to normal - 10 to 14 days, if you also do the other two legs of getting rid of Syndrome X. After that you can slow down on most of them.
--
That's it about Syndrome X, for now. Whew.
--
The Hyperinsulinemia series: Cravings - Craving magnesium - Craving carbs - Doing without carbs - Syndrome X - Cell responses to insulin - Syndrome X supplements
Related entries: Hyperinsulinemia - Lifestyle troubles.
: )
: )
Here's a blogpost on the
Here's a blogpost on the topic.
Updated comment: you should
Updated comment: you should do those amounts of vitamins, minerals + trace elements for 2-3 weeks only, in addition to ditching the carbs and adding more exercise.
After that more normal vitamin + minerals are sufficient, provided you still keep the simple carbs off your table, and continue the regular exercise.
Also, I've heard that you need copper if you do large amounts of chromium (or was it zinc?) - alas, I'm no nutritionist, I'm a herbalist.
Go very very carefully, in
Go very very carefully, in order to avoid dangerously low blood sugar, if applying this to somebody on insulin.