Natural Remedies for Neuropathy: Holistic & Nutritional

R-Alpha Lipoic acid is one of the best supplements for neuropathy.

Lugel's Iodine is the best and most potent...be mindful it requires very little!

That's a low dose for pain.. most use 1000mg/day just for energy. For liver disease 800-1600/day. For chronic pain ... I've read 2000-3000mg/day. Should be broken down 2-3 times a day ... 30 min before meals.

Each person has a different reaction when taking meds or supplements.

at best trial and error.

How much CoQ10 to replinish after taking Atenolol?

Thanks for the information about alpha lipoic acid, I thought it was just me. I have heart problems as well as NP, so that is good to know.

My physician said Neuropathy was incurable. Mega doses of Lipoic Acid; intensive Reflexology; and daily rubbing feet with Cannabis cream reduced problem to 5% remaining. I also roll my feet on a plastic sphere and jump on a 32" trampoline for 5 minutes. I'm walking normally now.

I have been suffering from heel pain and burning on the tops of my feet for months. The pain is especially bad when I first get out of bed in the morning, after a full day of being on them, or even after resting in my recliner and I get up to walk. I went to the doctor and he did blood work panels that didn't reveal anything. He had me doing stretching exercises and no relief in sight. I tried chiropractic and she suggested I take vitamin b complex, which I started about a week ago. This morning I read about apple cider vinegar cures and I thought I'd give it a try. What would I have to lose except this pain and suffering I've had for months? I took a cotton ball and put ACV on it and rubbed it over the tops of my feet and the heels after my shower this morning and this was the best day I've had in a very long time being almost pain free. Tonight, I repeated the cotton ball application of ACV to the tops of my feet and heels. It is instant relief! I am going to continue doing this treatment as long as it takes to be pain free!

High serum B12 can be caused by a functional B12 deficiency. In that condition, there is enough B12 in the body, but the cells are not able to use it properly, so they export it back to the blood, and it builds up.

Are we talking about the iodine we buy at the drug store? Like for a cut?

Liz,

How long did it take for the alpha lipoic acid to work? Also how much did you take a day?

Digestive enzymes will help absorb. I started them because of the lack of acid in my stomach. You might try them. All the best to you.

Once I eliminated ALL caffeine from my diet, my hands and feet felt so much better. (numbness and pain went completely away.) I am apparently allergic to caffeine...and I didn't find out until I as 50 years old and a lot of trial and error.

Keep looking, it could just be something in your diet.

R-alpha lipoic acid is the best form to use. Alpha lipoic acid has both S & R. R is produced naturally in the body and S is not.

I did use alpha lipoic acid for a short time 5 years ago and my neuropathy in my legs went TOTALLY, TOTALLY away! I think I may have been taking 600mg then but I cannot remember. I am going to start taking it again within a week because after 5 years absent I am developing neuropathy again in my leg. Is it possible if I could hear of different dosages taken by others and their results?

B6 people!!! B6 toxicity is happening in small amounts all over the world!!

About a month ago I came down with the flu so I didn't take most of my supplements until I got better including grapeseed extract (not grapefruit seed) While I was off of the supplements I noticed that my legs were very painful because I take Alpha Lipoic Acid for my neuropathy. Anyways, I started taking the Grapeseed extract again only 2 - 100 mg capsules in the morning and right away the pain went away. IF anyone has neuropathy pain you might want to try the grapeseed extract for the pain. Please let me know if it helps.

I had PN BAD in both feet. After several tests doc told me to stop the B vitamins. B6 in excess can cause PN. I quit the B vitamins and started taking Benfotiamine and after a month my feel are returning to normal! I can finally feel my feet and the tingling is almost gone. Thank goodness!!!!

Some people cannot metabolize B6 efficiently. I'd quit taking them asap.

