Kurtosis, lmk if u disagree w this, but for ppl trying your method, perhaps it's best if we only take the B Vitamins, Zinc + Magnesium - as these are the supplements that treat the pois. The huperzine and ginkgo biloba are used to enhance/restore cognitive function only AFTER the pois is at bay. People seem to be getting confused that the huperzine and ginkgo are pois treatments in and of themselves.
It's getting confusing alright, particularly with discussions on 2 websites.
The huperzine is optional. I've cut down dramatically. I've found that acetyl l-carnitine gives me the same memory boost while improving my energy levels and mood. It might have been useful to take some huperzine initially but it's not actually treating POIS. Taking it by itself does not improve my POIS symptoms dramatically.
If I just wanted to treat POIS and not try to repair, I'd take the b-complex (which has other ingredients too) and zinc at night. If your POIS symptoms are primarily cognitive (or stomach) then try ginkgo also. Ginkgo has anti-inflammatory and neuro-protective effects. It also dilates blood vessels and can help treating hypertensive anxiety.
So the minimum is b coenzymes (with niacin, ALA & CoQ10 in the "famous" Now complex I'm using), zinc & ginkgo. If you try these and it doesn't work then it's not working for you
unless you have a diet which is conspicuously low in protein.
My other experience is that I seem to need a lot of protein. As I've said before, I'm lactose intolerant so I try to get my protein from meat and spirulina. I've also noticed that taurine and acetyl l-carnitine (which it's difficult to get in large quantities) give me focus and energy.
As I've said lots of times and discussed on the NSF and here, there are lots of possible hypothesis as to why this may work for me but my gut feeling is that POIS is a problem in the gut that's affecting the synthesis of everything from neurotransmitters to hormones (they're often inter-related) and it just gets worse when we O because the levels of some neurotransmitters change too quickly and we can't seem to balance. This balancing is called homeostasis and well known homeostatic illnesses include diabetes.
If this was the cause there may be multiple medical conditions that could lead to POIS like symptoms and we may not even all be suffering from the same thing but could have the same symptoms.
The POIS diet and supplementation I'm following is similar to what I've read other people following for testosterone / oestrogen imbalances and hartnup disease.
http://rarediseases.about.com/od/rarediseasesh/a/hartnup.htmThis could be pure coincidence but I've read stories of people giving up vegetarianism and veganism because of fatigue, cognitive issues and other symptoms which clearly don't affect all vegetarians but do impact on some.
