[Diandra]

IF you take it, what brand, form and dose of SAM-E do you take for mild depression?

Below is a quote from Dr Richard Brown from a psychiatric journal, I think it was called Psychiatric Weekly.

"Brown noted that SAM-e is generally available in two forms: a butanedisulfonate form and a tosylate form.

Info from Dr Brown Psychiatric times....
"In my practice, the butanedisulfonate seems superior, particularly the enteric-coated form," he said, adding that good brands currently available in this country include Nature Made and GNC. "If a patient hasn't responded to an appropriate dose of SAM-e, the physician must be sure that the patient is using a potent brand."

Now these 2 companies are not ones I utilize for good vitamins and supplements and I am concerned these are just paid endorsements. You see this info sprinkled all over the Internet in forums and product reviews.

I have had good luck with other vitamins from Jarrow's Formula, Allergy Research Group, Oregons Wild Harvest, and Doctors Choice Enzymatic Therapy.

Just want to know what some of you have used and did you buy it online and from what source, Iherb, Vitacost, Puritan?

Thanks and Merry Christmas and the best in 2015.
May we all improve in our health and our lives.
Love, Diandra

[Lara]

Hi Diandra,
I haven't bought it for years and years and don't remember the type I was taking but I was just looking at iHerb and it would want to work. The Nature Made one at iHerb is very expensive. There are older posts here on this forum for SAM-e too just wanted to let you know.

Mine are in AU$.

Nature Made, Sam- E Complete, 400 mg, 36 Tablets
AU$84.71
[iHerb price today AU$59.90]

Just looking at some GNC sites. I'd never heard of it myself but am sure others may have. They were much less expensive for the same 400mg enteric coated.

[Diandra]

thanks Lara...I did a search on these forums and nothing came up.... how did you enter sam-e. to find info? SAM-E or Sam-e or the full proper word which I can't begin to spell?! thanks, Diandra

Originally Posted by Lara

Hi Diandra,
I haven't bought it for years and years and don't remember the type I was taking but I was just looking at iHerb and it would want to work. The Nature Made one at iHerb is very expensive. There are older posts here on this forum for SAM-e too just wanted to let you know.

Mine are in AU$.

Nature Made, Sam- E Complete, 400 mg, 36 Tablets
AU$84.71
[iHerb price today AU$59.90]

Just looking at some GNC sites. I'd never heard of it myself but am sure others may have. They were much less expensive for the same 400mg enteric coated.

[mrsD]

I used SAMe by NatureMade for over 10 yrs. I took it mostly for my bad knee, and it worked, and allowed me to avoid a knee replacement.

I stopped it thinking I was home free, but alas my arthritis is progressive. It really helped me thru the menopause too and in my job where stress was STRESS!!!!!!

I used only 200mg Generic from RiteAid for a short time, and it seemed to work when added to the 400mg NatureMade to give me 600mg a day.

I bought and still buy occasionally mine at Costco. The prices now are easily 1/2 less than in the past. I believe 60 400mg NatureMade are about $39.00 now...and if a coupon is running you can get $5.00 off that and use your points from saving the codes to get a $7.00 coupon from NatureMade (500pts is about 2.5 boxes of 60) I just looked at mine, and NatureMade is Tosylate. I have never heard of a significant difference. I suspect it is only patent driven. SAMe is not stable in stomach acid, so should be enteric coated. It was only used in Europe as an injection for many years, before coming to the USA. It is best taken on an empty stomach in the morning. If you take it at night, you may have insomnia.

I recall 1 200mg tablet costing almost $2.00 when I started it, around 1999.(I remember because that was the year our son started college and I found SAMe on sale at WalMart that fall).
In fact I joined Costco just to save on my SAMe bill.

Now that I am older, I find SAMe a bit too stimulating for me.
So I don't take it as often as before. I'll do a month or two as a pulse and then stop @ 400mg a day. Sometimes every other day is enough.

NatureMade in fact was the company to develop the enteric coating when SAMe came over from Italy as an injectable. So I just trusted them the most.

