Glucose loading cures everything?
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@S-Holmes thank you!!!
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Just an update to chime in. Dextrose has absolutely been the most effective thing I’ve done for my overall wellbeing. I was one of those “it took everything in me each day not to pick a fight with everyone types” and this has resolved 100%. It’s gone, I’m incredibly resilient to stress, and it takes exponentially more stress to agitate me now. If this is all I gain, it’s life changing.
I seem to have better glycogen storage and can go without eating longer. I used to have to snack all day to keep stress at bay and especially to keep my temper in check.
Something I’d like to see change is my tinnitus, no change there…
How I’m doing it: I take relatively large doses at different intervals during the day and taper the doses into evening. For instance, I have 4 tablespoons in 8oz on coffee in the AM, then another 4 tablespoons in a second 8oz of coffee, (this is the extent of my coffee consumption-which again is life altering from the 6-10 cups I drank in the past). I then follow the two coffees with 16oz skim milk with another 4 tablespoons of dextrose. This is a typical “breakfast” if I hungry I may have a few slices of sourdough. So a total of 12 tablespoons that I “front-load” in the AM.
I then no longer need to snack between breakfast and lunch. At lunch I flex between solid food with a beverage with 4 tablespoons of dextrose, or a giant smoothie with 4 tablespoons.
I typically have a smoothie with 4 tablespoons of dextrose around 3pm. Sometimes I don’t feel like I need it.
At dinner I will either add 2-4 tablespoons to my meal, or drink a beverage afterwards with 2-4 tablespoons.
Somewhere before bed I’ll have a snack where I add 2 tablespoons.
On days where I lift weights, (3 days a week) I drink 16oz of a beverage with 8 tablespoons of dextrose, (I sip it between sets, and finish it when I complete the workout).
Recently I decided to take a break from all supplements and I feel pretty good. I may add some back in, but I didn’t lack energy or motivation, (I feel much more resilient).
As a total side note, I’ve looked into fruits with higher ratios of glucose to fructose and I’m finding these fruits to be much more digestible for me, (and I just seem to enjoy them more as well).
So I’m not sure where to go from here. I am sold, this, for me, seems to be a missing link. I always had the same repetitive pattern with bioenergetic substances, (work briefly, eventually stop, lead to constipation). Glucose eliminates the need to balance supplements to avoid that cycle. I would LOVE to eliminate tinnitus, but I’m not sure how much dextrose would be needed to do this. I know Dr Stephens says to up the dose until symptoms subside, but I think I’d like to speak directly to him or someone else before I start pounding more than 8 tablespoons in a single dose, (who knows, maybe I’ll feel confident at some point in the future to expiriment this way).
I think some of us simply don’t convert carbs into glucose, and at least for me, no volume of fruit, starch, or thyroid medicine closed that gap.
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@evan-hinkle said in Glucose loading cures everything?:
Just an update to chime in. Dextrose has absolutely been the most effective thing I’ve done for my overall wellbeing. I was one of those “it took everything in me each day not to pick a fight with everyone types” and this has resolved 100%. It’s gone, I’m incredibly resilient to stress, and it takes exponentially more stress to agitate me now. If this is all I gain, it’s life changing.
I seem to have better glycogen storage and can go without eating longer. I used to have to snack all day to keep stress at bay and especially to keep my temper in check.
Something I’d like to see change is my tinnitus, no change there…
How I’m doing it: I take relatively large doses at different intervals during the day and taper the doses into evening. For instance, I have 4 tablespoons in 8oz on coffee in the AM, then another 4 tablespoons in a second 8oz of coffee, (this is the extent of my coffee consumption-which again is life altering from the 6-10 cups I drank in the past). I then follow the two coffees with 16oz skim milk with another 4 tablespoons of dextrose. This is a typical “breakfast” if I hungry I may have a few slices of sourdough. So a total of 12 tablespoons that I “front-load” in the AM.
I then no longer need to snack between breakfast and lunch. At lunch I flex between solid food with a beverage with 4 tablespoons of dextrose, or a giant smoothie with 4 tablespoons.