Finally! My feet are returning back to normal. Getting off the B vitamins helped within a months time. Started taking Benfotiamine, a lipid-soluble form of thiamine (vitamin B-1). I have been taking if for about 3 weeks, 600 Mils, a day. I now have feeling in my feet again!

WARNING!

I got Peripheral Neuropathy from an overdose of B vitamins! Be careful with them. They really messed me up. Vitamin B has been said to help with PN but if you get too much it can cause it. The tingling I was feeling was from too much Niacin also. Called the Niacin flush. Doc told me to go off of B supplements and within a few days my zapping was gone. It's been 2 weeks off of them now and all has recovered except I still have a thick feeling in the balls of my feet. I am now trying the ALA remedy and so far it is helping but it could be also that I am not on the B supplement anymore.

Hi every one at EC.

It's been a good 2 years since I started taking R factor ALA and said it didn't seem to be working that well. Was I ever wrong, It is a fact that the R-ALA does not work that good for me and that the people at the health food store told me that the R- ALA has a left spin on it, HUH.

Since then I found the R+ALA and life would be hell without it. I have been taking 200mg of the R+ALA by Prairie Naturals for about 2 years now and the difference is outstanding. The ingerdients are, Microcrystaline cellulose, Silicone dioxide, magnesium sterate in a vegetable capsule.

As I sit here typing I can feel the effects of my third dose for the evening giving me relief from a very bad attack. The Peripheral Neuropathy when acting up makes my right side mostly feel a lot of pressure in my leg and my feet feel tingly and have pressure on top where my foot feels like it has a tight shackle on it. My knee also feels a hot pressure above the knee cap on both knees but moree on the right side. Many nights I have sat up with a cold towel on my knees for relief from this condition. My doc knows about this and tells me to take it as needed.

I do find that my urine smells like amonia if I take to much.

I have type 2 diabetes and find it to be the problem for this Peripheral Neuropathy, also diagnosed about 2 years ago. I find that Cinnamon helps to control it and I don't take meds for it and avoid sugar at all costs.

Now on my bad days which I find some foods make it worse like today. So I start with 2 v caps of 200mg each right after supper. Then about 8pm I have another 2 caps. The pain starts to ease but then returns. 9pm I take another 2 caps, and then at 9:30pm another 2 caps. So that's a total of 1600mg in about 3.5 hours not to mention my regular 2 caps after lunch. That is on a bad day and for prevention I take it noon and supper at 2 caps per meal.

So in closing I am relieved that R+ALA seems to work well for me.

Hello Rae H:

On the issue of neuropathy .... I've used AEP (a phosphate). Google "Calcium AEP Nutrition Review" for so many of the benefits of AEP I sometimes use AEP at 4 to 6 a day to help flare ups. Dr. Robert Adkins used AEP in IVs with his MS patients (see Vita Nutrients, the book, written by Dr. Adkins).

I have suffered with neuropathy for about three years and it has become progressively worse within a short time. I do a lot of independent research mostly because it seems the professional community is not aggressive or energetic enough to pursue explanation or core reasons for having this incredible pain and debilitating medical condition. I do see a neurologist and he prescribes the usual lyrica, metanx (prescription type multi-vitamin), pain meds, encourages alpha-lipoic acid, panthenogenic acid (correct spelling?). Not much relief and has recently become much harder to manage the pain. He has prescribed lido-Caine patches and those are very helpful. Non-addictive and no side effects. Just a route to try. Folks that have this condition I find to be desperate for any kind of relief. I know I am.

Alpha Lipoic Acid is wonderful for neuropathy. It virtually eliminated mine.

I know that mentioning brand names is discouraged here, but I think I've been around long enough that EC knows I'm not 'pimping' anything, so I'll give it a shot. :)

I used to take Trader Joe's brand (100 mg capsules). They were inexpensive and effective!

I said that I 'used to' take them, because after approximately 6-9 months of my feet feeling 100% better, I stopped taking them (one less supplement to pay for and one less to gulp-down every day) and they've remained fine. It's been over a year!

