L-arginine for reduction of ammonia in bladder

[Jennifer Mulcahy]

Hello,

I have just been recommended L-arginine to reduce ammonia levels in my
bladder. I also found this information:

"arginine contents of selected foods (100 g)

almonds 2,730 red beans 340 cheddar cheese 850 milk 130 oatmeal 130
salmon 1,530 CHOCOLATE 4,500!!

"a lysine-rich/arginine poor diet has become a popular treatment for
herpes
infections. The research shows that lysine has antiviral activity. A
preponderance
of lysine over arginine is believed either to inhibit the synthesis of
the arginine-rich
proteins necessary for viral replication or to repress the activation of
the control
genes." from the Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine by drs. Michael Murray
and
Joseph Pizzorno.

I guess the whole story is that the arginine content is important
relative
to the lysine content of the particular food. So I left out half the
picture. The
lysine content of chocolate is 2,000. The lysine content of other foods:
milk 280,
red beans 420, salmon 2350, almonds 580, cheddar cheese 1,700, and
oatmeal
70."

I was trying to test foods on the IC diet last night and I ate some
cheddar cheese. My bladder seemed to feel a little better! Does this
have anything to do with this theory? Thanks a bunch! I'd rather eat
cheese and chocolate (which seems absurd) than buy more supplements!

Jennifer

[ICCORNER]

L-arginine at 1500 mg/day has been shown in numerous controlled studies to be
an effective treatment for IC. If you try to get into the chemistry of why it
might work, it gets complicated. There are lots of theories, but we don't just
consume L-arginine. There are thousands of other substances that we in our
body, each of which may respond to the L-arginine differently.

While L-arginine is quite effective for my IC, I can't tolerate more than 1000
mg/day. If I take more, then I become deeply depressed. Recently, somebody else
on the newsgroup mentioned they had a similar problem with L-arginine. Still,
this isn't mentioned as a potential side effect. And it does seem to be pretty
rare. I just wanted to warn you so if you decide to try the stuff you know that
severe depression can be a side effect. And when you're that depressed, you
can't even think straight enough to make the connection! Still, it's a good
drug if you can take it. It's not very expensive, either. L-arginine is just
another treatment for IC that works for some and doesn't work for others.

Carole

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[CA2theEdge]

I thought chocolate was supposed to be really bad for IC! I didn't understand
your message clearly - If Lysine rich is good, doesn't that mean arginine is
bad? I'm confused.
CA