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Comment by TheSpiceIsLife | Hacker News Reader

I take melatonin for sleep only as necessary. I work a physically demanding job that requires approximately 50% computer time, so I find the mixed physical & mental effort of work tiring.

What I found help immensely with regaining my focus and mental clarity after coming off caffeine, and before that methamphetamine 4 days out of 7 for nearly a year, is taking a multi B vitamin plus 1000mcg methylcobalamin (also known as 'Activated B12') sublingually, and 200mg B6 once or twice a day, along with eating fewer sweet things and more protein and raw fats (butter and coconut oil). Plus chiropractic / osteopathic adjustments to deal with my crooked postural habits.

I also find Liquorice root as strong decoction immensely restorative.

That's what has worked for me. N=1 and all that.

Full disclosure: I hold a Diploma in Western Herbal Medicine and an Advanced Diploma in Clinical Nutrition. For what it's worth.

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This is interesting. I'll chime in w/ one additional anecdata point - recently I've started supplementing Methyl Folate, B6 and B12 and saw significant increase in my energy levels; not in a jittery stimulant-like way, but more like w/ calmness and clarity.

Have you experienced any negative side effects? Any advise on what to be cautious for?

Busy at work, hit me up on the email in my profile if you like.

You might be interest in Henry Osiecki's The Nutrient Bible, https://www.bookdepository.com/author/Henry-Osiecki

Vitamins are a complete scam. They aren't even FDA regulated. After I read about their ineffectiveness and possible harm, I threw all of my bottles into the garbage can.

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/07/the-vitam...

The placebo effect is powerful.

I highly recommend reading Topol's "The Creative Destruction of Medicine" for more information.

The one vitamin worth taking for anyone living in a northern climate is D, particularly if, like me, you don't consume a lot of dairy. Beyond that, I agree, vitamins are entirely unnecessary.

Also those who suffer from Celiac Disease, like myself, are often low on Iron and are recommended to take iron supplements to prevent anemia.

Yeah I think it's fair to say that prescribed vitamins for those with a medical condition are probably worth taking. ;)

While there's a lot of placebo and less-than-truth-in-advertising regarding vitamins, they do make a difference to some people:

See gwern on vitamin D[0], which shows it's likely not a placebo, (n=1, of course, but coincides with a lot of not-quite-as-well-executed self experiments from other people)

Iron and/or vitamin B3 (Niacin) make a huge difference for RLS[1]; You'll find some peer reviewed reference for iron, mostly anecdotal for B3 (some better executed than others).

As a general rule, if you eat a variety of foods, some of which are grown naturally and not processed to death, and have decent exposure to the sun, then - no, you don't need vitamins. But among my peers it seems that this rather simple set of requirements is often not satisfied, and vitamin supplements are needed (usually B12, D, and Iron deficits are found for whoever does testing).

[0] https://www.gwern.net/zeo/Vitamin%20D

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restless_legs_syndrome

What ever roasts your goat.

It's well proven that Folate during pregnancy significantly reduces the incidents or neural-tube defects.

It's well proven that putting some B vitamins back in the flour after it's milled significantly reduces psychiatric presentations.

Sounds like you've made your mind up though.

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