Posted by avid abulia on July 13, 2003, at 16:49:35
In reply to questions abt. natural supplement interactions, posted by bookgurl99 on July 11, 2003, at 0:36:54
> To combat migraine, I currently take a prescription med, verapamil, 30 mgs x 3.
>
> Due to recommendations from "Health Notes," I'm also looking into taking 5-HTP, 200 mgs daily; 5 mgs of melatonin daily, and 400 mgs B2(Riboflavin) daily -- all in an effort to reduce the frequency and severity of the migraines. (Last one still affecting me over a week later.)This is in addition to supplemental calcium and magnesium, evening primrose oil, and some omega-3's.
>
> Would I need to fear the effects from combining all of these substances?Besides just the fact that i don't trust what immediate precursors like 5-HTP do when taken on a long-term basis (so much research has been done on L-dopa long-term use dramatically reducing dopamine synthesis, to the point that L-dopa in any dose no longer works at all, that it has made me quite leery)... taking 5-HTP would be counterproductive to what the verapamil is doing for you, it has been pretty well established (see studies on Medline for references if you want them) that part of how verapamil works against migraine is by inhibiting serotonin release... also, 5-HTP when taken without the prescription drug carbidopa (which is not available in a form that is not compounded with another drug) will form most of its serotonin in the peripheral tissues, which will lead to vasoconstriction and inflammation which will make migraine worse in the long run. It is only supposed to be used as an acute treatment, in lieu of triptan drugs, for that reason.
That much melatonin is just asking for trouble. If you look at what supplementation of other hormones outside of physiological doses does to people, you would see where the concern would lie (examples that come readily to mind are cortisol, hydrocortisone, and prednisone for inflammation, anabolic steroids for body building, and thyroid hormone for anoretics trying to lose weight)... so if you want to try melatonin, i would suggest you stick within the physiological dose range rather than the pharmaceutical, which is 300 micrograms in a sustained-release capsule. 1mg doses in sublingual tablets have been used, but not well studied, for both pain-management and aid to sleep to end an acute attack, but safety and efficacy studies are lacking.
If you decide to use high doses of supplemental magnesium, you may wish to monitor pulse and blood pressure because Mg2+ is also a calcium-channel blocker like verapamil.
Have you tried Depacon for acute treatment (the intravenous form of Depakote)? It is supposedly quite effective (even though oral depakote is not) and safe so long as you are not taking Lamictal. That way, you would be covered in case your migraine also has an epileptic component, as well.
As you have mentioned that your doc thinks your migraines may have an epileptic component, you may wish trying out ommission of evening primrose oil, as it is pro-convulsant.
~AA
poster:avid abulia
thread:240805
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030708/msgs/241522.html