Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 One of the amino acids, taurine, is in meats. Most humans can synthesize it in their bodies. For some reason I don't. This appears to be fairly common in vegans. The good news for me is that Solgar makes a vegetarian form. I'm guessing that other companies make veggie taurine too but I stopped looking when I found Solgar's. It has helped with muscle cramping. My eyesight has deteriorated which is another area taurine may play a role. If you have a cat companion you may already know that taurine is the reason they won't thrive on a vegan diet. Cats can't synthesis taurine. Martha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 I believe the connection is: if you are celiac, you may be deficient in B6. If you are deficient in B6 you may not be able to properly synthesize taurine. I noticed that some of the symptoms of taurine deficiency listed on this page are commonly associated with celiac: http://www.bodyecology.com/06/11/16/deficient_in_taurine.php anxiety, depression, hypertension, hypothyroidism, gout, infertility, obesity, kidney failure and autism, among other conditions. Pam On Thu, Sep 3, 2009 at 5:36 PM, Martha Bickford<msew wrote: > > > One of the amino acids, taurine, is in meats. Most humans can synthesize it > in their bodies. For some reason I don't. This appears to be fairly common > in vegans. The good news for me is that Solgar makes a vegetarian form. I'm > guessing that other companies make veggie taurine too but I stopped looking > when I found Solgar's. It has helped with muscle cramping. My eyesight has > deteriorated which is another area taurine may play a role. > > If you have a cat companion you may already know that taurine is the reason > they won't thrive on a vegan diet. Cats can't synthesis taurine. > Martha > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 I agree Martha, that MOST human vegans synthesize all the taurine they need, assuming they eat a varied diet of whole plant foods. The only documented exception for human beings requiring supplemental taurine, of which I am aware, is people with Cystic Fibrosis. It would perhaps be worth repeating here, that feline and human digestive physiologies are very different. Cats are obligate carnviores (require meat) and require supplemental taurine if they are fed a vegan diet. However, humans have primate digestive physiology (vegetarian). Since it is well documented that non-CF human vegans eating a varied, whole foods diet, sufficient to maintain a normal weight, do not normally require supplemental taurine, I'm wondering if it might be a good idea to do a nutritional review of your diet? Deborah One of the amino acids, taurine, is in meats. Most humans can synthesize it in their bodies. For some reason I don't. This appears to be fairly common in vegans. The good news for me is that Solgar makes a vegetarian form. I'm guessing that other companies make veggie taurine too but I stopped looking when I found Solgar's. It has helped with muscle cramping. My eyesight has deteriorated which is another area taurine may play a role. If you have a cat companion you may already know that taurine is the reason they won't thrive on a vegan diet. Cats can't synthesis taurine. Martha . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 Speaking of muscle cramping, what suppliments would be good to eliminate or reduce charlie horses. I have a friend who gets them quite frequently (and they are very painful episodes). I've thought of potasium.....? Any input? Thanks in advance. Leilani --- On Thu, 9/3/09, Martha Bickford <msew wrote: Martha Bickford <msew amino acids rather than protein " Vegan -and-Gluten- Free " Thursday, September 3, 2009, 7:36 PM One of the amino acids, taurine, is in meats. Most humans can synthesize it in their bodies. For some reason I don't. This appears to be fairly common in vegans. The good news for me is that Solgar makes a vegetarian form. I'm guessing that other companies make veggie taurine too but I stopped looking when I found Solgar's. It has helped with muscle cramping. My eyesight has deteriorated which is another area taurine may play a role. If you have a cat companion you may already know that taurine is the reason they won't thrive on a vegan diet. Cats can't synthesis taurine. Martha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 Magnesium and iron might also be implicated. Pam On Fri, Sep 4, 2009 at 12:26 PM, Leilani Mullen<negri2727 wrote: > > > Speaking of muscle cramping, what suppliments would be good to eliminate or > reduce charlie horses. I have a friend who gets them quite frequently (and > they are very painful episodes). I've thought of potasium.....? > > Any input? Thanks in advance. > > Leilani > > --- On Thu, 9/3/09, Martha Bickford <msew wrote: > > Martha Bickford <msew > amino acids rather than protein > " Vegan -and-Gluten- Free " > Thursday, September 3, 2009, 7:36 PM > > > > One of the amino acids, taurine, is in meats. Most humans can synthesize it > in their bodies. For some reason I don't. This appears to be fairly common > in vegans. The good news for me is that Solgar makes a vegetarian form. I'm > guessing that other companies make veggie taurine too but I stopped looking > when I found Solgar's. It has helped with muscle cramping. My eyesight has > deteriorated which is another area taurine may play a role. > > If you have a cat companion you may already know that taurine is the reason > they won't thrive on a vegan diet. Cats can't synthesis taurine. > Martha > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 magnesium and potassium BL On Fri, Sep 4, 2009 at 11:26 AM, Leilani Mullen<negri2727 wrote: > > > Speaking of muscle cramping, what suppliments would be good to eliminate or > reduce charlie horses. I have a friend who gets them quite frequently (and > they are very painful episodes). I've thought of potasium.....? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 Leilani, I think we'd need to know a lot more about your friend before anyone would be able to make any reasonable suggestions. How old is she? What is her diet? What are her exercise habits? How much sleep does she get? What emotional issues are active in her life? ... etc. Certainly, there are times when just popping a pill is exactly the right way to resolve an issue. However, I suggest identifying the actual cause of a problem first, because that usually provides the necessary information about what action is most appropriate. Deborah Speaking of muscle cramping, what suppliments would be good to eliminate or reduce charlie horses. I have a friend who gets them quite frequently (and they are very painful episodes). I've thought of potasium.....? Any input? Thanks in advance. Leilani . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 I was also unaware of some humans having problems synthesizing taurine (of course all of our bodies operate slightly differently, so why would I question it?) and the quick bit of research that I did show that it is considered " conditionally essential " ; that is, cases where it is required to be in your body, because your body cannot synthesize it. Cases where it may become essential, other than in CF are: - premature and non-breastfed infants - chronic hepatic, heart or renal failure - if you do not consume/absorb sufficient - Cysteine and methionine - vitamin B6 (remember many celiacs have a problem absorbing B6) - Zinc - Vitamin A Pam On Thu, Sep 3, 2009 at 10:13 PM, Deborah Pageau<dpageau wrote: > > > I agree Martha, that MOST human vegans synthesize all the taurine they need, > assuming they eat a varied diet of whole plant foods. The only documented > exception for human beings requiring supplemental taurine, of which I am > aware, is people with Cystic Fibrosis. > > It would perhaps be worth repeating here, that feline and human digestive > physiologies are very different. Cats are obligate carnviores (require meat) > and require supplemental taurine if they are fed a vegan diet. However, > humans have primate digestive physiology (vegetarian). > > Since it is well documented that non-CF human vegans eating a varied, whole > foods diet, sufficient to maintain a normal weight, do not normally require > supplemental taurine, I'm wondering if it might be a good idea to do a > nutritional review of your diet? > > Deborah > > One of the amino acids, taurine, is in meats. Most humans can synthesize it > in their bodies. For some reason I don't. This appears to be fairly common > in vegans. The good news for me is that Solgar makes a vegetarian form. I'm > guessing that other companies make veggie taurine too but I stopped looking > when I found Solgar's. It has helped with muscle cramping. My eyesight has > deteriorated which is another area taurine may play a role. > > If you have a cat companion you may already know that taurine is the reason > they won't thrive on a vegan diet. Cats can't synthesis taurine. > Martha > . > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 4, 2009 Report Share Posted September 4, 2009 Good research Pam! That underlines that taurine is NOT a problem for MOST people, vegan or otherwise. Those conditions are all pathologies which can be experienced by meat-eaters at least as often as vegans. Deborah I was also unaware of some humans having problems synthesizing taurine (of course all of our bodies operate slightly differently, so why would I question it?) and the quick bit of research that I did show that it is considered " conditionally essential " ; that is, cases where it is required to be in your body, because your body cannot synthesize it. Cases where it may become essential, other than in CF are: - premature and non-breastfed infants - chronic hepatic, heart or renal failure - if you do not consume/absorb sufficient - Cysteine and methionine - vitamin B6 (remember many celiacs have a problem absorbing B6) - Zinc - Vitamin A Pam On Thu, Sep 3, 2009 at 10:13 PM, Deborah Pageau<dpageau wrote: > > > I agree Martha, that MOST human vegans synthesize all the taurine they need, > assuming they eat a varied diet of whole plant foods. The only documented > exception for human beings requiring supplemental taurine, of which I am > aware, is people with Cystic Fibrosis. > > It would perhaps be worth repeating here, that feline and human digestive > physiologies are very different. Cats are obligate carnviores (require meat) > and require supplemental taurine if they are fed a vegan diet. However, > humans have primate digestive physiology (vegetarian). > > Since it is well documented that non-CF human vegans eating a varied, whole > foods diet, sufficient to maintain a normal weight, do not normally require > supplemental taurine, I'm wondering if it might be a good idea to do a > nutritional review of your diet? > > Deborah > > One of the amino acids, taurine, is in meats. Most humans can synthesize it > in their bodies. For some reason I don't. This appears to be fairly common > in vegans. The good news for me is that Solgar makes a vegetarian form. I'm > guessing that other companies make veggie taurine too but I stopped looking > when I found Solgar's. It has helped with muscle cramping. My eyesight has > deteriorated which is another area taurine may play a role. > > If you have a cat companion you may already know that taurine is the reason > they won't thrive on a vegan diet. Cats can't synthesis taurine. > Martha > . > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 5, 2009 Report Share Posted September 5, 2009 Would definitely agree on the magnesium. It's important for muscle relaxation. Contrary to popular belief, more people are deficient in magnesium than calcium. My dad was having bad leg cramps a couple years ago so I gave him a bottle of magnesium chloride which he took before bed. It started working really quickly, I was happy to hear. Also it made him more amenable to nutritional suggestions, which is good because he's on more than enough pills already. Magnesium and Iodine are the two things Lymies are most deficient in, so I still play close attention to those. Linda --- On Fri, 9/4/09, Leilani Mullen <negri2727 wrote: Leilani Mullen <negri2727 Re: amino acids rather than protein Friday, September 4, 2009, 10:26 AM Speaking of muscle cramping, what suppliments would be good to eliminate or reduce charlie horses. I have a friend who gets them quite frequently (and they are very painful episodes). I've thought of potasium.... .? Any input? Thanks in advance. Leilani --- On Thu, 9/3/09, Martha Bickford <msew wrote: Martha Bickford <msew [Vegan-and-Gluten- Free] amino acids rather than protein " Vegan -and-Gluten- Free " <Vegan-and-Gluten- Free@ .com> Thursday, September 3, 2009, 7:36 PM One of the amino acids, taurine, is in meats. Most humans can synthesize it in their bodies. For some reason I don't. This appears to be fairly common in vegans. The good news for me is that Solgar makes a vegetarian form. I'm guessing that other companies make veggie taurine too but I stopped looking when I found Solgar's. It has helped with muscle cramping. My eyesight has deteriorated which is another area taurine may play a role. If you have a cat companion you may already know that taurine is the reason they won't thrive on a vegan diet. Cats can't synthesis taurine. Martha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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