I typically have a smoothie with 4 tablespoons of dextrose around 3pm. Sometimes I don’t feel like I need it.
At dinner I will either add 2-4 tablespoons to my meal, or drink a beverage afterwards with 2-4 tablespoons.
Somewhere before bed I’ll have a snack where I add 2 tablespoons.
On days where I lift weights, (3 days a week) I drink 16oz of a beverage with 8 tablespoons of dextrose, (I sip it between sets, and finish it when I complete the workout).
Recently I decided to take a break from all supplements and I feel pretty good. I may add some back in, but I didn’t lack energy or motivation, (I feel much more resilient).
As a total side note, I’ve looked into fruits with higher ratios of glucose to fructose and I’m finding these fruits to be much more digestible for me, (and I just seem to enjoy them more as well).
So I’m not sure where to go from here. I am sold, this, for me, seems to be a missing link. I always had the same repetitive pattern with bioenergetic substances, (work briefly, eventually stop, lead to constipation). Glucose eliminates the need to balance supplements to avoid that cycle. I would LOVE to eliminate tinnitus, but I’m not sure how much dextrose would be needed to do this. I know Dr Stephens says to up the dose until symptoms subside, but I think I’d like to speak directly to him or someone else before I start pounding more than 8 tablespoons in a single dose, (who knows, maybe I’ll feel confident at some point in the future to expiriment this way).
I think some of us simply don’t convert carbs into glucose, and at least for me, no volume of fruit, starch, or thyroid medicine closed that gap.
Great report Evan! It does seem to work on our moods and attitudes before anything else.
I too still have tinnitus and since Dr Peat said it is caused by gut dysfunction, I've begun a gut protocol along with the glucose to hopefully speed things up. I take gelatin, modified citrus pectin, acacia fiber, metamucil, and bamboo silica activated with lemon (Nathan Hatch gut protocol). I'm also about to make soup stock and try to have some of that daily.
Also, avoiding foods with pesticides and herbicides (glyphosate) is important since these kill beneficial gut bacteria. I know Dr Peat recommended antibiotics to clean up the gut, but I think they can cause more serious problems down the road, so will take them only in an emergency.
Hope you will report back as you're able!
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Yeah, that is super good to hear.
What I found in my second or really third day is that my stomach doesn't bother me nearly as much and I'm actually consuming more than I was yesterday.
So I'm doing about 25 grams at a time, starting with morning coffee, then later in the morning, then around lunchtime, and then in the afternoon.
And I'm just going to keep doing this.
I am working to feel more healthy in the fall and the wintertime and perhaps be more headache-free.
So those are my goals here.
I'm not sure if I'm meeting the goals, but we'll see.
@evan-hinkle you may want to consider low dose naltrexone for tinnitus. Has helped a lot of folks. It has revolutionized my allergies (they are gone for the first time in my whole life) and made my gut (not my stomach) almost problem-free.
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@S-Holmes yeah, my approach has been gut health since before the Peat days, but the tinnitus is something I became aware of in the last few years, (given my state of existence was so poor i couldn’t perceive most of my health issues). I may have had it since playing football…
I used to fast for 3-5 days before I found Peat and that seemed to help most things, (but again, my awareness was so poor, I’m sure I did plenty harm too). I think I just robbed my body of the energy to exhibit symptoms of illness. I just don’t know how long I’ve had tinnitus is my main issue there. I will continue along though!
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@Ecstatic_Hamster I’ve looked at your threads on LDN, and felt it could be something for me. I’m concerned about the sleep disruptions though, (gotta get my sleep!). Thanks for the reminder, I will look at it from a tinnitus perspective.
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I just got a new bag of glucose, same brand, but it smells more perfumed. I don't use any kind of perfumed products so for me it's very strong, and the smell reminds me of perfumed soap. There's a similar aftertaste, but other than that I feel the same having it. Has anyone experienced this? I found some mentions of it when I googled, but I'm not sure it was pure glucose or other sweeteners.
