Vitamins - Types, Timing

[Endless]

Hello, all.

There are lots of posts in here about vitamins and supplements. But I'm starting to get a bit confused about combining vitamins with anti-epileptic drug's.

I prefer to get my vitamins from a fruit, veggie, and legume-rich diet. But, I've tested low for D and B-12, and we all know about anti-epileptic drug's and calcium, so some vitamins are a good idea.

My question is about timing. Should I separate taking vitamins and supplements from my anti-seizure meds? If so, how many hours after or before the trileptal should I take the supplements? Is separation necessary for all anti-epileptic drug's, or just some?

I'm taking:

• Trileptal, 600 mg a.m and p.m.
• 5-HTP, 50 mg
• SamE, 400 mg
• Vitamin B12, 1000 mcg
• Calcium 1200 mg
• Vitamin D, 1000 IU
• Multiple Vitamin (too many things in it to type here)

[RobinN]

I think only you know how you feel after taking vitamins alone, or with your other meds.
Some of your more specific questions might be answered by a pharmacist. I don't believe any of us here are trained to answer some of them.

I know for some vitamins if I take them on an empty stomach, I feel a bit nauseous. So I need take them with some food. I also know I need to take the in the AM because I tend to forget them as the day progresses.

I was giving Rebecca some in the AM and some at night, and forgetting the evening ones too often. Her nutritionist said he would rather she have all the Omega 3 in the AM (2000mg) than to forget having 1000 mg too often.

If you have tested low for Vit D, you might consider increasing it, because many that study the vitamin, say the RDA is too low. Rebecca takes 5000IU and she is barely within the normal range.

Rebecca's doctor also wants her to eventually get her vitamins from quality whole foods, but for the time being, he wants her to remain on the supplements. We want to see increasing improvement in her health, and then we can exchange supplements for food based vitamins and minerals.

[Nakamova]

It's usually a good idea to take vitamins with meals, since they can be acidic and since they will be absorbed better. For some of the vitamins it's a good idea to seoparate them into multiple doses over the day, since the body can only absorb a certain amount at a time and the rest gets flushed out. (As an example, you might take 1000IU Vitamin D at breakfast, and then again at dinnertime.) In general, it's important to take calcium to make up for the bone loss caused by anti-epileptic drugs, but some of the anti-epileptic drugs can be reduced in effectiveness when taken at the same time as calcium, so you might check to make sure that Trileptal isn't one of them. Calcium is absorbed better when it's taken with Vitamin C (one of the reasons why you can get cranberry or orange juice fortified with calcium),

Folic acid is another good supplement to add in since it's pretty hard to get enough through foods no matter how much spinach you eat...

One more thing -- most of the B Vitamins are meant to work together, so you might want to take a B Complex rather than just the B12 alone.

[Zoofemme]

Here is the way my doctor has mine set up and yes, its a juggling act:

In am 1/2-1 hour before b'fast
B Complex W/ Vit C
1760 mg Fish Oil w/ Omega 3
2000 mg Vit D

In pm 1/2-1 hour before supper or bedtime
400 mg Mag Oxide
1760 mg Fish Oil
2000 mg Vit D

10 min before meals a fibre supplement (for high choleterol)

I was taking my meds after my vitamins, now I take my meds first. Seems to work better this way due to the memory problems I have.

[dfwtexas]

Has your neurologist told you to take all these supplements? My neurologist has cautioned me not to take anything he has not approved

[Endless]

My neurologist won't talk about supplements with me. He says to ask my primary care physician, who he says is very familiar with my medications. Hmphhh.

I plan on stopping by the pharmacist today to ask about vitamins and timing. Good suggestion, robin.

[epileric]

My neurologist won't talk about supplements with me. He says to ask my primary care physician, who he says is very familiar with my medications. Hmphhh.

I think that's great that your neurologist admits that someone else might be more knowledgeable than him. Most the problems I've had with the medical profession stem from those with a "god complex".

[RobinN]

A few specialists made suggestions to us, and I also researched the vitamins and minerals that Rebecca takes. I always have taken notes and printed out articles supporting my reasoning for providing these supplements. Knowledge is power.

