Carnitine Therapy

Carnitine is a compound that turns fat into energy in your body. Your body naturally produces carnitine in your liver and kidneys. Healthy individuals typically produce sufficient amounts of carnitine naturally. However, if you have certain medical conditions or disorders you may develop a carnitine deficiency that requires treatment with carnitine therapy. Your body stores excess carnitine in your heart, brain, sperm and skeletal muscle. As with any supplement, speak with your doctor before iniating carnitine therapy.

Carnitine

Scientists first isolated carnitine from meat in 1905, according to "The Carnitine Connection." Carnitine derives from the amino acid lysine. Your body requires carnitine to produce energy from the oxidation of long chain fatty acids. In the case of a carnitine deficiency, your body's demand for carnitine will exceed its capacity to produce the compound. When this occurs, doctors will prescribe carnitine therapy. Carnitine therapy involves taking an oral carnitine supplement. According to "The Carnitine Defense: An All-Natural Nutraceutical Formula to Prevent Heart Disease, Control Diabetes and Help You Stay Healthy," the recommended daily dose for carnitine therapy is typically 50 to 100 mg per 2.2 pounds of body weight.

Heart Failure

Doctors also will sometimes recommend carnitine therapy for heart ailments. According to "The Carnitine Defense: An All-Natural Nutraceutical Formula to Prevent Heart Disease, Control Diabetes and Help You Stay Healthy," cardiac patients that receive 2 g of carnitine per day typically have a higher survival rate than cardiac patients that do not receive carnitine therapy. Additionally, cardiac patients given carnitine therapy typically improve their ability to exercise for longer periods of time after initiating the carnitine therapy.

Kidney Failure Hemodialysis

When your kidneys fail, you typically will have to undergo dialysis until you can receive a kidney transplant. Dialysis can cause many deficiencies in your body including a carnitine deficiency. Therefore, doctors will often recommend carnitine therapy for patients receiving dialysis after kidney failure. According to "Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine," patients receiving dialysis should only receive intravenous carnitine as oral supplementation can potentially result in toxic metabolites in patients receiving dialysis.

Alzheimer's Disease, Dementia

Although there is no cure for Alzheimer's disease there are some therapies that can slow the progression of this disease and help improve some of the symptoms of Alzheimer's. According to "The Carnitine Defense: An All-Natural Nutraceutical Formula to Prevent Heart Disease, Control Diabetes and Help You Stay Healthy," using carnitine may slow down cognitive decline in Alzheimer's patients. However, further studies are needed to confirm the benefits of using carnitine therapy to help treat Alzheimer's patients.

References

• "The Carnitine Connection"; Winifred Conklig; 2000n
• "L-Carnitine"; Walter Lubeck; 2000
• "The Carnitine Defense: An All-Natural Nutraceutical Formula to Prevent Heart Disease, Control Diabetes and Help You Stay Healthy"; Dr. steven DeFelice; 1999
• "Pediatric Nutrition"; Patricia Queen Samour; 2010
• "Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine"; Dennis Kasper et al; 2004