I hope others try it and find that it works equally well for them.

I like the idea about using Carnitine for neuropathy. But, I think you should try taking virgin plant oils rather than a fish oil supplement. Eating fish, including sardines is a good way to get fish oil. Fish oil capsules have a highly refined/distilled derivative of omegas. They might actually result in negative health problems-including cardiovascular problems such as high blood pressure and arrhythmias. Cold pressed Hemp oil is a perfect blend of 3-6-9 and GLA, plus all amino acids and protein. Read Dr. Rowens"The PEO Solution" for the in-depth research on the subject.

Hi Mark, I hope you are feeling much better now after several years.

I know I'm a bit late in the game and I don't know if I am quoting something that I shouldn't be from the web but it comes from world-renowned Dr. Russell Blaylock who is a retired neurosurgeon. He found some success in treating P.N. with L-Theanine in higher doses. I quote him: "I tried L-theanine, a natural substance isolated from green tea, on a person suffering with unrelieved, intense postherpetic pain (which sometimes follows a shingles infection). By the next day, my patient dramatically improved and by the second day showed 90 percent improvement."

"L-theanine is a mild stimulant for glutamate receptors and keeps glutamate from full activation, which acts to tame excitotoxicity. L-theanine has a good safety profile, even in very high doses.

Suggested dose: 200 mg three times a day, 30 minutes before meals. It can also be increased to 400 mg three times a day if needed.

L-theanine is also helpful with sleep and reduces anxiety/depression. Combined with other anti-inflammatory flavonoid supplements such as curcumin, quercetin, resveratrol, luteolin, hesperidin and ellagic acid, the results can be even better."

God bless,

JT

WARNING!

Another update. I recently had surgery to remove the right lobe of my liver. This was due to matastatic colon cancer and as a result my blood pressure has gone up resulting in other problems including reduced energy and increased neuropathic pain. I noticed that when I had something sweet to eat like jam, cake, candy, etcetera that the neuropathic pain was reduced substantially so I started experimenting. When doing anything slightly strenuous my blood pressure and sugar would drop and my pulse would go way up so the first thing I tried was leaving out the diamacron and metformin. This allowed the sugar to increase and gave me back my energy without my blood pressure and pulse being significantly affected, but the sugar went too high so I added the metformin back in. Big surprise!!!! The neuropathic pain went way down, more than eating something sweet made it go down. As a result I typed "diamacron" into google and clicked on "diamacron side effects" and found out that it causes neuropathic pain, conflicts with metformin, is not supposed to be used if you have liver problems, are having or recently had surgery. None of this was covered in the pharmacy information sheet I was provided. The warning is not about alpha lipoic acid, but rather it is about the diamacron prescription medication and what it does. Eliminating it has made a huge difference. I have not as yet tried the nicotine but will be soon. Al

AL: Glad to see you are using your brain to help work out these pressing issues. I am in a constant state of tweaking any treatment or therapy to maximize benefit and minimize harm.

Several months ago I also reported not reading some very critical info on Statin drugs that was not included in the fact sheet from pharmacy. Two items in particular is Statins can and do produce nerve damage resulting in neuropathy, and can and do (in a certain percentage of people) produce pulmonary fibrosis. Well, here I am already w/ both these conditions so I could only surmise a worsening; which was evident particularly in the neuropathy as I had the choice of continuing the medication (and even at 50 or more % lower prescribed dose) and going down from a cane to a walker to a wheelchair or discontinue.

There is lots of Cancer info here on E.C. for the cancer so I hope you can get exact on that and get well again. There are some good Youtube vids on self-applied Ozone for rectal administration.

As for the Neuropathy, there is some promising research lately on a natural nutrient, a nucleotide Inosine for rebuilding nerves which is helping in cases like Parkinson's.

WARNING!

