Re: sutherlandia

Trapper, I do not know how much is too much.  Instead I rely on what has been recommended by both the makers of the patented drug version, the herbal supplement and the directions for making your own home remedy version.  Certainly people who take blood thinners such as Wayfarin/Coumadin and people with high blood pressure and other heart issues should exercise caution since the cardiac glycosides in oleander extract cross assay with digoxin/digitalis (though the total amount as noted above has been estimated to be about 1/40th the amount of a normal dose of digoxin).

On the other hand, the Phase I FDA toxicity trials on Anvirzel (whose purpose is to determin maximum safe dosage) never did reach a limiting toxic amount but instead reached an amount beyond which it was considered impractical to increase via injection (Anivrzel was orginally produced only for injection, but later was administered orally as well).

If I were a foolhardy soul I would likely increase gradually (which is recommended anyway) and stop at the first sign increased pulse or other significant effectsd unless and until the body became accustomed to that amount.  As it is, I personally would not exceed the maximum recommended dose of 3 capsules twice a day for the Sutherlandia OPC, nor can I recommend anyone else do so.

The president of the company that made Aniverzel once told me that the dosage amounts were well within safety limits but also cautioned that there were limits and that the bell curve increased rather sharply as one neared the point of demarcation between safe and dangerous amounts.

In other words, my friend, once someone begins pushing far beyond the recommended amount you may get to a point where one amount seems safe and yet just a little bit more is dangerous.

Be careful, o reckless one!