Back in March (!), after receiving many reader queries about my current supplement regimen, I began writing a “supplement” post…But then, between one thing and another, I never finished it. Since then, though, I’ve received even MORE requests from even MORE readers on the same topic. So today I picked up my draft and finished it. Here goes, for what it’s worth…
Oh wait, first, I would like to note that I take only the C3 Complex curcumin, that is, the curcumin that has been used in all the MM, SMM and MGUS trials. I disregard and am suspicious of any and all brands that claim to have the highest curcumin bioavailability possible (these claims are usually based on company-sponsored studies, blablabla). With one possible exception: I am very curious to try the Meriva curcumin (but I have not, so far…some day, though…).
Point is: I take ONLY what has worked for me all these years, as follows.,..
- Doctor’s Best C3 Complex curcumin, 500 mg capsules, with bioperine. My dose: four grams a day. I order it online from various sites (whichever one happens to be the cheapest, as long as it’s a reliable one…usually Amazon or Vitacost). If I run out of the 500 mg capsules, which I prefer for various reasons, I substitute them with the Doctor’s Best C3 Complex one-gram tablets (4 of these = 4 grams of curcumin, which is an advantage over the capsules, for sure).
- Doctors Purest C3 Complex curcumin, 500 mg capsules. My dose: four grams a day. I order it from Ageless Cures. Important note: it doesn’t contain the black pepper extract (= bioperine).
- This is sort of an aside, but I sometimes substitute the above type (point no.2) with Doctors Purest Boswellin + Curcumin (which I order from the same site, Ageless Cures), which does contain bioperine. However, in addition to performing other good deeds, boswellic acid has been shown to block one of myeloma’s main survival pathways (STAT3) — you can do a search of my blog for more information on boswellic acid. So I figure that boswellin plus curcumin should be a double whammy for my myeloma cells. [Yeah, I know, it’s bloody expensive…but each caplet contains 700 mg of C3 Complex curcumin, so you don’t need as many of these caplets to reach your daily goal.]
- Vitacost’s quercetin with bromelain, 250 capsules. My dose: one and a half grams a day. If you buy this brand and decide to take the dose I take, all you need are six capsules a day.
- I also plan to resume taking fish oil. Soon. I take the Vitacost brand, the Mega EFA and DHA “softgel” type. I stopped taking it simply because I ran out of it, but I now have a new bottle. And I also plan to resume taking ashwagandha as soon as my current experiment — see below — ends.
*Note: I’ve also tested Vitacost’s NSI curcumin, the one with C3 Complex, with bioperine. As I recall, the NSI capsules were a bit larger than the Doctor’s Best ones, and they had a bit of a stronger scent, so I stopped taking them. If those two things don’t bother you, though, then go right ahead. And perhaps they have improved, over the years.
Current test: Nutrigold’s Guggul Gold, 350 mg per capsule…I am taking the recommended dose on the bottle. You can order it from various online sources. This is a test, of course, so if it doesn’t work, I won’t be taking it again.
To sum things up: I take EIGHT grams of curcumin a day…4 grams with bioperine, 4 without bioperine (unless I am taking the boswellin-curcumin-bioperine caplets, of course).
I have a final disclaimer: I am not connected in any way, financial or otherwise, to any of these brands or companies (or to ANY brands or companies at all, for that matter). During my blogging career, I have received “freebie” offers for this and that supplement, that is true…but I ignore them or turn them down on this basis: if I can’t afford it, I won’t take it. Perhaps I’m being silly, but that’s my policy. I like my independence!
Okay. I think that’s about it, folks! 🙂
Thanks for the update! Do you take the supplements all in one go? Morning, evening, on an empty stomach?