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@gentlepotato said in Glucose loading cures everything?:
I just got a new bag of glucose, same brand, but it smells more perfumed. I don't use any kind of perfumed products so for me it's very strong, and the smell reminds me of perfumed soap. There's a similar aftertaste, but other than that I feel the same having it. Has anyone experienced this? I found some mentions of it when I googled, but I'm not sure it was pure glucose or other sweeteners.
I bought a 50 lb bag of dextrose but it had a strange odor so didn't use it. I've had better luck with a couple of the brands in plastic containers, so I'm sticking with those.
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Nutricost is what I am using now, and it’s great. No odor at all.
My progress so far: I’m up to 30g X 4. Gained a few pounds which I’ll try to lose today and tomorrow, that has more to do with other factors I think. My temps are not really any different. I no longer have any stomach issue when I take my glucose.
I went on a fast walk up and down hills and when I returned my temps were really low, indicating a hypoglycemic episode. I’m sleeping well as usual.
I am feeling better than I usually do right now so far, fewer endotoxin symptoms, so that could be a good sign.
I’m just going to continue and see what happens.
My theory as to why this works:
I think this forces the body into sugar burning mode.
The lipolysis retreats. Ultimately you retrain your body to becoming a young sugar burner, which has many benefits in terms of raising CO2 levels and free radicals (protecting against cancer).
I think Dr. Stephens’ brain theory is sorta wrong, but they do call dementia type 3 diabetes. I think this dextrose works because without the fructose, it can efficiently stop excessive lipolysis and kickstart oxphos.
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@gentlepotato said in Glucose loading cures everything?:
it's very strong, and the smell reminds me of perfumed soap. There's a similar aftertaste
I had experienced and reported something similar already. You can try to keep the bag wide open for a few days (and put it into other containers) and see if some of those solvents dissipate. Some of them will. But as you can even taste them it's likely some (or all) will remain.
+1 on S.Holme's suggestion of not buying dextrose in cardboard boxes or paper bags anymore. (As also for many other foods' packagings, indeed) -
Thanks for your reports coming in, everyone.
@Ecstatic_Hamster said in Glucose loading cures everything?:
I think Dr. Stephens’ brain theory is sorta wrong, but they do call dementia type 3 diabetes. I think this dextrose works because without the fructose, it can efficiently stop excessive lipolysis and kickstart oxphos.
I also reckon that ultimately a lot is going to be mediated through liver energy metabolism. Which, not least through biliary functioning, duodenal microbiome and barrier integrity and non-translocation of pathogens, toxins and LPS, is directly related to brain inflammation and functioning.
This brief little comment also stuck with me and I am now looking into extra CoQ10 and (tauro)ursodeoxycholicacid:
@LetTheRedeemed said in "Glucose Loading" protocol, a la Dr Stephens - A Critique:
Honestly, if one's liver function is so compromised they need to avoid fructose, [...]
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@CrumblingCookie said in Glucose loading cures everything?:
Thanks for your reports coming in, everyone.
@Ecstatic_Hamster said in Glucose loading cures everything?:
I think Dr. Stephens’ brain theory is sorta wrong, but they do call dementia type 3 diabetes. I think this dextrose works because without the fructose, it can efficiently stop excessive lipolysis and kickstart oxphos.
I also reckon that ultimately a lot is going to be mediated through liver energy metabolism. Which, not least through biliary functioning, duodenal microbiome and barrier integrity and non-translocation of pathogens, toxins and LPS, is directly related to brain inflammation and functioning.
This brief little comment also stuck with me and I am now looking into extra CoQ10 and (tauro)ursodeoxycholicacid:
@LetTheRedeemed said in "Glucose Loading" protocol, a la Dr Stephens - A Critique:
Honestly, if one's liver function is so compromised they need to avoid fructose, [...]
I wonder if the fructose (in fruit and sucrose) is why so many gain weight when they begin following Dr. Peat. I did.
