GEAF2816

I think I would like to try this multivitamin for my teenage son. His tics are mild but have vamped up a bit during these past 2 weeks of school. More blinking, hand sniffing and hmmm hmmm. I think he is able to mostly suppress it at school or let it go during passing periods when no one is really watching. Currently is is just taking 2 500mg NOW Krill oil. My questions about Kirkmans Does the unflavored powder dissolve completely and leave no flavor/grittiness in his juice. If I went for the capsules, does anyone know what size they are? Does everyone order it from Kirkmanlabs.com? Do you split up the dose, 1/2 in the morning, 1/2 at night? Thank you!

Great news about this afternoon's ticcing. I think we call can relate to watching our children, I often will notice a new tic a day before my son brings it up. Can I ask a few questions. 1. Is there any history of TS in other family members? 2. Is your son still taking tenex? 3. How much does your son weigh and how much Natural Calm do you give him? Thanks you again for the recap.

Thank you lmcgill for the update. Did your son show any signs of digestive problems prior to going gluten free, or did you just try gluten-free to see if it would eliminate the tics? We've tried magnesium/natural calm, no change, but I'm somehow brainwashed into continuing using it, can't hurt. Taurine, stopped using this, I think it actually brought on a vocal tic/lip smacking, now gone. 5htp, again, not helping tics, but my son doesn't object to taking this multi, vitamin C and omega gummies We tried HFCS and dairy free for 2 weeks and didn't see any change either. My next step is to try gluten free. I know my son, age 15 Tourettes is genetic, an 8 y/o nephew is now doing occasional hard blinks. Older male relatives have outgrown mild tics (but we didn't know about them then) but now, I do recognize mild OCD, anxiety and ADD in my brother,dad and late grandfather. My son has no digestive issues, nor behavioral problems so I wonder if gluten free will work for him. Our doctor did mention trying a very low dose of Abilify (.5-1mg per day) I've held off on this, but with my son learning to drive now, I do notice him blinking/grimacing while driving and that concerns me. Obviously if the side effects are worse, we would discontinue. Has anyone had any experience with Abilify?

Thanks everyone. My son does take 25 mg 5htp in the evenings and another 25mg (1/4 tablet each) in the morning. In my researching and talking with our vitamin specialist, 5htp was recommended for anxiety related tourettes. At least for my son, his tics definitely are exacerbated by any stress/new situations/anxiety, however for the most part, it does not inhibit his daily functioning, it only comes out as tics. He is not completely tic-free at home, but much less so. For example, as we're driving to a function, or sitting at the first parent meeting of drivers ed, my son will be doing non-stop facial ticcing as a form of anxiety. I know these events, and even regular social events that he is very comfortable going to, wear him out emotionally. I'm fortunate though, that he knows he has to participate/stay involved with regular teenage school, socials, activities, sports etc...but they still cause him stress manifested through tics. When he was in elementary school, he would panic and say over and over again that he didn't want to go to the end of year party, even though he loved school and his friends, or start swim lessons, sport camps... However, I always managed to get him to attend and literally, within 10 seconds of walking in the door, he was happy, laughing and having fun. Fear of the slightest unknown is very stressful for him. About 5 years ago, he mentioned that if he slapped one leg, then he would have to slap the other leg - OCD I thought. But then that disappeared completely and if he still has mild OCD, then it is appearing as somewhat positive traits, such as being very organized, diligent and clean. For instance, this weekend he was away for 3 days and he came home and said the park bathrooms didn't have soap in them. I'm assuming that this bugged him/mild OCD that's why he told me, but it did not hinder his ability to continue with his athletic competition. Unfortunately, I have not noticed any improvements in tics with the supplements that he's been taking for the past 3 months, and I wonder if his tourettes is strictly neurological and that is why it is not responding to supplements. I don't know if the 5htp is working for his mood/general emotional anxiety, it's not helping with tics. But it is the one supplement that he doesn't complain about taking, as "he thinks" it is a mood elevator. He doesn't have the classic symptoms of being depressed, but he certainly can learn to relax and enjoy life a bit more. I have stopped the inositol in the morning once I split up his 5htp AM and PM. I use to only give the 5htp at night. I can tell that it's important for him to feel like a regular kid, for example, he wouldn't take any supplements at his 3 day athletic competition, even though he could take them completely discreetly in his hotel bathroom. So I figure if I can stop most supplements during summer, which is very relaxed and laid back for him, it'll just 1. give him a much needed break 2. let us know if the supplements really helped or not Sorry for the long windedness, I think we all could write novels about our children's symptoms. So Yes, tics are his main symptom to relieve, but I think anxiety/neurology/genetics is the underlying cause.