Another update. I recently had surgery to remove the right lobe of my liver. This was due to matastatic colon cancer and as a result my blood pressure has gone up resulting in other problems including reduced energy and increased neuropathic pain. I noticed that when I had something sweet to eat like jam, cake, candy, etcetera that the neuropathic pain was reduced substantially so I started experimenting. When doing anything slightly strenuous my blood pressure and sugar would drop and my pulse would go way up so the first thing I tried was leaving out the diamacron and metformin. This allowed the sugar to increase and gave me back my energy without my blood pressure and pulse being significantly affected, but the sugar went too high so I added the metformin back in.

Big surprise!!!! The neuropathic pain went way down, more than eating something sweet made it go down. As a result I typed "diamacron" into google and clicked on "diamacron side effects" and found out that it causes neuropathic pain, conflicts with metformin, is not supposed to be used if you have liver problems, are having or recently had surgery. None of this was covered in the pharmacy information sheet I was provided. The warning is not about alpha lipoic acid, but rather it is about the diamacron prescription medication and what it does. Eliminating it has made a huge difference. I have not as yet tried the nicotine but will be soon. Al

I just received an email from a lady in the UK asking for an update and telling me that the last one was in 2013. I have been busy working long hours, sometimes over 340 hours in a month. The neuropathy is still improving, but extremely slowly. All I use for pain relief now is geranium oil, topically on my hands and forearms. It a natural anti inflammatory and has no known side effects. I still feel I am missing a nutrient or two to finish curing my neuropathy. I try everything that might help and am in the process of checking out one more nutrient with my doctor and hope to try it within a few days. If it helps I will give a further update and let you know what it is and how to use it. The posting I found it in quoted a medical journal entry from the 1840's. New is not always new and maybe old is better. Al

D: This is common condition called "herx" or "dieoff" reaction. The MSM is detoxing pathogens and dead tissue accumulated in your gallbladder and colon.

Advice is to continue at this small dose (when it's best to make it to the bathroom) and slowly increase the dose as you notice less discharge and lighter color.

If you can get up to 1 or 1.5 grm 3x per day that would be good progress and I don't recommend going above that, but instead take 1grm Vit-C w/ 1grm MSM 3x day which should be sufficient detox w/ only these two nutrients.

Additional remedies will be necessary to treat the hep-c or the condition will repeat unless you stay w/ the MSM/C. Here is a link to the E.C. hep-c page https://www.earthclinic.com/cures/hep_c.html

BETTER BUT WITH SIDE EFFECTS

I just started tasking MSM for my neuropathy pain at 1 gram at night before bed. (I've seen recommendations of 6-20 grams a day.) Coincidentally I just started having diarrhea and black stools. Hard to believe it's from that low dose. However, I do have hep-c..

Any suggestions would be welcomed.. I certainly will stop MSM for several days and see what the result is.

Thank you. BTW the MSM is the FIRST thing that has helped with my neuropathy pain.

Neuropathy:

FYI Stabilized R-ALA will likely be more effective than R-Alpha Lipoic Acid.

My mum had severe pain, pins and needles, numbing, throbbing and tingling in her feet whenever she would try to sleep for about 20 years. I wanted to help her, so I looked it up online and found that vitamin b1 would help. Within a few days of supplementing with 1 vitamin b1 100mg capsule daily her pain is gone and she sleeps much better.

Hi Diane...Normally, for women, you would take 1/8 tspn of borax in a liter of water and drink this liter of borax water throughout the day. You should take this remedy for 5 days and then have a rest from the protocol for at least 2 days in a cycle like that. For men, the dose should be 1/4 tspn borax in a liter of water.

If you wish to take a week's break from the borax protocol then that's also OK but when I used borax water for my own candida problems I took it on a 5 days on, 2 days off basis for 9 months without a break or a problem.

