Replied By Ted (Bangkok) on 03/01/2004
First off 2000 mg of vitamin C is too much, for an oil soluble Ester C. Most remedies I used revolves around the use of a much safer water soluble sodium ascorbate. To reduce the problem of ester C is to remove them. Since ester C is oil soluble, one tablespoon of granulated lecithin is preferably three or four times a day to displace it, and drink plenty of water. The other thing that may reduce rage effects is taking plenty of amino acid supplements plus some added tryptophan amino acid. A 1/2 teaspoon baking soda in 1/2 glass of water taken at least twice a day may also further reduce the problem. A neutral pH ester C is really acid for the body as the body is generally more alkaline than the ester C, and hence the baking soda remedy is used.
Another that might be useful in brain biochemistry, to reduce this problem is the flaxseed oil and fish oil, to protect normal brain function, besides the other remedies already considered.
Replied By Christine (USA) on 11/04/2008
This afternoon, I visited your site and noted a comment by a reader who said that Ester C made him enraged. It's not the Vitamin C, it's the aspartic acid in the Ester C product. I verified this with an aspartame activist. Aspartic acid is an excitotoxin, a poison that kills brain cells. Yep, it's the same stuff as in aspartame. All of the studies done on Vitamin C were done with sodium ascorbate, which is a type of chemically buffered Vitamin C. It's best to take it as a powder in water, because you can get gastritis if you take too many pills.
Hope that helps,
Christine
"Aspartic acid is an amino acid. Well, amino acids are good for us, right? Don't they keep us healthy ? The answer is yes, amino acids are necessary for good health, EXCEPT when you separate the individual amino acid from its protein chain, and use it as an "isolate" or by itself. (S.Sawada, et al '98)
In aspartame, these become synergistic toxins; one component playing off the other in a dangerous, systemic downward spiral. This eventually gives way to clinical manifestations; "hard-to-diagnose" health complications, and a myriad of medical symptoms and illnesses, which can eventually cause irreversible medical complications and death.
Aspartic acid, in aspartame, is an excitotoxin. An excitotoxin, is a deleterious substance that excites or over stimulates nerve cells. This occurs in the brain, as well as the peripheral nerves, because aspartic acid, in free form, easily crosses the blood-brain barrier. This pathological excitation of nerve cells creates a breakdown of nerve function, as we will see. (L.E.Rosenberg, McGraw-Hill 1991)
Replied By Roxanne (Easton, Pennsylvania) on 11/21/2008
I found the information about aspartame in Ester C product interesting. I've had two spinal fusion and my Doctor wants me to take vitiman C for healthy cell growth etc. I could not take regular vitamin C after awhile needing nexium for months. I switched to Ester C. 6 months ago taking 500-1000mgs. a day. I had have a burning, tingling and pain in legs for months only getting extremely worse over the past 2 months. Now I am taking Neurontin 300mg;bid. My neurosurgeon wants me to go through an EMG again. I've been throught every MRI/scan to rule out my fusions/nerves at spine. After reading this and how aspartame can effect peripheral nerves it makes sense. It must be the Ester C? Thanks again for the insight.