Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Discussion Board

I heard a recommendation that Co-enzyme Q10 may help some RLS patients. The search function returned only few results - has anybody tried it? Did it do something?

Regards, .f

I've used it regularly a few different times, but it never affected WED for me.

I started using it years ago, when a doctor put me on a statin. After a few weeks on the statin, my gums were so sore I could hardly eat, and I had a horrible case of shingles. A doctor who studied side effects of statins told me that they stripped the body of CoQ10, which tends to lessen anyway as we get older. He recommended it as a supplement. I stopped the stain and started with the CoQ10, and within a couple of days my gums were normal again, and the shingles finally faded away with no after effects.

So since that experience I've religiously taken about 100 mgs. of CoQ10 every day. I don't know if it helps with the WED or not, since I started taking it long before the WED got so bad. I do notice that if I stop taking it for a few days, my gums often get tender again.

I have been reading the book "Making a Good Brain Great" by Dr. Daniel Amen. He states that the research indicates the C0Q10 may be useful in slowing the progress of Parkinson's Disease. Apparently mutations on a gene on chromosome 4 produce Parkinson's Disease (PD) -- the gene helps regulate the activity of CoQ10 in the mitochondria. People with PD also have reduced CoQ10 activity in the basal ganglia.

While we know that WED shares some of the same treatment therapies as PD as relate to dopamine uptake, we don't know if we share any similarities in our regulation of CoQ10 activity. Its primary function is to convert oxygen into useable energy, and is a powerful antioxidant. So maybe it will help and maybe it won't... The book states it is not recommended for patients taking warfarin, or with high blood pressure, or with diabetes.

Why isn't it good for high blood pressure or diabetes ?

Ive used it for energy during the day... it helps a little