Thanks Laurensmom, Does anyone know, of the above supplements listed, which need time to build up in his system by taking it regularly, before we start to notice any improvements and which work well as an "as needed" supplement. I forgot to add that my son also takes a gummy multi vitamin and a gummy omega. I am looking to find "better quality" multi and omega that he may not mind taking. He also eats a handful of shelled pumpkin seeds from Trader Joes for added magnesium, which we'll continue during the summer. I also just bought roasted, shelled sunflower seeds, in hope it provides natural zinc for his skin sun allergy.

With summer break approaching, I was thinking of easing off of some supplements, mostly to make sure my DS15 doesn't become immune to their effectiveness. In addition, if his tics should increase, then my hope is that he won't make a fuss about taking the supplements again, when school starts up. My son has mild to moderate facial tics on a daily basis. They used to disappear from November-January, but not for the past 2 years. He also had mild exhaling through his nose onto a closed fist at times and an occasional quick neck movement. The eye blinking bothers him the most, not in a painful way, but in it being the most noticeable to other people. I'm so blessed that he doesn't have any behavioural or academic issues. This is what he takes now .........and what my plan for the summer is. 2-3 tsp natural calm currently...........1-2 tsps for the summer 1 cvr magnesium taurate...............only as needed 1/2 tsp taurine powder................only as needed 1/4 tsp inositol as needed............... as needed 1 p5p .........................................stop for the summer 50 mg 5htp................................stop for the summer Today we both noticed that he's getting some mild sinus allergies. I'll start with some aller-tec (costco brand zyrtec) which I have already. But I will also get some vitamin C and start him on 500mg twice a day. I would also like to start him on optizinc, when/if we need to restart all supplements in the Fall. Have any of you taken a break from supplements and seen results/issues?

Here is a report, when I googled histamines and tics dated May 5, 2010. From Medscape Medical News Potential Role for Histamine Identified in Tourette's Syndrome Emma Hitt, PhD Authors and Disclosures May 5, 2010 — A potential role for histaminergic neurotransmission has been identified in the condition underlying Tourette's syndrome and nervous tics, according to the findings of a genetic analysis published online May 5 in the New England Journal of Medicine. "This is the first observation of a link between histaminergic neurotransmission and tics in humans and one of the few times that a clearly functional coding mutation has been found in a family with Tourette's syndrome," said the study's principal investigator Matthew W. State, MD, PhD, with the Yale Child Study Center in New Haven, Connecticut. "Given the availability of pharmacological agents that specifically increase histaminergic neurotransmission, the finding suggests a novel approach to treating Tourette's syndrome," he told Medscape Neurology. According to the researchers, Tourette's syndrome has a population prevalence of 1% and a rate of recurrence of 10% to 15% among first-degree relatives of an affected person. Although a genetic contribution to Tourette's syndrome is well established, thus far, findings have been nonreproducible. Dr. State and colleagues analyzed linkage in a 2-generation pedigree and identified a rare functional mutation in the HDC gene, which codes for histidine decarboxylase, the rate-limiting enzyme involved in histamine synthesis. Rare Mutation The pedigree family included 1 father and 8 offspring all of whom had been diagnosed as having Tourette's syndrome. The father and 2 of the 8 offspring also had obsessive-compulsive disorder. The mother and her family of origin were free from Tourette's syndrome, chronic tics, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Given the presence of the syndrome in the offspring but the absence in the maternal side, the researchers concluded that Tourette's syndrome was an autosomal dominant trait in this family. Further polymerase chain reaction analysis identified a heterozygous guanine to adenosine transition at position 951 in exon 9 of the HDC gene. This mutation resulted in a premature termination codon, W317X, that was present in the affected father and all offspring but was absent in the unaffected mother. According to Dr. State, although the mutation is extremely rare, their approach is based on the hypothesis that rare examples of common disease may provide a window into biological mechanisms and, in turn, that these may be highly relevant to the broader group of affected individuals. "This is a strategy that has proven effective in a variety of other human diseases, including Alzheimer, Parkinsonism, hypertension, and cancer," he said. "The rare mutation found in the family would be expected to decrease histamine production in the central nervous system," Dr. State added. In addition, animal studies have shown that decreased brain histamine leads to an increase in stereotypic behaviors that appear similar to human tics. "It has already been shown that compounds that increase brain histamine (typically targeting the histamine 3 autoreceptor) reverse this effect in mice. Histamine 3 receptor inverse agonists and antagonists are already in late-stage development and early clinical trials for disorders other than Tourette's syndrome and, based on the current work, would be hypothesized to be a novel approach to moderating tics." Hypothesis Generating, Not Generalizable Dr. State pointed out that this is only a hypothesis-generating study. Some dietary supplements contain the histamine precursor, L-histidine, which increases brain histamine, he said. "These, however, would also be expected to increase histamine peripherally and may lead to untoward side effects. As there have been no clinical trials of histamine-promoting agents in Tourette's syndrome, any treatment based on this finding would be premature," he said. Joseph Jankovic, MD, professor of neurology, at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and an independent researcher in the area of Tourette's syndrome,noted that this is potentially "an important finding as there are very few clues to the genetics of Tourette's syndrome, even though Tourette's syndrome is one of the most common childhood genetic disorders." According to Dr Jankovic, the search for a Tourette's syndrome gene(s) has been frustrating because of the lack of a disease-specific/sensitive biologic marker and often a result of a bilineal transmission (both parents affected), which was apparently not the case in this family. Dr. Jankovic pointed out, however, that the reported finding is based on only 1 family with Tourette's syndrome, so the results cannot be generalized to other Tourette's syndrome patients. "Furthermore, although the patients met DSM-IV [Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Fourth Edition)] criteria, their clinical features are not described in detail, so it is not clear whether any atypical features were present," he said. The study was not commercially funded. Dr. State and Dr. Jankovic have disclosed no relevant financial relationships. N Engl J Med. Published online May 5, 2010.