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Thanks for the input about the glucose! It's in a plastic bag, and there's a noticeable difference between the two bags I got, where one smells way more. But I'll try to air them out and see what happens!
@Ecstatic_Hamster Thanks for sharing! I didn't know the names of the pathways, and had not had capacity to read up on it yet, but I've been thinking along the same lines. I don't remember if I already mentioned this, but I wonder if the liver will accumulate fat if it is prioritizing those pathways, since fat has more energy per gram, and as a side effect would not store as much glucose, which could exasperate the problem. I had a blood test show higher triglycerides (after the week I did high sucrose, before my glucose arrived) and I was thinking it was because the liver was releasing fat and making space for glycogen. I seem to have more glycogen stored now.
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I like Dr. Mercola's gut healing protocol using glucose (I'm not using sucrose).
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2024/09/15/the-truth-about-health.aspx
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How's everyone's sleep and anxiety level? I've just switched back to 1 tbsp every hour, after doing a few weeks of 3x4 + 1. Now I'm suspecting the higher doses caused a BG spike (it did when I tried a bigger dose, while I was wearing a continuous glucose monitor), and therefore consecutive rapid fall or even crashes, during the night especially.
I think I've had the worst sleep I can remember having for years, incredibly anxious and wildly sensitive to sound. I didn't realize it could be the change in doses, because my building experienced two very unusual and activating events (that turned out to be nothing) at night during the week and a half before I switched. What I've thought of as anxiety in the past has practically always turned out to be low blood sugar, but these unusual events made me think this time it could be anxiety. So it took me a while to see the possible connection, but yesterday I switched back. And last night my hearing was normal, I couldn't "make" myself anxious even when I tried and I slept well again.
Now I'm even more curious about how low cortisol affects blood sugar regulation, and whether adrenaline takes over cortisol's job - and if adrenaline can be activated by just blood sugar falling, even if it's not low. If anyone has done any research about this let me know.
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This is a very interesting thread.
I am about halfway through the High Calorie Malnutrition book, and it seems to me that doing this sort of sugar therapy will require large doses of thiamine to keep your levels up. A b-complex is also good and necessary, but thiamine will be easily depleted on this sort of program, as I understand it.
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@idealabsrat That's interstiting - high dose B1 thiamine is one approach in the ME/CFS world. Some people get much better from it, but it's a whole protocol and can be very expensive, and I found the protocol confusing. I think it's based on the idea that there is a low level of pyruvate dehydrogenase, and B1 is needed to create that - but from what I understand the low level of PDH is a former theory to the Itaconate Shunt hypothesis.
What is the thinking behind high B1 thiamine in the approach you mention? Can you share details?
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I have been reading here for some time, and just registered to write here. I've had dextrose as my main source of energy for 2,5 years, because I don't tolerate enough of any other carbs.
This summer I learned about the dextrose protocol and tried it. I got terrible blood sugar crashes.
Now I have found what works for me. I take one Tbsp at a time, and then I wait a few minutes before I take another Tbsp. Lately I've been taking 7 Tbsp during 30 minutes 3 times a day, before breakfast, lunch and dinner. I don't get blood sugar crashes now. -
@gentlepotato basically, thiamine deficiency is almost as prevalent as hypothyroidism, in the two are very much intertwined.
It's an enzyme transporter, responsible for multiple parts of the ETC, and whole host of things. It's very easily depleted by oxphos, and by metabolizing alcohol.
Thiamine is actually very cheap if you buy powder and put it in capsules. I use benfotiamine. At first I took a couple grams a day, and it took a week before it started to excrete in the urine.
Incidentally, high dose thiamine cured my "seasonal allergies" where I would wake up every day congested or only able to breath through one nostril.
@takethiamine on X has detailed threads about B1maxxing.
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Thanks for all the info, and I'll check out the profile.
@idealabsrat said in Glucose loading cures everything?:
At first I took a couple grams a day, and it took a week before it started to excrete in the urine.
What does that mean? Is that good or bad, and how do you know that's happening?