L-Carnitine Side Effects

Carnitine is a naturally available, quaternary ammonium compound. It is produced from amino acids, methionine and lysine. Vitamin C is essential for the biosynthesis of carnitine. Carnitine exists in two stereoisomeric forms. These are L-carnitine and D-carnitine. L-carnitine is the biologically active form. Its function is to transport fatty acids from the cytosol to the mitochondria in body cells. In mitochondria, fatty acids are burnt to release energy. In this way, L-carnitine increases the use of fat as an energy source in your body. This is the reason that makes it useful in weight loss.

L-carnitine is found in avocados, dairy products, red meat, fruits, vegetables and fermented soybean products like tempeh. Insufficient intake of such foods may result in a deficiency of L-carnitine in your body. Lower levels of L-carnitine cause a number of complications. The most important ones are muscle fatigue, low blood sugar levels and muscle cramps. Moreover, growing children and pregnant women need higher levels of L-carnitine. Therefore, L-carnitine nutritional supplements are available in the market.

L-carnitine is used to treat a wide variety of mental disorders, like Alzheimer's disease, thinking inability associated with alcohol addiction, depression and memory loss related with growing age. In addition to these, acetylated form of L-carnitine, called Acetyl L-carnitine, is used in the treatment of poor circulation in the brain, nerve pain due to drugs or diabetes, cataracts and genetic disorders like Down's syndrome. The nutritional and health benefits of L-carnitine are numerous but should never be taken without a doctor's prescription. Many cases have been reported to have suffered from L-carnitine side effects.

Various Possible Side Effects of L-carnitine
Taking normal levels of L-carnitine does not cause any negative effect on your body. Generally, the prescribed dosage of L-carnitine is not more than 5 grams per day. The dosage needs to be strictly followed. Many cases have been reported where higher levels L-carnitine resulted in some sort of discomfort. Thus, the possibility of L-carnitine side effects is rare but not nil. Following is a list of possible side effects of L-carnitine.

• Many people say that they feel energetic after taking L-carnitine. Taking it at night or late evening might cause difficulty in falling asleep.
• Taking more than prescribed doses of L-carnitine often causes diarrhea along with a noticeable increase in appetite.
• Many patients on long term prescription of L-carnitine complain of 'fishy' smell from their bodies. Some of them also develop skin problems like irritation, itching and skin rashes.
• In case you are a patient of peripheral vascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, kidney disease and cirrhosis, you should inform your doctor about it if he is prescribing you L-carnitine, as it is believed to interact with the medications for the same.
• L-carnitine is not recommendable to a person who is on cancer medications like doxorubicin. This is because it tends to protect the heart cells from the toxic effects of doxorubicin, and thus reduces its effectiveness.
• Since L-carnitine takes part in the metabolic processes, some mild, uncomfortable experiences are quite natural. Many people feel nauseous and dizzy in the initial days of its intake. Usually, such side effects disappear as the body gets used to it.
• Many people who are on regular dosage of L-carnitine suffer from frequent skin rash, vomiting, diarrhea and agitation.

The health benefits of L-carnitine are far more than its potential risks on your overall wellness. It is safe and remains as such, as long as you take it in prescribed dosages. The possibility of side effects of L-carnitine arises only when you do not use it as advised. Therefore, strictly follow the dosage directions and instructions given by your health care professional, to derive all the benefits of L-carnitine safely.