Thanks Chemar for your update. It looks like you have reduced the number of pills/supplements greatly. My 15 y/o son, 115 lbs, has mild/moderate facial tics and hand sniffing with mild anxiety/OCD. No adhd, no food allergies. Genetic tourettes. Grandfather and 2 male cousins have mild tics and/or OCD too. He's been on 400 mg (2 caplets/day) of vitamin shoppe brand magnesium citrate for a month now. Truthfully, I have not seen any improvement, but we will continue with it. No loose stool from it. Given daily. 1-500 mg tablet country life Taurine w/ B6, my son says he feels this reduces his tics. I may increase this to 2 times/day. I also only give this to him 5 days per week (mon-friday) 1/2 tablet(50mg) Natrol 5htp in the evenings, 5 days/week. My son's mood in the morning appears better, no sleepiness or bad dreams from it. 1/2 tsp of jarrows inositol, and 1/2 tsp natural calm in the morning in his juice. I can't put more Natural Calm in, as he doesn't like the flavor of it. Also given to him 5 days/week. Daily multi vitamin, gummyvite purchased from costco. Any feedback on his routine is greatly appreciated. I would like to add omega oil/flax. Can you tell me what brand magnesium/zinc/calcium and taurine you are using? I'm willing to switch brands on any of the above if you've found they work well for your son. Also, I would love to hear the benefits/difference between 5htp, gaba, samE and inosital in regards to increasing seratonin/mood/anxiety. Thank you for all you do.

Thank you Cheri, I've read many of your posts and thank you for all your researching and sharing! One other question, my son doesn't have any sleep problems. He's a sound sleeper from 10:30pm-6:45am. Do you still think I should have him take natural calm in the evenings? His main issue are various facial tics, blinking one eye then the other followed by a grimacing of sorts and exhaling through his nose into each fist. When he was younger, he had burping, hand rotating, the common hmm hmm and neck/head twirling. He would like to be able to control/suppress these tics during the school day, but once he's at home, he's very comfortable ticcing and we're fortunate that for now, it doesn't affect his ability to do homework or concentration. I should add that in the evenings at home, his tics are very mild. It does appear new and/or social situations exacerbate his tics. I'm still a little confused what the capsule vs the liquid form of magnesium is each best for, or should I assume that they just work well together? Can the natural calm be taken as needed, such as before a school social event? I would give him the magnesium taurate capsules daily though. So much to learn, thanks again.

Hello everyone, thank you for the invaluable information on this forum! I have a 15 y/o son with tourettes and some mild anxiety, ocd, shyness. I've just been reading this forum for 2 days and decided to try magnesium to lessen his tics. My son drinks milk and eats cheese regularly, so I don't plan on supplementing his calcium at this time. He also takes the multi vitamin, gummy vite, which I buy at costco. Currently trying 5htp, but I haven't noticed any change. I will stop the 5htp when we start the magnesium at first. Few questions, 1. Is there a difference in effectiveness between CVR Magnesium Taurate capsules versus Natural Calm powder drink? The capsule would be preferable/easier to give him, if it isn't too large to swallow. what is the size of the capsules? 2. Taurate has 125mg each, so I assume he would start slowly, but probably end up with 375-500mg (3-4 capsules per day)? 3. Natural Calm, I assume start at 1/2 tsp, but end at 1 tsp/twice a day. 4. I would prefer that the magnesium be most effective between 8am-4pm, while he is at school, so I would prefer to give it to him around 7am. Is the magnesium something that has to build into his system, or can it be taken as needed? 5. Does the liquid citrate magnesium absorb better for quicker relief over the capsules? Thank you so much, I'll post with our results, soon hopefully.