I’ve noticed that Matt Kaeberlein mentioning that he takes periodic rapamycin vacations / breaks as part of his regimen. Do you have regular breaks in your regimen? If so have you noticed anything about starting or stopping those breaks in terms of how it affects you?
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I’ve wondered if periodic breaks would be a good idea for testicular function.
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How does Rapamycin affect the testes?
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See here for info on possible impact of rapamycin on testes Possible Rapamycin Risks for Healthy Humans (Part 2)
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Has there been any link between Rapamycin and cataracts in humans?
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No, not reported as of now.
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I’m four weeks into a rapamycin break. I had been on it for about 15 months, with an average weekly dose of 6mg. I had only taken one week off for my COVID booster during that time.
The main reason for taking a break is that I had persistent low-level acne, which would sometimes flare up. I mostly saw small, 1mm pimples on my forehead, cheeks, temples and jawline. I was also experiencing acne on my scalp, neck, back and chest. This was not the same acne I experienced in my younger years. Annoyingly, the spots would sometimes fail to come to a head, and could be itchy and painful. Conventional OTC remedies helped to manage the acne, but did not eliminate it.
In weeks 2-3 of my break I experienced a bit of a purge with my skin. It got somewhat worse before getting better. Now, in week four of my break, it’s like my face molted. The skin is smoother and healthier looking. As I read in an article posted in an acne discussion in this forum, it appears that rapamycin slows down the production of epidermal growth factor (EGF), which may be linked to the acne some of us encounter.
On the downside, the low-level joint pain I experienced in my hands and knees pre-rapa began to return about 10-12 days into the break. Overall I feel a bit more creaky than I did on rapamycin.
I’m going to continue my break for a few more weeks. I’ll get some bloods done and let my skin settle down. When I resume, I’m going to adjust the dose, probably to 5-6mg every 10-12 days. I’ll try to find a balance between joint pain and skin health.
Breaks are an excellent way to gauge your body’s response to the drug.
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I haven’t taken a break other than to get a vaccine and before a colonoscopy. But it is a potential strategy since you seem to get most of the benefit if you were to do something like 10 weeks on and four weeks off with possibly less side effects. University of Washington has done a number of studies on this, but it doesn’t seem like all of them are published.
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