# why vit c?



## kirsty s (Jun 12, 2006)

hi girls 

pls could you tell me why you all take vit c? and would i benefit from it?


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## sarahstewart (Aug 4, 2005)

kirsty have a look at this link........

http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,60065.0.html


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## kirsty s (Jun 12, 2006)

thanks sarahstewart had a quick look, think that i will try it, but just the normal dose


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## melanie_1983 (Apr 14, 2006)

After reading this article the other day, i am now taking a vitamin C supplement. Even though i am having a little break at the moment, my lining is very thin. I think this is due to having 12 months of Clomid, so i am trying to get it a little thicker for whatever my specialist suggests next.

Melanie xx


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi

I've seen alot of posts recently about vitamin C and clomid & although I certainly don't profess to be an expert just thought I'd put my bit in...

Vitamin c is an antioxident & although no really significant research, it does seem that women with LP defects or recurrent mc's may have lower levels.  Too much vitamin C (over the recommended doseage) may also hinder implantation by blocking the production of progesterone which is essential for sustaining early pregnancy before placenta takes over.

I've always taken Zinc with vitamin C (such as Sanatogen) as zinc is good for egg quality (and despite DP having good swimmers he also takes)...

Selenium is another anti oxident which is not only good for production of healthy sperm but also promotes a healthy womb lining.

When taking any supplements you need to be aware that your daily intake of food/drink will also contain those or similar supplements...and its not always a good thing to OD on supplements as some many counteract or react with others ...some may work together, some may work against or interfere with one another...thats why there are many "off the shelf" supplements such as Pregnacare or Sanatogen as they generally give the right "standard" amounts required.

As I say, I'm definitely no expert but many people are aware of the effects of herbal remedies etc but should also be cautious about taking too many vitamins and minerals in the form of supplements...

I'm not saying I don't take extra supplements cos I do, but please just research and if any doubt then ask your consultant (which is what we did)

I take Sanatogen (recently changed from Pregnacare)
Zinc with extra vit C
Coenzyme Q10 with vit E
"Apimist" ("honey" with royal jelly, bee pollen & bee propolis)

I used to also take Evening Primrose Oil with starflower (until 2ww) and Flaxseed Oil - only stopped cos realised taking way too many pills each night & was rattling !!!
Also took selenium with vits a,c,e (should ensure that the vit a is from vegetable - betacarotene and not from animal - retinol) but I also stopped this for same reasons as soon as I started ivf !

DP takes Wellman as well as the same selenium, zinc & coenzyme.

When we had our ivf, the embryologist and consultant said that we had really good egg and sperm quality and we got 6 x grade 1 embryos so must've been doing something right !!

I appreciate that we're not exactly a completely positive example as we're yet to sustain a pregnancy but this is cos of other factors...when it comes to womb lining (and again, despite me having blood clotting disorders) my womb lining has always been very healthy for implantation and our embies are top quality.

Anyway, sure I've written enough...I'm certainly not saying do as I do & I know many will disagree...its all personal choice at the end of the day but what I would say is please read, research and if not sure then confirm with someone qualified before OD'ing on supplements....although they really can help if used correctly !!  One of the many books I've read is Marilyn Glenvilles Increase Your Chances of Conceiving and Preventing Miscarriage which lists her recommended quantities of vits & minerals.

Good luck
Natasha


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## soozeee (Jan 25, 2005)

Hi Minxy, 
Thanks for all that info! 
Just wondered what prompted the change from pregnacare to Sanatogen?
Suze
x


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi Suze

No real reason to be honest !  Just been taking Pregnacare for years & decided to change !!  Although saying that, Pregnacare contains vit K which is a blood clotting vitamin (coagulent) & I have to take anticoagulents - baby aspirin and also clexane cos of blood clotting disorders (antiphospholipid syndrome and low activated protein c) so my blood clots too much, too easily so I don't really need any extra vit K !!  Although consultant said the amount of vitamin K in Pregnacare was only small & shouldn't cause any problems I just thought I'd give it a go trying another Prenatal supplement that didn't have it in.

Good luck
Natasha


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## cruelladeville (Mar 13, 2006)

HI
Just wanted to add (nothing to do with Vit C, though) something....after my IUI my consultant said I must take 3 folic acid tabs a day (instead of the usual 1 or the pregnacare tablet) as there may have been 3 fertilised eggs and 1 folic acid tablet wouldn't be enough.  I never would have thought to increase the dose according to the fact that there could be more than 1 egg fertilising.  Quite interesting....


