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Marilyn I understand and agree (to the best of my knowledge) with what you've commented on. FYI... I wasn't trying to make a stand for or against the regular daily use vitamins and/or dietary supplements in general, but rather to point out that it's important for us to know what we're putting into our respective bodies when it comes to over-the-counter "medical-related" substances such as vitamins and supplements. I feel that many of us, including myself, do a little research on dietary supplements and then jump in and start adding these products into our daily regimen. Since most labeling on these products DON'T indicate on their labels what is the recommended "average" daily dose, it appears that as a group, our vitamin and supplement intake is decided by the "hit or miss" method. Before I began taking daily vitamins and supplements I made an effort to find out what the recommended daily dosages I should be taking. I found there were many references to these dietary supplements but very few listed a recommended daily dosage, I went so far as to check with a clinical pharmacologist I know to get that information and even HE was reluctant to definitely state what would constitute a definite daily dose. Eventually, I gained a modest amount of knowledge, but ONLY about those products I was taking or thinking about taking. And much of that I learned was from hit-or-miss Web searches and a coupla excellent-but-limited books on the subject. I have never planned on making a CAREER of the study of over-the-counter vitamins and supplements, but still, it's something I'm reluctantly finding myself being forced to educate myself on regarding OTC products because it's SO easy to buy 'em, but SO difficult to determine what the RECOMMENDED daily dose should be. I'm beginning to feel that my education is It's a case of the more I learn, the less I know.... <rueful smile> Barb Mallut [log in to unmask] -----Original Message----- From: Marilyn Gang <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Date: Monday, May 31, 1999 7:54 AM Subject: WHOA!!!! Re: Anomaly in Surgery >Barb - >I am so sorry you experienced the potentially dangerous anomoly >and I'm going to try to clarify a potential misunderstanding. > >BUT what was said about the supplements --- requires more of >an explanation. I think it is REAL IMPORTANT to understand this >and that PD folks need these supplements. With everything else >you do in life you exercise balance. > >>The reason my doctor told be to stop taking the vitamins and >>supplements, including vitamin E, Gingko Biloba, Coenzyme CQ10, >>and the Centrum Silver multivitamins was because it's definitely >>known that vitamin E, and Gingko-related supplements cause blood >>to slow down in coagulating, thus potentially causing excessive >>blood loss during surgery. > > Gingko Biloba helps bring oxygen to the brain and the cells. It > can help speed up the circulation of the blood. > > Vitamin E and certain fats --- well, it's not necessarily that they >slow down coagulating, I would not put it that way. What this does is >get rid of Free Radicals, thus protecting our enzymes, DNA, etc. from >free radical damage, stabilizing cell membranes and protecting the tissues of >the skin, eyes, liver, breasts and testes. > >Simply, it function is to stabilize blood fats so the blood vessels, heart >and entire body are protected. In doing so, FAT in blood does NOT BUILD UP >and it kind of makes the blood a bit more "slippy". > >You do NOT want to take A LOT of Vitamin E if you have low blood pressure >or if you have trouble with clotting or if you are pregnant (because you >run the danger of hemorrhage when birthing) or about to undergo surgery. > >If you have trouble clotting, its not that you should eliminate VItamin E, >it is that you should ingest Vitamin K which is probably depleted (made >in the large intestine and generally depleted due to drugs). > >Doctors look at things differently. They are used to looking at >things in isolation, i.e., cause and effect. Their education has >not included understanding about nutritional cascades, i.e., where something >starts and all the things that happen down the line. This is why they >say Vitamin E slows coagulation. That's not exactly what is happening. >What it is doing is making the blood less fatty, less clogged up. >Therefore, they are very good for people with clogged arteries > >Few people understand the importance of Vitamin K --- or even its >existence. This is also one of the components of bone and used for >osteoporesis supplements. > >Like anything else, you need to be careful. You wouldn't eat gobs of >spinach every day either, would you? That's because we are used to >spinach and understand what it does. Should we have prescriptions >for spinach? All it is -- is --- a lack of education. > >If you feel these supplements are not good, you may want to cut back >a little bit or eliminate for a month and then take smaller amounts >later on. These are excellent supplements for PD folk. > >Supplements should NOT be available by prescription. Who would >prescribe them? Why should I have to pay for a doctor and then pay >10 times more for something just so someone can write a paper when all >I have to do is educate myself a little bit and exercise common sense? > >Good luck. > >- Marilyn - > > > > Marilyn Gang [log in to unmask] Toronto, Ontario, Canada >