I am the rebel, however if I had waited for medical doctors to make suggestions or provided alternative ideas, I would still be waiting. Rebecca would still be taking medications that reduced her quality of life. I have kept notes and I am still learning.

[Zoofemme]

My neurologist and PCP know each other quite well and she knows what supplements my PCP has me on and why. I can tell you that I am quite weary of all the pill popping though and haven't taken the vitamins for the past few days Its bad enough with all of the anti-epileptic drug tabs I have to take...can't stop those and I need a break.

[Endless]

Well, I asked my PCP and my phamacist about the supplements. Both said no interaction with Trileptal, and no separation of time needed. PCP said I may want to take more D, though.

Phamacist was an encyclopedia of knowledge. What a great idea to ask her!

[Blondie47]

Hey All

Just wanted to chime in -- my DD is taking BComplex with 500mg of C, and 250mg of magnesium. She won't take the Vit E. She does feel a difference in energy level with the B Complex/Vit C.

We had our first appointment with the Neurofeedback provider -- thats another story --

How is the Trileptal working Endless?

Take Care

[lindinig]

Hey All

We had our first appointment with the Neurofeedback provider -- thats another story --

How'd that go? We have our first 3-hour appointment on June 2.

[Endless]

Thanks for asking, Blondie. My seizures are more or less under control. But I'm having pretty awful side effects. It feels like a bad case of the flu. But it's not the flu. I'm hanging on to the hope it will eventually go away.

[Blondie47]

Endless

I hope so too -- my DD was so tired when she first started. It did get better.

[Blondie47]

Ok-- we had a one hour appointment to tour and have a bit of an orientation.
We have to call her back if we want to start. She was very professional.

[tripletdad]

There is a lot new data on vitamins and supplements that is not enitrely positive so make sure to look at both sides. St John's wort I believe is known to not interact well with depakote but I am not positive. Remember, there is only so much you body can absorb so you end up excreting a lot of the dosage. That is the whole joke behind vitawater.

I do take 1200mg of fish oil for cholesterol issues (i am allergic to lipitor and other statins) and this has helped keep my hdl around 57 to 62. Other than that, I do not take any other supplements for the most part because I already take enough pills and i don't need to anymore to take, LOL.

[Nakamova]

Even fish oil is problematic -- not for health, but because the company that manufactures it in the U.S. has ruthlessly depleted the menhaden fish stock in order to make the fish oil. If you can get away with it, take flax oil instead -- it's easily renewable, whereas the fish food chain is not.

[Endless]

I agree with Tripledad. There are a lot of supplements that clash with our meds. I think I posted this link somewhere else, but here it is again:

http://pcs.hmc.washington.edu/Epilepsy/EpiInfo/CAM.html

The whole thing is full of good info. At the bottom of the article are a number of tables with supplements and whether they are safe with our anti-seizure meds - look especially at tables 5,6,7. A must-read for any of us that are taking supplements with our meds.

[Endless]

Well, I went back and re-read the article linked below. A good thing I did. I don't know if you've been reading other posts in other rooms, but I've been feeling really cruddy - like I've been hit by a truck. Joint and muscle aches, total and complete exhaustion, headache, diarrhea, nausea, rash, etc. My doctors decided it's an adverse reaction to trileptal, and lowered my dose. I feel a little better, but still feel pretty cruddy.

I recently started taking 5-HTP, and thought it was a wonder-supplement. My moods improved vastly. But reading about it in the referenced article (in the last post), 5-HTP can cause eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome, which has exactly the same symptoms as I've been experiencing. E-M Syndrome was seen first in l-tryptophan use, but is now being seen with 5-HTP also.

http://www.nemsn.org/symptoms.htm

Yikes! Now I need to go off the 5-HTP and see if it is the culprit.

[Nakamova]

B12 Questions: Just curious how many folks have been tested for a Vitamin B12 deficiency? And if tested positive, was this before getting an epilepsy diagnosis or after? If there was a deficiency, was it considered as a possible cause of seizures, and/or was it considered a side effect of anti-epileptic drugs?