Hi Marelene and Mrs. D., I had my vit D level check with endo just this month and he said it was WNL. I don't know the number. One of supplements recommended by the hair analysis is iron. I will stay away from that until I have blood serum level done. I was actually surprised my vit D was ok because I have given up all dairy products due to hair saying I had high Ca. Her I found out that dairy may have been giving be stomach issue. They seem to have gone away.
I have written down all the suggestions you made for blood serum testing. I have an appt with my rheumotologist tomorrow and will ask him to order these.

I have also written down your suggestions for supplemental replacements and will be picking those up. Thanks you so much as this will be saving me a lot of money. I feel like I spend so much on healthcare already.

Mrs D. I actually like those beans so I will pick some up along with the V8 juice. The idea to speak with the manager at CVS is not one I thought of. I'll be doing that also.

Can either of you let me know what foods you decided to eliminate from you diet and why. Did it help with your neuropathy? I just hope it is not chocolate for me. That is one thinkg I crave!
Thanks so much to both of you for all you do for all of us here.
Hopeful

You have to ask for your D results.... "normal" doesn't cut it anymore. Some lab ranges for D go down to 30... which is not normal anymore. Goal is 50 or above.

Gluten is a prime candidate to start with. I think the most common intolerance. We've had people on PN who turned out gluten intolerant and by eliminating it were better.

Nightshades are a problem for me... potatoes esp and also too many tomatoes. (I only have a very tiny amount of bland tomato sauce now and then). Potatoes make my feet burn terribly. Peppers also make me burn.

I've given up sugar and fructose. I can tolerate an orange a day, but not much else, fruit wise. I have terrible GI problems from sugars.

I think anyone with PN should avoid MSG at all costs. This form of glutamate stimulates the NMDA receptor for pain. Read your labels always. Watch for it in restaurants. Chinese, esp but also others that have sauces, and soups where it is commonly added.

Other offenders are dairy protein (casein), chocolate, soy, corn.

Eliminate one at a time and reintroduce...each person is different!

Mrs D hit the major offenders. Sugars (natural and artificial sweeteners) are troublesome especially if you have digestive issues.


One way to approach it is to keep a log of what you are eating at each meal. and how you feel. What items are appearing daily or even at each meal, and see if you crave any of those. Are you tired or sluggish after a meal? Bloated or have heart burn. If so, those are suspect.

Most, if not all of us, eat a pretty static diet. Wheat, sugar, dairy, corn, soy show up daily. Corn, soy, and sugars are in processed foods. I find if I eat cow's dairy daily, I will end up with sinus congestion.

One other thing on the hair test....this is really a screening tool and has limitations. You can have false low/high values from hair care products. You need to take into consideration your symptoms, diet, lifestyle, stress level and other lab tests. So it's good you are going to check out your iron before starting a supplement. And finally, the test results on your CA,MG, P & K may be a result of electrolyte imbalance and/or adrenal function and not an deficient/excessive status of the mineral.

Yes, the report on that hair analysis was in RATIO format.

Not in absolute values or concentration for each item listed.

I am not sure what the high calcium and high copper mean.
There are people who cannot metabolize copper properly. It will build up in the blood. It is called Wilson's disease.
This is not common however:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001789/

I wonder if the high calcium is a result of not having enough of mag, Vit K and D to get the CA where it needs to be. But that's just a guess. You can have excess copper in hair samples from external hair products or swimming pool chemicals.

This delicate balance with copper, iron and zinc is beyond me. All I know is that they exist and you need to look a the bigger picture. When John did his first hair analysis it was before he started treatment for his bone marrow. His Zinc was high. The nutritionist told us that zinc dumps into the hair when vitamin D is low. And his cobalt was low...an indication that B12 is insufficient.
His blood serum B12 was a "normal" 392. HA! We were in such turmoil at the time and didn't have the luxury of time to research and correct nutritional issues before his treatment.

Copper and zinc have a reciprocal arrangement. When zinc is low copper becomes high and vice versa. So someone with high copper and not with the Wilson's mutation, may be low in zinc.
Other signs of low zinc are frequent infections and hair loss.
Zinc is critical for proper immune functions. Some drugs deplete it, ACE inhibitors are the most common,but acid blocking drugs also block its absorption since acid is needed for its absorption.

My endocronologist is actually repeating my blood work for adrenal gland. I believe it was the ACTH was only slightly elevated. He thought it was due to my thyroid test being to high. He added another dose of synthroid once a week and wants to recheck. Thanks for all the info. I never did really thinks to be aware of my symptoms after I eat.

Just thought I would let you know I saw rheumo today and we gave me a slip to draw all the iron labs you both suggested. He is also going to have them draw food sensitivity lab and ANA and the labs for antibody for Sjogrens again. They come back negative every time. He also suggested I see neuromuscular. He would like to try IVIG but wants to see what they think.
Thanks for all your help. Marlene if you not told me about the full iron profile he would not have done it. He was not going to order all that. You ladies are a great help and excellent resource. Thanks again!

Good luck with all the testing. Hopefully all will be "normal".

In case you're interested, the following nutrients will help the adrenal glands:
Vitamin C, E, B12 and B5 (1500mg/d of B5).

Hi Mrs. D, I have eliminated all dairy so there is no issue there. I had an endoscopy done in the spring and they did a biopsy and said no celiac. I don eat potatoes but they are the sweet potatoes. I do eat a lot of fruit and as I said yesterday always have cravings for chocolate. I will start eliminating some of those and see what happens. I will see what my Vit D was I have to call the endo the second week of Oct after I have some other blood drawn. I will request a copy of both work ups. Thanks again