HI Bill, Thanks for the feedback with regard to borax and neuropathy...I would also like to know how one takes borax? I've read to take 1/8th teaspoon or 1/4 teaspoon. I've also read that you should take a break from it after 5 days and also after 3 days. I also read that you can take it for 3 weeks and then stop a week. Would like you opinion on this...Thank you much

Hi, Check out MMS and Jim Humble. I really think this can help and possibly cure your lyme's disease. Let me know if you try this.

Hi, Wow I am so sorry you have these side effects and all................... How did you get off the drugs if you did?

I too never read what I was taking nor questioned the doctor.... but now I read everything and question all and research... but if I do ask a doctor they just seem to say what they know and think is best but it appears it's trial and error and practicing medicine..and they rarely listen to their patients..

Hi Bill, Thank you again for your wonderful feedback. I indeed do now check before I take any drugs...

How much liquid kelp extract should I use or could I use Lugols iodine as a substitute? Or will the extra minerals in kelp help more than Lugols?

Three times I was prescribed drugs that would have put me in anaphylectic shock. I didn't recognize the name because the dr's used generic names which fooled me. My pharmacist caught it twice and I caught it once...AND the dr's have my records for things I am allergic to.

I'm wondering if Borax might help me as well? My shooting pains are throughout my entire body, even my eyes get needle stabs in the middle of the night. It started with cold extremities and now I have electric shocks, stabbing needle pains and terrible cramps in my legs and everywhere else...Right now I cannot move my toes as they cramp terribly and are turning black. 24/7 pain...I DO indeed thank you from the bottom of my heart. I would not know where else to turn to as my dr's said there's nothing else they can do.Much, much blessings.

Hi Diane...Both the Atenolol and the Cipro can cause neuropathies. Their many side effects are listed here and here on drugs.com and these lists are huge. Please notice that Atenolol can also cause cold hands and feet as well as racing heart. Cipro contains fluorine, a poison for the body, and fluorine depletes the thyroid of iodine -- which can also cause loss of energy, cold extremities, brain fog or pins and needles and a host of other problems.

Atenolol is a beta blocker that is supposed to slow down the heart beat but in many instances does exactly the opposite. Beta blockers just treat the symptoms, they do not cure the core reasons for heart problems.

I also have nothing good to say about Cipro, which is a fluoroquinolone antiobiotic that also also contains fluorine as well. Everyone knows my low opinion of anti-biotics, but taking an anti-biotic that contains fluorine as well will have even worse effects upon the body -- and to me this is completely crazy. I must also add that Cipro and other fluoroquinolone antibiotics have also been linked to severe liver and renal toxicity -- see this link. At a guess, I would say that that this liver and renal toxicity may well be at least be partially linked to the high fluorine content of this drug.

To get rid of the fluorine and to help with the cold extremities in your body I would take a liquid kelp extract on a daily basis. The thyroid controls the temperature and metabolic rate of the body, so if you improve the thyroid then you improve its ability to properly control body temperature at the extremities. Removing the fluorine will take a while because fluorine is normally absorbed and stored in the bones and teeth as well as in the glandular regions of the body.

Because of all the above reasons, I cannot exactly say with any certainty what has caused your neuropathy because, as well as Hep C itself being a cause, because there are too many other possible drug related side-effects that could also have caused it.

And the next time your doctor gives you any pills to take -- go straight to drugs.com and look up their side-effects and THEN decide whether you want to take the pills or not.

You may want to look into how these meds deplete necessary nutrients. A quick search turned up CoQ10 depletion from the atenolol and global B vitamin depletion as well as zinc from the Cipro.

CoQ10 depletion has been associated with statins and the very bad side effects many people suffer from them. You may want to see if any of the CoQ10 deficiency symptoms line up with yours, especially the ones that began after the atenolol. If not, cold extremities are a classic sign of iodine deficiency/hypothyroid.

The worsening of your viral infection (hepatitis) after the Cipro is interesting in light of the fact that your B vitamins may have been depleted because I do wonder how much the b's help us with viral defense, especially of herpes viruses, which travel on nerves.

