Tomorrow I start my Rapa adventure

I plan to start Rapa tomorrow, me and my dog. I have a few questions. Up to now, among other things, I’ve been using supplements to mitigate aging and extend lifespan. Are there any supplements that should be reduced or stopped while taking Rapa, perhaps contraindicated? This same question applies to foods. The reverse of this question is also pertinent: supplements/foods beneficial when taken with Rapa?

I’ve also become a bit confused as to what the consensus is in regard to dosing. While following experts like Dr. Green and Blagosklonny it seems to jump back and forth regarding dosage, and timing (daily, weekly, every two weeks . . )

Do I need a crystal ball?

Cheers from BC Canada!

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Congratulations on the start of your adventure! May it go smoothly into the far future.

If you haven’t be sure sure to read the extensive FAQs, which includes other anti-aging supplements:

As far as contraindicated supplements, there is little evidence that intermittent dosing interferes with much of anything except partially with mTORC1. If you have a condition in which a slight immune suppression could be an issue, be sure to monitor your blood results for low white blood cells.

We don’t know the perfect dosage schedule, and it surely is individualized. Look at what others are doing and slowly transition your dosage to your goal, and consider taking hiatuses. Measure your trough levels of rapa so that your blood levels are truly intermittent and not too high.

Good luck!

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Good advice from EnrQay.
Wander through the forum and the FAQ and you will learn much of what you need to know.

In general, I think most people start out pretty low, 6mg per week is where I started, gradually increasing my dosage over time as I had no side effects.

There are supplements that interact with rapamycin and because of that interaction may affect your effective dosage. I personally avoid or restrict their use. Curcumin and DIM are two supplements that I used to take regularly but I now limit due to their interaction.

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Have you done preliminary blood testing and biomarkers so that you can do pre and post rapamycin comparisons? Highly recommended!

Also - I would start low on rapamycin - 1mg/week and slowly go up, just to minimize risk of side effects.

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Indeed welcome. Vancouver and Victoria are favorite travel spots!

2 years in… everything working better… epigenetic blood and saliva tests say I am between 14 and 27 years younger biological years to my chronological age of 64 years.

This site is a wealth of information as you create your individual plan. Used 6mg rapa for 1 1/2 years. Been doing higher… 10 mg… with Grapefruit last 4 months.

Oh would definitely recommend doing a TruMe epigenetic spit test ($99) for a baseline in DNA methylation. Retake in 1 year. Proof of change.

Cheers!

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Slow and sure is my plan. As for blood testing, I know for a fact that my physician would refuse. He refused to look at the science when I brought it up so I’m flying solo. I’ve had my doc for decades and finding a new one would be difficult. He’s in my age group and all other local Doc’s are not taking on new clients - especially seniors. I’m in Canada by the way, the country that discovered Rapa, but our ability to legally get it is difficult. I took a chance and successfully managed to source Sirolimus from India.

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I am not talking about any special blood test, just the standard ones that most doctors look at anyway… the “bio age calculations” are free - so this is what I use just as an ongoing reference point as I track my progress over the years and test different supplements or drugs.

Creactive protein, etc…

The blood test variables use in a well-validated “biological age” calculation developed at Yale University uses these variables:

Screen-Shot-2020-04-25-at-12.08.15-AM-300x286

See here, CBC:

This panel contains the following tests:

Blood Sugar:

  • Fasting glucose

Kidney Function:

  • Uric acid
  • BUN (blood urea nitrogen)
  • Creatinine
  • BUN/creatinine ratio
  • eGFR (estimated glomerular filtration rate)

Electrolytes and Minerals:

  • Sodium
  • Potassium
  • Chloride
  • Calcium
  • Phosphorus
  • Iron

Liver Function:

  • Total protein
  • Albumin
  • Globulin
  • Albumin/globulin ratio
  • Bilirubin
  • Alkaline phosphatase
  • LDH (lactate dehydrogenase)
  • AST (aspartate aminotransferase)
  • ALT (alanine transaminase)

Lipid Profile:

  • Total cholesterol
  • Triglycerides
  • HDL cholesterol
  • LDL cholesterol (calc.)
  • VLDL cholesterol (calc.)
  • Total cholesterol/HDL ratio
  • Estimated CHD risk

Complete Blood Count:

  • Red blood cell count
  • Hemoglobin
  • Hematocrit
  • MCV (mean corpuscular volume)
  • MCH (mean corpuscular hemoglobin)
  • MCHC (mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration)
  • RDW (red blood cell distribution)
  • White blood cell count
  • Differential count
  • Platelet count
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Its interesting - other forum members from Canada have commented not only on how easy it can be to get some blood testing in Canada, but in the case of testing “blood sirolimus” levels - the even get the testing fully covered by the government… see this post:

More details on testing for blood sirolimus levels and why you may want to do it:

Curious question, how has everything gone on your rapamycin journey? What dose regime of rapamycin are you and your dog on currently?