Hi Michelle, that depends on my schedule, which can get quite busy at times. If I have time, I take a half dose at lunch, then a half around dinnertime. Since I’ve been taking curcumin for such a long time, I don’t bother much with empty vs full stomach anymore, especially if I’m having a spicy Indian meal, in which case I definitely wait to take my curcumin with food. Hope this helps! 🙂
Hi Margaret, I take every day about the same dose of 3.6 grams of curcumin with piperine and 3.6 grams without piperine along with fish oil and some, but not every day, vitamin D3 an K2 (K2 MK-7). I take the curcumin in the evening just after dinner. In the morning I take inositol (1 capsule) and ip6 (3 capsules). A few times a week, i take Q10 and black cumin. Still stable, for five years. 🙂
thank you so much Margaret for your Regime Update. I am taking Thorne Research Meriva-500 now, is anyone else taking this supplement?
Hi Margaret
Thank you for telling us what supplements you are taking. I’ve been reading your blogs off and on for quite a few years now. I had MGUS for ten years(diagnosed at 35) and now have smouldering myeloma. My recent diagnosis was found when my free light chains went up to 2200. So my haematologist requested a BMB. Ten years ago my BM plasma cells were 5% now they are 30%
What was very interesting was that when my FLC results went up, was when I ran out of cucurmin! They were
2200!! so I went straight back onto them and my next flc results were 1000! I asked the haematologist if that sometimes happens and he said no. So now I will keep taking them.
Thank you Margaret
Hi julie, what dose do you take of curcumin? And how often were your flcs tested? Was there a sudden increase, or a gradual rise to get to 2200? By the way there is a very active smoldering facebook group…..
Michelle, could you please tell me how to get hooked up with the Smoldering Myeloma facebook page…..diagnosed about a month ago and need all the support I can get. Also, my email is available to anyone who cares to contact me… purplelym@q.com …Thank you!!!
My name is phil, i living in brussel , thank you margaret,I write you because my whife, 33 years have amyloidosis al cardiac light chains! she have 4 cycles cybord, she have neuropathy and she stopped chimiotherapy.Now, 2 months after , she have pain in the leggs, oncolog give morpphin but she Dont like. We thing take hemp oil from rick Simpson .She take curcumin bioperine 1200mg resverastrol active trans 300mg indole3carbinol 200mg quercetin 1500mg bromelain 750mg genistein soy complex 2 tablets propolis 1000mg moducare 3 tablets ubiquinol 300mg egcg green tea omega 3 fish 400mg phycocyanin the morniNg 20,5mg noni juice 30ml morning iron and 3600ui d vitamiShe dont take ip6, i go by it, everyting is better than cybord. 3 times she was dead
, what you thing from my natural therapy , thank youBest regardsPhil bruxelles
Hi Michelle,
I have been taking 1000 mg turmeric (providing 95% curcumin), 1000 mg flaxseed or krill oil and I have just started taking 2 Pomi T, which contains broccoli powder 150 mg, Turmeric 150 mg, Pomegranate 150 mg Green Tea 150 mg. So total Turmeric 1300 mg.
I am thinking of increasing it and have just purchased some Doctors best curcumin C3 with bioperine but I’m not sure how much I should increase it to.
Hi Margaret,
Hope you are doing well. Wanted to let you know that the Curcumin and IP6/Inositol regimen I am taking is working.
I was diagnosed with MGUS a almost years ago.
I have been taking
4- Doctor’s Best Curcumin C3 complex 1000mg a day
8 tables of Cell Forte IP6/Inositol (800mg each of Inositol) a day
1 200mcg Selenium
1 500mg of vitamin C.
One year later the blood marker that showed I have an issue has been drastically reduced. My globulin level was 3.9 which led to the diagnosis of MGUS (after bunches of other blood tests and a bone marrow biopsy.) My latest globulin level was 2.8 which was well below the upper limit of 3.8.
My IGM numbers are as follows (started taking above regimen roughly Dec 2014)
3/1/2013 733
10/4/2013 760
3/12/2014 714
10/10/2014 663
Upper limit is 300 so it is still above limit but as you can see it is coming down.