Anyhoo, CoQ10 is easy to get as a supplement and you can get b vitamins through brewers yeast and liver or as supplements as well.

Bill, I was put on Atenolol in 2003 because my father had heart issues at my age-- big mistake on my part... I wound up with a resting pulse of 160 got horrendous cold extremities followed by a radio frequency cather ablation operation (4 1/2 hours)...They fixed my heart but I kept the terrible cold extremities which I never had before...Then in 2012 I had a respiratory infection and had TWO cycles of Cipro...then 6 months later I got stage 4 chirossis (I also have hep-c)...and my peripheral neuropathy came on terrible within a week of when I was diagnosed with stage 4 chirrosis...Would you hazzard a guess what the original cause of my neuropathy was so I may be able to address it...I have tried everything out there..Could the antibiotcs cause the neuropathy or maybe the Atenolol? Or the hep-c? Just looking for an educated guess as my doctors have no clue...thank you...again and again..

Hi Diane...Yes, for the most part, the peripheral neuropathy is caused by the Hep C. As I've said, modern medical research has no understanding of this form peripheral neuropathy caused by Hep C but Ted has stated that in certain cases of peripheral neuropathy the cause may be due to pathogenic infection -- usually of mycoplasma or fungal origin -- although I would not rule out viral infection as well. The Hep C neuropathy arises because of a heavily weakened liver, immune system and blood transport system which is ultimately caused by the Hep C virus. This allows poisons to accumulate in the blood due to an inefficient excretory system(liver). This also lowers the immune protection and makes cell oxygenation inefficient thus allowing other pathogens into the body to cause separate though related Hep C problems such as peripheral neuropathy, fatigue and joint pain.

Bill, Thank you...thank you...thank you...Man O man...I can't believe this Dr.didn't know this...I will send her the Google information so she can see for herself...I should say that this is not the first time I have been mis-informed by the medical community..Beware readers...They are not the Gods they think they are...

Lastly Bill...It it a safe assumption that if I get rid of hep-c, my poly peripheral neuropathy will go far away??? Here's hoping...and thank you again very very much...Blessings to you and your family...

Hi Diane...In a study published in the BMJ in 2003 it was found that varying degrees of peripheral neuropathy, in the form of cryoglobulinaemia, commonly occurred in patients with Hep C. They found that 40 of 51 Hepatitic C patients had this form of peripheral neuropathy.

Peripheral Neuropathy in Hepatitis C

Although the numbers may vary, if you type "Hepatitis C neuropathy" in Google Search you will find many other instances and confirmations that this form of peripheral neuropathy commonly occurs together with Hep C as well as in other diseases like leukemia and pneumonia.

In other studies it has also been suggested that this form of peripheral neuropathy is caused by auto-antibody response arising due to a heavily stressed immune system because of the HCV factor. Nevertheless, cryoglobulinaemia is still referred to in medical research as an idiopathic disease.

idiopathic = completely clueless as to the real cause of the disease

Treatment of cryoglobulinaemia is normally entirely palliative(treat the symptoms) using analgesics and anti-inflammatory drugs, since there appears to be no apparent cure.

I also think that your liver doctor needs to open a book or go on a Hep C refresher course or perhaps she just needs to renew her dusty but outdated Standard of Care Manual.

I'm hoping either Ted or Bill can chime in on this one. It's a rather startling revelation to me and I'm betting to those suffering the same conditions...I spoke to my liver Dr. yesterday in a hospital in Boston and she said that in the over 2,000 patients she has treated, she has never heard of hepatitis c causing neuropathy with one of her patients. I've been led to believe that hep-c caused my neuropathy, as I don't have diabetes and have been tested 3 times...and never had chemo.

