I have purchased several supplements but have been haphazard in taking them in a timely manner. Can someone please advise when (empty stomach or full?) & how much of each I should take? I would do a search but my hands are in too much pain from the SFN.

Doctor's Best benfotiamine 150 mg.

Doctor's Best R-Lipoic Acid 100 mg. (this gives me heart burn even after eating)

Mag64 Magnesium 64 mg.

Spring Valley CoQ10 plus L-cartine 100 mg.

Superior Source B-12 Methylcobalamin 1000 mg.

If fish oil or others should be added please let me know.

Thank you in advance,

Cliffman

I am going to answer in red to each item:

1st thing in the morning on an empty stomach:
Doctor's Best benfotiamine 150 mg. (I took 1 in the morning and 1 at night for the 1st month and then 1 a day after the first month.)
Superior Source B-12 Methylcobalamin 1000 mg.

Since you get heartburn from R-Lipoic Acid my only suggestion would be to try taking with food that contains some fat and start off with the minimum amount. The stabilized form seems to be stronger.
_________

C0Q10 needs to be taken with fat for absorption. If you ever take Curcumin the same goes for that. I'm not familiar with Spring Valley CoQ10 plus L-cartine 100 mg so I don't feel qualified to say how often or how much. I guess check with instructions on bottle. I'm only taking 250mg of Enhanced Bioavailability Curcumin as 500mg made me itch. I believe most take 500 mg.

I don't know about Mag64.
I hope this helps and if I got any of these wrong please jump in people

I say trust MrsD's advice above.

I will give my take as someone who suffers daily with pretty bad idiopathic SFN pain. Understanding I am doing what alleviates my pain and allows me to be almost completely off of Gabapentin. What i am doing may not be for everyone. I am aware of Vitamin dependence over time. BUT I WOULD RATHER TAKE HIGH DOSE SUPPLEMENTS THAN MEDICINES THAT NO ONE QUITE KNOWS HOW OR WHY THEY (BARELY) WORK that ruin various aspects of my life. .

I also take LifeExtension brand presently but Doctors Best is fine I have used it in the past. LifeExtension has larger doses.

1000mg B12 methyl (every morning empty stomach)
250mg Mega Benfotiamine (2-3 day depending upon my pain - empty stomach)
100mg R-Lipoic Acid (once or twice a day empty stomach)


Unfortunately I can not find a fish oil supplement I can tolerate. And the high absorption CoQ10 does not agree with me either. :-(

I have personally found empty stomach works better for the above three The heartburn from R-Lipoic acid went away for me pretty quickly and I have GERD. Often times that can also be the chemicals used on the coating of the pills

If i was not receiving pain relief I would not say the above is method is necessary. But, if you are ever thinking about trying to alleviate pain maybe give it a shot.

[QUOTE=Patrick Winter;1188739]I say trust MrsD's advice above.

Cliffman, I must have been replying the same time as MrsD. If I had seen her post I would not have felt the need to reply. I agree with Patrick to trust her advise.

My list is how I take supplements for my purposes. We are all different. It is obvious from reading MrsD's response that besides having abundant general knowledge she knows about you

I'd just like to clarify ....

The benfotiamine has no food restrictions. It can be taken before meals or after.

I have never had any side effects from Benfotiamine, and I take it usually in the middle of my day.

There are 3 forms of lipoic acid....
The newest form called stablized R-lipoic acid does not need empty stomach.

The older two types, 1) racemic mixed S and R and the 2)
R lipoic that is NOT stablized, should be taken on an empty stomach. There are studies showing up to 30% less absorption with food present.