[Lewie]

Been suffering with bad neuropathy for 4 months now. 36 yr.old male. Most fit I ever been was this summer running 6 miles a day or biking 12, not over weight, had gastritis for 6 years and taking 2 ppi’s a day until the tingles started and the ppi’s just made it worse. Have bad brain fog, electric shocks, itchy skin, pins and needles, cramp pains with no cramps, joint pain, crazy muscle spasms all over, dry mouth, dry eyes, occasionally get Raynaud’s syndrome in hands, always have a rash on my skin in different places, I get a burning that starts at my stomach and radiates out, throbbing in my chest constantly that was told it was my aorta thumping for who knows what, lots of stomach pain, gut pain. Ok that’s the short version, I have had all the tests done below and all came back normal (minus the finding that I have a celiac artery stenosis which is very common and was told by the vascular surgeon that surgery would not help me since I am not showing the typical CAS symptoms). But the riddle here is that when I eat, it all goes away for ten minutes and slowly creeps back. I can’t find anyone that can help. What else can be checked? Currently on a few supplements, nothing helps.

THORAX CT Scan

Neck Tissue CT Scan

SEDIMENTATION RATE, WESTERGREN (ARUP)

Urinalysis

HISTOPLASMA ANTIGEN DETECTION EIA, URINE

C-REACTIVE PROTEIN

EGFR

ANA, IGG ELISA W/ REFLEX TO ANA, IGG IFA

Rheumatoid Factor (RF) Level

Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) Level

BORRELIA BURGDORFERI ANTIBODIES, IGG & IGM BY WESTERN BLOT

COCCIDIOIDES AB PANEL,SERUM CF

CRYPTOCOCCUS ANTIGEN, SERUM

CULTURE, BLOOD

COMPREHENSIVE METABOLIC PANEL

CBC WITH PLT COUNT AND AUTO DIFF

Free Thyroxine Level

Brain MRI

EGFR

THYROID STIM. HORMONE W/RFLX TO FREE T4

Bence Jones Protein, Quantitative

IMMUNONELECTROPHORESIS,IFE,IGA,IGG,IGM

Glycosylated Hemoglobin Level

COMPREHENSIVE METABOLIC PANEL

Abdominal Ultrasound

HELICOBACTER PYLORI BREATH TEST

Vitamin D Level

MAGNESIUM, PLASMA OR SERUM

FOLATE, SERUM

VITAMIN B12

CBC WITH PLT COUNT AND AUTO DIFF

BILIRUBIN, DIRECT, SERUM OR PLASMA

BILIRUBIN, TOTAL, SERUM OR PLASMA

ABDOMEN-PELVIS CT W/CONT

[doubleagle15]

Well Riddled out I feel for you and surely someone here will be able to help you.

[pabb]

Originally Posted by Lewie

. But the riddle here is that when I eat, it all goes away for ten minutes and slowly creeps back. I can’t find anyone that can help. What else can be checked? Currently on a few supplements, nothing helps.

THORAX CT Scan

Neck Tissue CT Scan

SEDIMENTATION RATE, WESTERGREN (ARUP)

Urinalysis

HISTOPLASMA ANTIGEN DETECTION EIA, URINE

C-REACTIVE PROTEIN

EGFR

ANA, IGG ELISA W/ REFLEX TO ANA, IGG IFA

Rheumatoid Factor (RF) Level

Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) Level

BORRELIA BURGDORFERI ANTIBODIES, IGG & IGM BY WESTERN BLOT

COCCIDIOIDES AB PANEL,SERUM CF

CRYPTOCOCCUS ANTIGEN, SERUM

CULTURE, BLOOD

COMPREHENSIVE METABOLIC PANEL

CBC WITH PLT COUNT AND AUTO DIFF

Free Thyroxine Level

Brain MRI

EGFR

THYROID STIM. HORMONE W/RFLX TO FREE T4

Bence Jones Protein, Quantitative

IMMUNONELECTROPHORESIS,IFE,IGA,IGG,IGM

Glycosylated Hemoglobin Level

COMPREHENSIVE METABOLIC PANEL

Abdominal Ultrasound

HELICOBACTER PYLORI BREATH TEST

Vitamin D Level

MAGNESIUM, PLASMA OR SERUM

FOLATE, SERUM

VITAMIN B12

CBC WITH PLT COUNT AND AUTO DIFF

BILIRUBIN, DIRECT, SERUM OR PLASMA

BILIRUBIN, TOTAL, SERUM OR PLASMa

ABDOMEN-PELVIS CT W/CONT

certainly sounds like an ulcer. but on that much PPI, your stomache acid is probably too low, not hi. bring us the results from you nutrient testing, commonly the levels found acceptable in western med are too low. Pretty much guarantee you are B12 def. good luck

[Wide-O]

I agree with suspecting B12 deficiency. PPI's make it almost impossible to absorb B12 - it's even listed as a side effect on most of them. It would also explain quite a few symptoms.