Try r - alpha lipoic acid 300mg 3 x daily
Benfotiamine 500 2x daily
Acetyl l carnitine 2x daily
Methly b12 15000mcg sublingual 2x daily
B complex vitamin 2x daily
10000 iu vit d3 daily. Excessively lotion all affected skin twice daily since neuropathic doesnt sweat. Elevate feet at night above the level of the heart. Thick soft socks or footies
You can try the neuropathy oil they sell in cvs pharmacy, a tea tree oil neura.... Something like that sorry dont remember the name exactly. Stay away from alcohol consumption Forever! God bless you I will pray for you. J

I'm writing about a man named Walter Last. He has published a book called 'Heal Yourself The Natural Way'. I purchased his books. They come a series of three for the complete book.

I asked him about my Peripheral Neuropathy in my feet. His reply was; 'This is usually due to poor blood circulation. Most useful will be the ascorbate/MSM, see Chapter 3 of Towards Radiant Health and http://www.the-heal-yourself-series.com/index.html with Vitamin C and MSM; also see Hypercoagulation in Chapter 6 of Towards Radiant Health, and finally often have a warm foot bath with the addition of a handful of magnesium chloride and 3 tsp of sodium bicarbonate. Then very slowly and spaced out add 2 tsp of citric acid crystals. The aim is to let most of the developing CO2 bubbles dissolve in the water rather than letting them pop.

I haven't tried it yet, but am working on buying a bulk container of MSM and Vitamin C.

The other man I emailed to was Tony Pantalleresco, a man who says about himself, 'I'm just a guy who knows some stuff'. Tony replied to my problem with the following remedy; serrpeptase 10-20 mgs, msm 1000 mgs, B1 100 mgs, dose 5 times a day, I am taking this remedy presently. I have been taking these for the past 3 weeks and have noticed the bottom of my feet with less leathery, numbness than previously.

Good luck to all, and thanks for reading my attempts at dealing with neuropathy.

Al, it is good to hear about your recovery using the ALA.

Will you keep on using it now that you consider yourself cured?

I have made great strides using the R+ALA so that I can take it with out food for those troubled times in the evening.

I have recently switched to R+NAC+SR 500mg with food at lunch and supper, reason being to help with the Liver. Have not seen that much difference and will eventually switch back to the R+ALA when depleted.

One night recently my feet felt like they were beaten with a hose at bedtime and the R+ALA gave me great relief at around 12:30am. So it really does work and I am glad for that, but when I switch back to it I can see using it to the end of days.

Thanks again Al for your input.

ART.

Good news, I am now off of all pain killers that I was using for neuropathy. I am still taking some vitamins and minerals to support the nerves but only as part of a healthy diet and not to fix a problem. I still have a bit of tingling in my feet and lower legs but I attribute that to sensitivity of newly healed nerves. I am able to walk normally and the strength is returning in my toes now which indicates that the motor nerves are all working and have been for a while. The cold sensitivity has subsided and I am looking forward to a relatively normal life. I have found that birch and/or wintergreen oils also help to reduce tingling due to neuropathy, apparently by reducing inflammation. I use a few drops topically on my arms daily. It has taken a long time to heal due to the severity of my neuropathy and the time between chemotherapy and starting ALA but it has healed the nerves. Considering I was told by a neurologist that it wouldn't improve any more after a year from the end of chemotherapy I am quite pleased.

Is benfotiamine more for diabetic neuropathy or for neuropathy in general?

I have two people that I recommended taking the sublingual B12 dorm methylcobalamin 5000 mcg once every day. One is a diabetic but was the result of some nurse sticking a needle in the arm damaging the nerves. The other is non diabetic.

This B12 form alone seems to get a lot of positive feedback on the internet. I wonder if adding B1 benfotiamine would make any difference.

I am expecting that they will know if B12 is starting to work in around 2 weeks.

The peer reviewed studies found on pubmed.org clearly indicate benfotiamine's superiority over regular thiamine (B-1) for treatment of neuropathy. They also indicate a dose of 300 mg twice per day (total of 600mg) was more effective than half of that dose.