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## flowerpot (Jan 20, 2005)

Hi Natasha

Can I ask where you get Apimist from please?  i've heard having bee pollen etc is good for implantation?  thanks hun hope you are ok xxx


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## mads (Feb 20, 2006)

Oh my God, great to hear others talking about 'Apimist' as me and DH have just started taking 100% pure bee pollen - 1 spoonful over the cereal in the morning. This, I bought through Apitherapy who do the 'Apimist' ( honey - see Natasha's note ) following seeing a psychic ( yeah I know it sounds a bit dodgy ) as all she kept telling me was that I need to be drinking more milk and taking honey. She herself wasn't sure what this meant and advised I look up trying to conceive and milk / honey on the net and the first site to come up was the Apitherapy website. I rang them up, explained about our ttc and what the psychic had said and they suggested that me and DH take this bee pollen ( like granules, gross at first but grows on you ) every day. Apparently some women have fallen pregnant after taking it for just 1 month and most women after 3 months !!!!! It apparently improves the quality of the egg and the sperm. Have been taking it for about a month now so will let u know. Cannot remember their exact website address but if u just type in trying to conceive and honey, it should come up. It's not that expensive either - costs on website. Just great to hear others talking about it cause no ones heard of it who I've spoken to!

Mads xxx


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## MrsS03 (May 23, 2006)

hi there, where do you get Wellman vitamins from? I was buying the tesco's ones but wondered if there was another brand?

Thanks, 
xxx


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi

The website for Apimist is....

http://www.apitherapy.biz/apimist.html

Its quite expensive at around £20 per pot but in the grand scheme of things its a small price to pay !!

I've no idea if it directly helped or a combination of the other supplements we take although I only had one spoonful of the "honey" a day as DP can't stand honey !!!!

I've never heard of upping dose of folic acid regards how many eggs released...sometimes I release more than one egg a month naturally (according to consultant) & when on clomid I released 2 or 3 every month and obviously during ivf I had loads more and had 2 embies put back. Personally I think this a little strange as in theory that would mean you should up dose of everything !!! Folic acid is to help with the development of the foetus and help prevent neurological conditions (defects of brain & spinal cord)...I don't see how if you release 3 eggs that it would help anymore by doubling or trippling the dose  Just my opinion but I'd be interested to see any more info on this as otherwise, why are those ladies having twins, triplets etc told to increase their intake  I would just try to ensure that your daily diet contains folic acid & take a supplement on top of that...eg spinach, broccoli, asparagus, peppers, lentils, beans etc....

You can get Wellman vits from anywhere - we've bought them in Sainsburys, Boots...wherever really !

Good luck
Natasha


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## flowerpot (Jan 20, 2005)

thanks for the info!

MrsS they sell them in boots and quite often have 3 for 2 offers on them as well.  Most the supermarkets have their own brand although my asda doesnt seem to stock it.

I've found selenium tablets but its got Vit A in which I gather we shouldnt have a lot of but assume its ok for dh to take?

xxxx


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi Flower  

Its the vitamin A from meat (retinol) that should be avoided but vitamin A from vegetables (betacarotene) is ok...although don't overdo it !!!

Take care
Natasha x


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## MrsS03 (May 23, 2006)

Thanks, I looked in Boots at lunchtime but couldn't find any...obviously being blonde and being CD1 very dizzy...


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## flowerpot (Jan 20, 2005)

thankyou Natasha   dont know which would be in the selinium + vit A then, I'll avoid it and feed them to dh instead 

Just looked on the pollen site, how do you eat it, with cereal or something?  

MrsS - you can get them on line if you dont mind online shopping xxx


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Flower...it should say on the back of the jar where the vit A is from...the ones we got (selenium with vits a,c,e) had vit A from betacarotene.

I just ate a teaspoonful of the honey straight up but you could add it to smoothies or cereal...can't use in hot drinks though.

Gotta go as just come out of meeting & wanna leave early so can watch the footie !!!

Take care
Natasha x


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## cruelladeville (Mar 13, 2006)

Minxy

I really don't know the reason behind his thinking in wanting me to take 3X the amount of folic acid (I suppose he knows for a fact that there are 2 viable eggs and possibly a third hence tripling the dose) but he is a Professor in Reproductive Medicine so let's assume that he knows what he's talking about!!


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## Rosie P (Nov 10, 2005)

Minxy said:


> Hi
> 
> I've seen alot of posts recently about vitamin C and clomid & although I certainly don't profess to be an expert just thought I'd put my bit in...
> 
> Vitamin c is an antioxident & although no really significant research, it does seem that women with LP defects or recurrent mc's may have lower levels. Too much vitamin C (over the recommended doseage) may also hinder implantation by blocking the production of progesterone which is essential for sustaining early pregnancy before placenta takes over.


