Walmart is a good and inexpensive source for vitamins, but Vitamin Shoppe is best in quality and price (they sell many brands but buy only the Vitamin Shoppe brand). 1-800-223-1216.
I recommend the following pills be taken by everyone that has heel pain that will not go away. If you take all of these, place them in a little fisherman's tackle box so you don't have to open so many bottles every day.
Tissue strength: Vitamin C up to 4,000 mg with every meal. Start with 1,000 mg per meal and increase until it starts causing gas. This is perfectly safe and will have many other beneficial health effects besides collagen repair. Grape seed extract 60 mg twice a day to prevent collagen destruction. Buy only vitamin shoppe brand, not Walmart. Copper 2 mg a day to make sure you have enough. It's necessary in the "crosslinking of collagen and elastin". Do not take more. Do not take zinc supplements larger than 15 mg.
Inflammation: Pancreatic enzymes not enteric-coated type, 20 minutes before meals or on empty stomach 3 times a day. 1000 mg of 10xUSP type. This may also decrease desire for food and substantial weight loss. Flax oil (Omega-3 source) preferably with lignans 2 tablespoons a day. Buy ONLY Barlean brand, which is what vitamin shoppe sells. Flax oil spoils easily so other brands are questionable. 1/2 cup flax seeds would be better. Eliminate animal fat except increase consumption of mackeral, salmon, herring, and sardines. Eliminate polyunsaturated vegetable oils and trans-fatty acids, such as margarine and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Quercetin (flavonoid) 250 mg combined with bromelian (vitamin shoppe brand only) 20 minutes before each meal to help the notable absorption problem. Manganese (not magnesium) 50 mg 4 times a day 1st 2 weeks, then 30 mg day to help internal SOD levels. SOD orally is known to be ineffective. Europeans can get SOD injections.
Other: Glucosamine sulfate 1,500 mg in case osteoarthritis is causing some of the pain. Chondroitin is not useful. Vitamin B6 200 mg in case of tarsal tunnel or tendonitis, but B-complex 100 twice a day has that and other good stuff. Amino acids DL-Phenylalinine or Tyrosine 500 mg each for pain. Various visitors have insisted various others have helped: calcium (spur help?), magnesium (dialate blood vessels for better flow for healing), folic acid, and B12 injections.
It's with hesitation that I mention the following because it is potent stuff and my knowledge on the subject is weak, if not in error. Androstenedione (the Mark McGuire steroid) and other over-the-counter testosterone boosters may increase the rate of tissue repair. Possible side effects include feeling good and more active and happy, increase in aggression, deepening of voice, acne, prostate hypertrophy(?), prostate cancer(?), other masculization effects for women such as more hair on the lip and face, and increased male-pattern hair loss in men already pre-disposed. And extra muscle when combined with workouts. Probable weight increase (but a lot of it muscle). I bought Substrate Solutions' Androdiol product and seem to be having excellent results. Testosterone boosters are not supposed to cause liver and kidney damage like the illegal weight-lifting anabolic steroids because it is a natural (not fake) steroid. The Nor-testosterone is supposed to not have the negative effects, but I'm skittish of it because it's not pure testosterone (it's a fake testosterone) and may cause liver damage (but I've not read that anywhere that it does). See Mesomorphosis for purchasing info. Their prices appear good.
Dr. Weil also says "To reduce inflammation, take two 500 mg capsules of powdered ginger once or twice a day with food, or one 400 to 600 mg capsule of curcumin ( obtained from the spice tumeric) three times a day." It may take 6 to 8 weeks for full effects.
Another rumor: "Two grams of lysine and 2 grams of proline a day are safe and are also known to help collagen production. A "muscle mixture" of amino acids for weight lifters available from a health food store may be best, or just more meat in the diet (meat contains more amino acids)."
My best internet sources of vitamin information are Dr. Weil www.drweil.com and "Life Extension Foundation" www.lef.org.
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