Hidradenitis Suppurativa Support Group
Hidradenitis suppurativa (hi-drad-uh-NIE-tis sup-yoo-ruh-TIE-vuh) is rare, long-term skin condition that features small, painful lumps under the skin. The disease manifests as clusters of chronic abscesses or boils, sometimes as large as baseballs, that are extremely painful to the touch and may persist for years with occasional to frequent periods of inflammation,...
I have used zinc for about two years now (100 mg/day with 50 mg tabs broken in half taken four times per day. Easier on the stomach). Worked well until it appeared I had built up a tolerance to it. Then I tried Turmeric, two 500 mg tabs with pepper for better absorption. That stopped a break out in two days and then it started to really mess with my stomach and inflame my hemorrhoids. It MIGHT just be the pepper doing this. Is there something other than pepper that helps Turmeric absorb into my body better?
First, personally I use Curcumin supplements (curcumin is the active ingredient in turmeric that gives it the yellow colour and is beneficial medicinally) as I find eating enough turmeric to be beneficial is difficult. You are correct that it should be taken with pepperine (the alkaloid in black pepper), as it slows the liver function long enough for the curcumin/turmeric to be properly absorbed (without it, turmeric tends to go right through you with little benefit). I have seen such fantastic results myself just with a 450mg curcumin capsule and a tsp (approx.40-50mg pepperine I believe) of fresh ground pepper. You really do need the pepper to get that absorption, but have you looked into Bioperine? It's a pepperine absorption supplement in 10mg doses. I've never used it, but I think you only need around 20mg of pepperine a day anyway, and it would definitely be way more mild on the stomach.
It's important to note though, that when taking pepper or bioperine for absorption you have to be really careful/ avoid the method if you're on other medications that need to filter through the liver and be expelled.