You will want to make sure you have adequate Bcomplex available, and not be deficient, as B6 and B12 recycle the SAH back to SAMe in the body. SAH the metabolite (exhausted SAMe) is toxic and inflammatory in large amounts.

I really don't know about the different forms, so I can't comment on that. But make sure any SAMe you buy are blisterpacked which protects them from moisture. They will mush up quickly if not in foil individually.

SAMe is not for everyone. People with anxiety disorders or who might be bipolar should be very careful with it. I have found that older people seem to do better with it than younger. The younger set seem to get overstimulated on it. That is just my opinion.

SAMe is quite sophisticated chemically and unstable orally. That is why I only use NatureMade predominately. I only tried the RiteAid one for about 3 months or so as an add on for dosing.
The 200mg was no longer available from NatureMade at the time. Costco only carries the 400mg now.

We have a SAMe thread at the vitamin forum... it is pretty old, but goes into some detail. Use the search function to find it.

[Lara]

I think I looked up SAMe on iHerb but just checked with SAM-E and SAM - e and they all work. On the side to the left after you do the search it comes up with "Brands".


Actually I started taking SAMe in 1999 too.
Couldn't get it here of course and so a friend in Wash State used to send it to me. At the time I didn't have a clue how expensive it was.

My daughter bought some a while back but she found it helpful although too stimulating for her as she deals with anxiety issues like myself.

When she was taking it she did find that the timing of taking the dose was important especially when she was studying for really long hours of the day. She was taking it mid afternoon. In the end she stopped it as it seemed silly to be taking anti anxiety supplements and then be taking something on top of it that was actually too stimulating for her.

S-Adenosylmethionine (SAMe) - iHerb Health Library Information
p.s. just a note about some of the Trials I've read in the past with SAMe and certain conditions - Note that they often have used doses significently higher than what one would usually take. Wouldn't recommend that!

[Lara]

Sorry if I was confusing. I thought I was on the Vitamin Forum LOL
Having a migraine aura as I type.

Diandra, lots of the older posts/threads about SAMe are actually on the

Vitamins, Nutrients, Herbs and Supplements Forum

[mrsD]

This is the one on our Vitamin forum:

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread5846.html

It is really old... brush off the dust when you read it. LOL

[Diandra]

Lara and MrsD,
thanks so much for all your help and info.
I didn't even know we had a vitamin/supp section of Neurotalk.
that is where I should have posted this question.

I really appreciate the advice. I actually just started taking 200mg twice a day about 4 days ago and I already feel better from a mild depression. I have the Jarrows Formula enteric in blister pack.

I have done alot of reading and originally was making sure it would be OK for my elderly Mom. She has tried a few different anti- depressants and cannot handle the side effects. I have learned that Sam- e is fine for the geriatric population as long as you watch any heart arrhythmia issues.

Thanks so much, Diandr

[vibranthealth]

Diandra, can you share where you found Sam-E is good to improve depression? Would love to find out more about it.

Originally Posted by Diandra

Lara and MrsD,
thanks so much for all your help and info.
I didn't even know we had a vitamin/supp section of Neurotalk.
that is where I should have posted this question.

I really appreciate the advice. I actually just started taking 200mg twice a day about 4 days ago and I already feel better from a mild depression. I have the Jarrows Formula enteric in blister pack.

I have done alot of reading and originally was making sure it would be OK for my elderly Mom. She has tried a few different anti- depressants and cannot handle the side effects. I have learned that Sam- e is fine for the geriatric population as long as you watch any heart arrhythmia issues.

Thanks so much, Diandr

[Diandra]

Originally Posted by vibranthealth

Diandra, can you share where you found Sam-E is good to improve depression? Would love to find out more about it.

I have known about it for probably 15 yrs when a friend was using it because she could not handle any prescription anti-d's. I used it back then with no problems and the added bonus is it helps with joint pain and cleanses the liver too. I gave it to my elderly Mom a few yrs ago and it seems to really help her too.

Here is an article that explains this doctors view of sam-e and I would also google the views of docs like Dr. Andrew Weil or Dr. Mercola.

http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/arti...m-e-depression

I believe this is the doctor who also wrote a book about sam- e for depression.
Check out Amazon, I think that is where I saw it.