Hope this helps someone.
I am reducing the IP6 to 4 pills a day because they are harder to take.
Sorry – started taking the above regimen roughly Dec 2013. Not 2014. Before that I started taking what TAB was taking as soon as I found out I had MGUS. That regimen started slowing the increase of IGM and lowered the globulins.
Hi Maragret,
I was wondering what the rational was behind 4g of cumin with AND 4g without bioperine? My understanding is bioperine facilitates absorption, so why 4g without?
Thanks!
Hi Margaret,
Your blog is very interesting and helpful. It gives me hope about my mom who has been diagnosed with MM and it’s at the edge of stage 1.
We are going to start curcumin protocol and see from 8 weeks.
Have you tried Essiac tea?
God bless you!
Hello Margeret,
Your blog is very interesting.
I wanted to ask is your curcumin regimen still 8grams a day, 4 grams with bioperine and 4 grams without.
I cannot see another blog from you to confirm this.
My mum has myeloma. We are now trying the curcumin regimen.
Thank you so much
Meera
Hi Margaret,
I was diagnosed as SMM in March, IgG Kappa. I’ve been taking Dr.’s Best with Bioperine at 4 grams a day, and recently because my MSpike is going up, I increased it to 6 grams a day. (Over 3 and my doc is threatening to start treatment. While I appreciate his eye on all this, I don’t want to go down that road just yet).
I noticed you referenced that Dr’s Best was used in the studies. How did you confirm this? We’ve been trying to find this information, and this is the only place I actually could find a mention.
Thanks, and keep smoldering! (This blog/website has made me feel less alone in this. I appreciate you and everyone here so much!)
Also, does anyone here have any tips on stress reduction? I firmly believe that the 2 years leading up to the diagnosis tipped me over the edge.
Kim
I take Doctor’s Best curcumin because it uses the C3 Complex curcumin used in all the patient studies you mention. There are other brands that use C3 Complex, which is manufactured by a company called Sabinsa Corp. I chose D. Best, as opposed to other brands, also because it was tested by Consumer Lab a number of years ago, and found to be OK. And because it was a bit cheaper, too.
I hope the matter is clear now.
Keep your eye on CRAB symptoms. No CRAB, no treatment, that’s my motto! Of course, it’s JMO! 🙂
Thanks Margaret for the info on the C3 Complex!
It’s been a rough few weeks at work as well, as evidenced by my responding thanks just now. I firmly believe that stress has furthered what has probably been MGUS or smoldering for years. My M spike was 2.3 in March, 2.4 in May, and 2.78 in August – so I’m trying to isolate what’s different. The two elements I can quantify to some degree are stress and exercise, or lack of it. I live in Florida, and it’s been ungodly hot here so I’ve been avoiding the walking I was so studiously doing earlier in the year.
I went walking again today anyway, better to walk and sweat so I can keep smoldering hahaha!!! (That just sounds so ODD!!)
I have been taking 6 grams a day of Dr. Best’s and my values are improving. Now I switched to CuraMed by Terry’s Natural and will see how I am doing in a year. I only have MGUS, so I only go once a year for blood tests. For stress reduction I take Ashwagandha. Works great. I also went gluten and lectin free and my oncologist agreed with me that there is definitely an autoimmune response with MGUS.
Stress reduction is key. Say yes to things you want to do and no to things you don’t want to do. Sounds simple, but this is the essense. Be aware on how you spend your time. Spend time outside in nature, go for a walk, sit on the beach, meditate, go to yoga. I go to yoga and meditation classes combined, and that is really good. Have fun and enjoy yourself.
I switched from Dr. Best’s to Curamed (BCM95) just to see if there is a difference, but the price is so much higher. What do you think Margaret, have you heard of Curamed?
Hi Beatrice, I’ve heard of it and read about it but never tried it. Please let me know how you do on it! Thanks! 🙂