jen53's Journal, 15 November 2010

not sure what is online by Colette, but found this additional information - please use this product carefully. L- Carnitine is an amino acid and quite helpful to those hypothyroids who are adrenally insufficient. According to Dr. Larrian Gillespie, L- Carnitine is for modified adrenal failure...which can occur with or without thyroid problems, but is more commonly seen with hypothyroidism. The best way to use it is to only take 500mg a day for three days...if you find your wristwatch band is getting tight (due to interstitial edema of the carpal tunnel), you should STOP using it, as you are NOT adrenally insufficient. If you do not experience any fluid retention problems, increase the dosage to three, spaced-out throughout the day. A caution...if you are going through the adrenal hyperplasia phase of menopause (the perimenopause time), L-Carnitine can cause bloating and increased abdominal fat!  

Jen, I was just reading some stuff about L-carnatine and what I read was that it is best taken first thing in the morning before eating and also with the CoQ10. Just thought I would pass that on to you. Also, from what I read in my Atkins book you need to start out with a base amount and build up to about 3500mg a day. We have only been taking it for about a week here at our house and it is hard to remember to take it before eating. Keep me posted!  

Do be careful, Jen! I'm all in favor of reading and learning more but do you really want to pop pills before trying a clean induction diet? Sounds like this L-Carnitine is pretty powerful stuff. 

Cricky, that sounds scary Paula. http://community.atkins.com/ugc/blog/viewBlogPost/p/blogPostId/4958151/The_Role_of_Insulin_in_Difficulty_Losing_Weight.htm?campusId=700 This is the link I read from Colette. Pinky that is a high dose but as to quote Colette "...high doses such as 1500 mgs daily of carnitine are often necessary" Didn't know that you have to build up to taking them, thanks for that. I will certainly keep you posted. Thanks Helen for your kind concern, you are right about popping pills, but....... I've been tempted, this could solve my problem! They certainly do give you more energy, it's approaching midnight at this moment, and I'm wide awake. This must be why they are taken in the morning.  

Posting links in journals really don't work - the link is Colette's latest blog on the atkins site. 

do the 500mg for 3 days test...and see if you retain fluid. If you do, you do not need this product. If you don't - then you can increase as noted above. May want to do a little more reading online. And your thyroid or adrenals may have nothing to do with your stall...so please take good care to look for the best information out there. Love. 

Jen, I would go to a doctor first. If you're diagnosed with hyperinsulinism, then L-Carnitine may well be appropriate, but from reading your journal, this sounds like your own self-diagnosis, not a medical one. As Paula points out, your stall may have nothing to do with hyperinsulinism. I wouldn't be so quick to "experiment" with drugs meant for patients diagnosed with hyperinsulinism, which is what Colette's blog discusses. 

Jen, try going to about.com and read about hypothyroid. I have been reading a lot on the subject, as I have suspected it was my problem for a while. Those with hypothyroid and insulin resistant and not only gain weight for no apparant reason, but also have difficulty losing it. There is a quiz you can take. I had at least 15 of the symptoms and wrote them all down so when I find a doctor that can test me correctly, they have to test for T3 and T4 in addition to the regular test, I am prepared with a list of symptoms. There is a lot of info and websites that are helpful, and apparantly not as many doctors knowledgeable about the disorder to correctly diagnose and treat correctly. I can give you a few more links if you like, I have a couple of buddies on my Atkins forum that are hypothyroid that have give great advice.