Do you have an actual reading of the test result?

[mrsD]

The proton pump inhibitors will also affect:
zinc
iron
B12
folate
calcium (leads to osteoporosis
magnesium (this is sometimes very severe)
some trace minerals

On PPIs, you will also not digest or break up protein properly, and hence may be low in amino acids. You can make whey protein shakes and perhaps overcome this. Low protein will affect the formation of carrier proteins in the blood that transport hormones and other things. So you might show evidence of poor hormonal actions. Poor protein digestion provides substrates for
bacteria in the bowel, to flourish and ferment the protein into gas which rises and causes all sorts of reflux.

Sometimes stomach problems are really slow gall bladder symptoms. This causes gas and pain. 1000mg of taurine daily can help this... it improves bile flow so things don't get stuck.

Your B12 should be at 400pg/ml. Anything lower is not "normal" but labs still use the old outdated ranges.

Magnesium levels in the mid range are not predictive of anything.
This test is only really useful for very very low or very very high situations. (either can be life threatening). But all the rest of that range does not illustrate what is going on in your body.
You can read more here:
http://www.slowmag.com/
This site gives food choices to maintain healthy magnesium metabolism in the body. Up to 70% of people in the US are low in magnesium (intake 1/2 or less of the RDA).
Taking a drug to impair magnesium absorption, you may have to
use a topical form. There is a new nice one...Morton Epsom Lotion. This is available at WalMart, Walgreen's, and Amazon.
It really helps.

This is my mag thread :
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread1138.html

[Lewie]

Thanks for the replies, definitely more things to search for. I had an endoscopy that showed gastritis, no ulcers and all biopsies were negative, I have wondered about bile so I will look into that taurine. I have been off PPI for 2.5 months now. Took one a couple days ago though to see how it would feel and it worked great for 2 days is all. Stomach felt better but my neuropathy was unchanged. I always feel better at the end of the day though after all my supplements and vitamin shakes I am drinking which makes me think my body isn’t properly absorbing or dumping the nutrients I need. Ultrasound of the gall bladder and the ct showed the gall bladder normal. Taking vitamin d, magnesium, B vitamins, eating lots of leafy greens.
B12-538
Folate was high at 48
Vitamin D 32
Magnesium 2.2 (although I know that doesn’t really show anything)

[mrsD]

That folate may be high because you are not methylating folic acid. This genetic error can be tested for, DNA etc. If you have this error, you will not methylate B12 from food either. The unmethylated forms will show up in testing, but they are not reaching tissues in workable states.

Make sure your magnesium is not Oxide form as that is not absorbed. It is used now as a laxative.

To help rebuild the lining of your stomach, I suggest Omega-3's.
They are required to keep the acid from irritating your stomach lining. A quality fish oil 3 times a day or Krill oil twice a day with food.

I've had FOUR sets of testing for my gall bladder and all were normal, but I still get "attacks" anyway which I treat with Taurine. It typically starts to work in about 3 days. Taurine is good for the brain and nerves too. Gall bladder also gives lots of burping...and pain in the upper right of the chest front and or back up to the shoulder. When severe or stones stuck in the duct there will be vomiting. I don't have stones, but I sure do get pain. I use a heating pad for 20 minutes at a time when the pain/cramping is severe. I am just getting over a spell in fact from last week.

[Lewie]

I burp alot and feet pains in the upper right chest. I will for sure give it a try. been taking cod liver oil but I will bump it up to 3 times a day. who would I go to to get my DNA tested? and what other form of magnesium out there as out looks like I been taking the oxide. should I also be taking benfotiamine? been taking gaba so I can sleep 5 days a week but here the dizzy side affects I get from it.

[mrsD]

Well you could have used 23andMe for testing ($99) but our
"wonderful" FDA just shut them down!

Most doctors will do it if you ask. Up to 40% of people it is estimated now have one or 2 deletions affecting MTHFR.
Your insurance should pay for it if ordered by a doctor. (Dr. testing costs much more than 23andme did. You can read about this testing controversy by Googling "23andme FDA". I am very irked by this new development in fact.

It is not safe to up dosing with CodLiver oil...you will get far too
much Vit A that way. It is best to buy fish body oils, which are safer to use in higher amounts. Cod liver oil is basically only used as a source of Vit A retinol and Vit D, today. Please don't increase dosing of it. Too much Vitamin A can affect your brain and cause increased intracranial pressure there which is a mess to fix. It can also cause liver damage.

[Lewie]

glad I asked about the cod liver oil. what about the benfotiamine?