Calpains are calcium-dependent regulators of the entire body
Specifically they model glutamate/GABA in the central nervous system, excess calcium activation overrides normal calpain function and causes their overexpression
Calpain overexpression breaks down gephyrin, GABA receptors, and chloride clearance channels which = excitotoxicity and in extreme cases disease like epilepsy
This is how epileptic states are kindled by substances that drive up calcium channel activation, like alcohol
Calpains seem to play a role in other calcium-related aspects of health like bone metabolism and heart disease as well
Alkaline phosphatase enzymes counteract their activity, these enzymes are magnesium dependent and I believe they may be upregulated with megadose magnesium
There's also a direct inhibitor of calpains in the body called calpastatin
The research on things that support or increase calpastatin is limited, but so far I've found a few possibilities, with skullcap as a primary candidate
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I think a lot of people assume that because I talk about a lot of different supplements I must take dozens of them each day
The truth is that honestly at this point I often go a week or two at a time without taking any pills whatsoever
My goal has always been to use as few substances as possible
When I was focusing on neurogenesis originally, it required a lot more maintenance, but the last few months I've been able to minimize significantly
At this point I use almost solely herbs, either in tea, or occasionally as formulations I've put together like adaptogen coffee
I've been using ULDN, ku shen, and maral daily, adaptogen coffee and vitality tonic every few days, and magnesium topically/orally as needed, that's it
Just because I've created a patreon does not mean I'm going to stop sharing the same quality and depth of information on twitter
It's simply a way for those of you who prefer longform writing and would like to ask me questions directly to support my work if you choose to
Creating in articles and lectures like this takes hours, if not days in some cases, this will allow me to provide content on the level normally reserved for those I consult with for much cheaper
If you don't want to pay anything, that's okay, my presence here will stay the same
The only thing I can't post here is phrasing that implies medical "treatments" or "cures" for different conditions, I wiped past tweets to give me the chance to rewrite anything I may have worded poorly in the past, and expand on it with my more recent research
Melatonin is my favorite molecule in the body, it regulates circadian rhythm, the immune system, and gene expression, and acts as a antioxidant within both cells and mitochondria
This is a collection of a few of my favorite studies on melatonin, specifically focused on endogenous function and production
This is a collection of research studies on the effects of grounding, a rapidly growing health practice in which someone touches their bare skin to the earth's surface for some time
Grounding may work by feeding free electrons into the water-protein semi-conduction network throughout the body
Grounding has also been proposed to work through activation of the ventral vagus nerve, and provide benefits similar to other forms of vagus nerve stimulation
The most common results found in these studies seem to be reduction in inflammation and oxidative stress, reduced blood pressure and viscosity, reduced cortisol, improved mood, better sleep, normalized circadian rhythm, and reduced pain and fatigue
As far as thiamine (vitamin B1) supplements go, there are only a few primary forms to be aware of:
Thiamine hydrochloride, the basic salt form, very common in supplements, not the most potent, but less likely to cause side effects as it doesn't need other nutrients to activate
Benfotiamine, less common, but one of the more potent forms, generally reported to be more stimulating than other forms so it's best taken in the morning, it's structure contains sulfur which may rarely cause reactions in individuals with certain sulfur metabolism issues
Allithiamine (TTFD), the most potent form, bypasses all transporters entering cells directly, should be dosed much lower than other forms, and more likely to cause side effects as its activation requires B12 and glutathione, may also react negatively with heavy metal toxicity
In the eyes DHA serves the integral function of capturing light that's been lifted to the UV spectrum and released by oxidized vitamin A bound to light receptor proteins
DHA's dense electron clouds capture the energy of the re-released light and transfer it into a neural impulse
To put it more simply, light hits a light receptor protein which uses vitamin A as a cofactor
The light is captured by the protein and excites vitamin A, raising its energy state
When its energy state drops down the difference between the two states is added to the light energy
As a result, the light is re-released within the UV spectrum through fluorescence
The membranes around the light receptors are filled with DHA, which absorbs light within the UV spectrum
The light interacting with the DHA excites it's electrons, creating a current