I needed to disable self sign-ups because I’ve been getting too many spam-type accounts. Thanks.
Love your liver course review Dr Garrett Smith
I was involved in the development of the GS vA detox programme from end 2018-beginning of 2021, so over 2 years. I informed him of the glyphosate connection and helped with some scientific inaccuracies. I followed the diet and supplement suggestions and was a client of GS. I was a member of his inner circle where questions were discussed each week. He was open to suggestions and I thought the programme was sensible.
At the beginning of 2021 it all changed. He stopped listening to others opinions. He started saying some really inaccurate stuff. I disagreed with him on sulphur (YES we do need it) and B vitamins (YES they are cofactors for enzymes) and choline (YES it is essential for bile). I’d had terrible liver test results at the end of 2020 and was looking for solutions. He dismissed my ideas and just said ‘detox is tough’. Turns out I likely had a choline deficiency (thank you Andrew). I became increasingly dismayed at the direction GS was taking. However, I stayed in the Network to help others avoid my mistakes. A few months ago I realised by staying and saying (imo) sensible stuff, I was in fact supporting his work, which I no longer believed in, so I left. It’s such a shame that a programme that could have been really helpful is not. The desire to make money and boost his ego seems to have taken over from science and what is best for people. I could not recommend his work any more and I say this with sadness.
I believe that HIS detox plan has seriously damaged my health. It was new ground and we were guinea pigs. However, once the issues have come to light you think he’d want to know. But no he just wants us to shut up. I have been attacked for saying anything. I’m just all about the truth and helping people, apparently it seems he is not. Looking at peoples motivations helps understand whether they can be trusted.
That’s my take on the topic. I hope he sees sense. I hope he recommends the choline RDA for anyone on the detox. I hope he stops damaging people. But I can no longer be involved.
Hi @jean I’m @jaj but I think your question was to me?
I’m now following a whole food, nutrient dense diet. I’m using Cronometer to make sure I get all my RDAs. I’m back to the principles of nutritional therapy that I studied 2015-18. I’m ensuring that I get plenty of choline to replenish a deficiency, that I’m pretty sure I developed.
I’m having to be restrictive about certain foods atm, which I’m not happy about, but I’ve lost resilience. I’m being careful with high glutamate foods because I think a high glutamate meal triggered a seizure, so my body seems to be coping poorly with excess glutamate in diet (this is new). Also if I eat too much lutein I get conjunctivitis (started about a year-18 months ago) so I need to limit high lutein foods. Idk why this is. David H on Smith’s Network suggested that sensitivity to lutein indicates nerve problems. This would seem to fit my experience. Both these sensitivities developed after 3 years on the vA detox suggesting something went VERY wrong. Is it a choline deficiency ruining cell membranes and myelin, or something else? Time will tell.
I don’t take many supplements at the moment as I’m trying to remove variables. I do address pyroluria. I stopped taking supplements for pyroluria under Smith’s advice. Very bad idea. My anxiety went through the roof. I do much better on a low dose specialised pyroluria supplement, so I take this. I use some topical magnesium. Apart from this I try and get everything from food. I take some binders before bed. That’s about it.
I feel ok and haven’t had a seizure since November. My anxiety is much better. I’m also doing nervous system work. However, I won’t feel fully recovered until my resilience returns. While I’m still having weird reactions to food I know something is off balance in my body (choline deficiency, secondary porphyria, nerve damage). I hope I can fully regain my health. I’d actually rather be vA toxic than in the mess I am now. That made me fat but now I can’t do many things because of seizure risk - drive, eat in a restaurant, have a bath etc. I don’t feel safe. Very life limiting.
Quote from Jenny on January 31, 2023, 2:32 amIs it a choline deficiency ruining cell membranes and myelin, or something else? Time will tell.
Maybe choline is a link in degenerative dementia's? Definitely something to fix if so.
Thanks for the updates to the group @jaj
Dr Axe seems to think so (not that I’m a big fan of him but I like his infographics)
Symptoms of a choline deficiency may possibly include:
- low energy levels of fatigue
- memory loss
- cognitive decline
- learning disabilities
- muscle aches
- nerve damage
- mood changes or disorders
Not a plan for good health I would say.
Alzheimer's. The researchers hope that their findings will lead to clinical studies of choline in people who carry the APOE4 gene, who make up about 14 percent of the overall population. Previous trials looking at choline’s effects on cognition showed mixed results, but those trials were not targeted specifically to people with the APOE4 gene. https://neurosciencenews.com/apoe4-choline-17941/?fbclid=IwAR13uXDfXJokXMQjChfsgHV188XPzWLNUo9na0sBgClNAWsfJpv0XjCmBN8#:~:text=Summary%3A%20APOE4%20affects%20lipid%20metabolism%2C%20but%20taking%20choline,carried%20by%20almost%20half%20of%20all%20Alzheimer%E2%80%99s%20patients
Despite your desire to trim supplements, I mention it anyway. Have you looked into inositol? Just the past few days I have stumbled on youtube videos and articles about it and how positive its effects are on the brain with rarely any side effects, only in the higher dosages of above 12 g were GI problems reported. It might be involved in seizures. It‘s also supposedly beneficial for sleep and relaxation which is something I‘d like to see improved. Haven‘t supplemented with inositol yet, but I probably will.
(Some fun fact: Supposedly Bruce Lee‘s favorite supplements were lecithin, inositol and ginseng.)
Thanks @christian so interesting that you should mention that as I’ve been looking at inositol this week! It’s been on my radar for anxiety for a while, but I haven’t tried it. I was re reading my NT course this week and came across a slide saying it can be synergistically helpful with choline, but that was in relation to them being lipotrophic factors. I found a paper saying it improved cholestasis.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28748913/
I shall see if it’s associated with seizure reduction. Thanks for idea.
a quick google research showed this;
5 Foods High in Inositol
- Whole Grain Bread and Bran One of the single best foods you can eat for greater inositol consumption is stone-ground whole grain bread, at a very significant 11.5 mg per gram; that’s 287.5 mg of myo-inositol in just one slice of bread! ...
- Dried prunes, cantaloupe, or citrus ...
- Beans and Peas ...
- Almonds or peanut butter ...
- Liver ...
..... so maybe the whole grain spelt bread my mom makes herself from fresh ground spelt can be beneficial in many ways, I kinda like how it makes me feel - when I give up all my ideas about that bread an gluten is bad for us 😉
Beans and nuts also high in inositol 🙂 🙂 I am happy now. Coffee depletes inositol.. uh I am still drinking coffee but I am aiming to stop. I try to limit it to 1-2 cups a day though. The bean protocol does not allow coffee. Or alcohol. I have had wine too, not every day. So I am going to limit those too, wine and coffee, and I want to try completely without. Kinda hard being a waitress but it is possible 🙂