Hi. I also have the Marilyn Glenville book and follow her recommendations for infertility (and also add in some of the things for PCOS sufferers from her website), however I'm concerned about too much vit c hindering the chance of implantation. Is anything under 100mg ok?

Also, Minxy you mention that you can't use the honey in hot drinks, please could you explain why (I'm new to the benefits of honey) and love warm milk and honey?

Also (sorry for so many q's), does anyone know if you can take chromium (as recommended by Marilyn Glenville for PCOS sufferers) with clomid and metformin? I tried to ask my consultant questions about supplements and he just spouted that 'there is no medical evidence that they have any benefits for ttc......blah, blah', but I'm a believer!

Thank you.

Rosie. x


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## b3ndy (Sep 13, 2005)

Hi Rosie

don't know the answers to all your questions but don't think you can take chromium if you're on clomid..sure I read it somewhere on here....best people to ask would be witchie poo cat or kerryB who both take it.


S
xx


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## strawbs (May 16, 2005)

I don't like the fact vit c hinders implantation, is this true??  I have recently increased my vit c dose to 2000mg per day as this is what I had read had been recommended.  I do normally stop the vit c around day 16-I do not ov until day 21 so would this high dose of vit c early in the cycle affect implantation??  So much advice it is so hard to know what to do for the best.

Thanks strawbs xxx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Vitimin C (asorbic acid) doses higher than the RDA (40mg) may affect progesterone development.

Progesterone converts the endometrium to its secretory stage to prepare the uterus for implantation.

The FSA state that upto 1000mg per day *should not* harm.

http://www.eatwell.gov.uk/healthydiet/nutritionessentials/vitaminsandminerals/vitaminc/


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## Rosie P (Nov 10, 2005)

Blimey that's worrying, there's 100mg in Sanatogen ProNatal alone (and I take selenium with A, C - 100mg & E), so this could well affect my progesterone development. It's quite worrying really as I have a short leutal phase as it is.

Rosie. x


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi

Just a quick reply regards the "not taking honey in hot drinks"....I didn't say don't take "normal" honey in hot drinks, I said you can't use Apimist "honey" in hot drinks !!  Apimist is a special "honey" which as mentioned, also has Bee Pollen, Bee Propolis and Royal Jelly and it specifically says on the jar not to be used in hot drinks, I'm assuming because the ingredients may separate - no idea to be honest !!



If you have concerns about what doses of supplements etc to take then I would advice you speak to your consultant or fertility nurse...or if they can't help then you may find a professional herbalist will be able to help you.

We double checked with our consultant, especially during ivf and when on clomid but tend do use the recommendations in Marilyn Glenvilles book (I don't have Zita West but she may also have recommended supplements with their doses).

Good luck
Natasha


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## Rosie P (Nov 10, 2005)

Ahhhh, I see. Thanks Natasha. I did have a look at the Aptimist site, but there wasn't really anything on there about enhancing fertility. What exactly does the pollen do? Sorry to be so clueless, but it's new to me.

As my consultant doesn't really believe in taking supplements, I may be best emailing Marilyn Glenville's website (again  ) with that particular query. Marilyn's book/ website recommends 1000mg per day, so I'll let everyone know on here if I get a response from them.

Rosie. x


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## ophelia (Sep 27, 2005)

Hi girls!
Sorry to gate crash your thread but I'm really interested in that Apimist stuff.
I took Royal Jelly capsules leading up to my last ICSI attempt but didn't dare take them after my ET cos the nurses said they couldn't garantee it was safe during pregnancy. My question is: can you still take Royal Jelly and Apimist when you are pregnant?
Also at £10 for 30 capsules ( a months supply) it's quite expensive. So I wonder if Aptimist is better value for money at £20 a pot? How long will it last?

In my Gillian Mckieth book " you are what you eat" she says about Royal Jelly: " I prescribe royal jelly for patients wanting to conceive a baby. And boy has that been successful!" 

That's why I started to take it but like I said I only took it leading up to egg collection and then stopped. Would love to know if I could still take it if I would become pregnant again? I did become pregnant but sadly had a mc about 2 weeks ago.

Also do you order Apimist from their web site?

Thanks  and love from Ophelia


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## ☼♥ Minxy ♥☼ © (Jan 13, 2005)

Hi Ophelia

I've no idea whether you can take Apimist when pregnant I'm afraid - I think its best to speak to your GP or consultant when taking any supplements when pg or breastfeeding (unless specifically for use when pg eg Pregnacare)

If you check out the Apitherapy website you'll find lots of info including scientific papers.

The pot lasts about a month so is more expensive than the capsules you're currently buying.

You can only buy Apimist online from Apitherapy (I think other websites may sell it but those still obtain from Apitherapy).

Good luck
Natasha


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