Ray Peat Supplements: Everything He Wrote About, One by One

Ray Peat wrote about a short list of supplements again and again: vitamin E, aspirin, niacinamide, thyroid, pregnenolone and progesterone, plus gelatin, salt and calcium.

He called vitamin E and salt the safest ones. He treated most of the others as tools for specific situations, on top of food, not instead of it.

One note before the list. Everything below comes from the articles on his website. It does not include his interviews, newsletters or emails, where a lot of the supplement advice people repeat comes from. If something is missing here, that is why. Each link goes to our page on the topic, where every point names the article it comes from.

Ray Peat vitamin E

He described vitamin E as an estrogen antagonist, an energy promoter and an anti-inflammatory. In his account its real job is to protect against the damage done by polyunsaturated fats, estrogen and iron.

The amount he mentions is about 100 units a day, enough to cover an occasional restaurant meal. He used the natural form, and he said not to take it at the same moment as iron-rich food, because iron destroys it. He was clear that the protection is only partial. It was never a license to eat seed oils. (Ray Peat on vitamin E)

Ray Peat aspirin

He saw aspirin as one of the most broadly protective substances available. He wrote that the stomach risk was exaggerated when newer painkillers needed a market, that aspirin lowers estrogen production, and that it keeps fatty acids from flooding the blood.

His practical points: dissolve it in water, raise the dose gradually because the stomach builds tolerance over a few days, and know that it is absorbed through the skin. (Ray Peat on aspirin)

That is his view. Aspirin causes bleeding in some people. Read aspirin benefits and risks and talk to a doctor before taking it regularly.

Ray Peat niacinamide

He valued niacinamide because it holds back the release of free fatty acids from the tissues. With fewer fatty acids in the blood, cells can burn sugar again.

He put it first among the supplements that most often correct diabetes-like conditions, and named it with aspirin and carbon dioxide as something to use for fatigue. He explained the large doses as compensation for our exposure to unsuitable fats. He also described a calming, anti-excitatory effect. (Ray Peat on niacinamide)

Ray Peat thyroid

Thyroid is the center of his work. By a thyroid supplement he meant one that contains some T3, the active hormone, not T4 alone. He judged the result by temperature, pulse and symptoms, and gave the TSH test only moderate weight.

He tied it to food. The conversion of T4 to T3 needs glucose, so he wrote about enough sugar and protein, and liver about once a week. (Ray Peat on thyroid)

Thyroid hormone is a prescription drug. Too much is dangerous for the heart. This is a conversation to have with a doctor, with blood tests.

Ray Peat pregnenolone and DHEA

He grouped pregnenolone, progesterone and DHEA as the three youth-associated hormones. He described pregnenolone as the main brain-protective steroid, with a strong anti-stress action.

He was more careful with DHEA. He wrote that young people make about 12 to 15 milligrams a day, and that people who took too much were found to have abnormally high estrogen. His conclusion was that doses which only restore normal levels are unlikely to be toxic. (Ray Peat on pregnenolone and DHEA)

These are hormones. Use them with a doctor. What the trials found is in does pregnenolone increase estrogen.

Progesterone

Progesterone was his original research subject. He described it as the main protective hormone, opposing estrogen and cortisol. His own preparation was progesterone dissolved in vitamin E, which he wrote is absorbed through the skin and the gut. He treated thyroid, protein and light as the conditions that let the body make its own. It is a hormone, so the same rule applies: with a doctor. (Ray Peat on progesterone)

The rest of the list

• Gelatin and glycine. He argued that muscle meat alone delivers too much tryptophan and cysteine, and that gelatin balances it. He mentions 5 to 10 grams with a large serving of meat, and gelatin or broth at bedtime. (gelatin)
• Salt. He wrote that restricting salt raises adrenaline and aldosterone and disturbs sleep. His advice was to salt food to taste, and to have something salty and sweet at bedtime. (salt)
• Calcium. Milk and cheese were his daily base. For a quick anti-stress effect he mentions calcium carbonate, from eggshell or oyster shell, with vitamins D and K. (calcium)
• Vitamins A, D and K. Liver about once a week for vitamin A, and not cod liver oil. Enough vitamin D and calcium to keep parathyroid hormone low. Vitamin K when using antibiotics or eating a raw carrot every day. (vitamins A, D and K)
• Magnesium. He tied it to the thyroid: cells only hold magnesium when they have energy. He named meats, fruits, leaves and coffee as food sources. He listed magnesium with vitamin E for the heart, and found sodium and magnesium supplements helpful for premenstrual syndrome. (magnesium)
• Vitamin B1. He lists thiamine with niacinamide for blood sugar problems, and as a way to raise carbon dioxide and lower lactate. (carbon dioxide)
• Baking soda and carbon dioxide. Sometimes extra salt and baking soda, with enough calcium, to raise the carbon dioxide held in the tissues. He also suggested breathing into a paper bag for a minute or two. (carbon dioxide)
• Coffee and caffeine. He called caffeine a vitamin-like nutrient, and coffee a source of magnesium and niacin. With food, with sugar, never on an empty stomach. (coffee)
• Coconut oil. He listed vitamin E and coconut oil first among supplements for protecting the brain, and wrote that coconut oil raises the metabolic rate. (coconut oil)
• Activated charcoal and cascara. Charcoal to bind endotoxin, but only now and then, because it also binds vitamins. He also defended cascara, a traditional laxative. (fiber)
• On the skin. He wrote that niacinamide, progesterone, vitamin K and coenzyme Q10 can improve the metabolism of the local tissue when applied topically, and that aspirin and saturated fats can also be protective there. (skin)

What he told people to avoid

• Fish oil and cod liver oil. He counted them with the seed oils, because they are highly unsaturated and break down at body temperature. (PUFA)
• Iron supplements and iron-fortified foods, unless there is a real need. He drank coffee with meat to block iron absorption. (iron)

The honest part

• This is a summary of what one biologist wrote. It is not a protocol and it is not medical advice.
• He did not run clinical trials of these supplements. Much of what he cited was animal and cell research.
• Thyroid, progesterone, pregnenolone and DHEA are hormones. Aspirin is a drug with bleeding risk. None of them belong in a stack you copied from a list.
• He gave very few doses in his articles. The numbers above are the only ones in our source files. Doses you see quoted online usually come from interviews and emails that I have not checked.
• He put food first. His own basic list was milk, cheese, eggs, shellfish, fruit and coconut oil, with vitamin E and salt as the safest supplements.

What I take from it

My own order is the same as his. Fix the food first: enough carbohydrate, gelatin, salt, calcium, and no seed oils. Vitamin E is the one supplement I would keep if I had to drop the rest.

The food side is in the Ray Peat diet, and every topic he wrote about is in the Ray Peat hub.

Quick answers

What supplements did Ray Peat recommend?

In his website articles he wrote most often about vitamin E, aspirin, niacinamide, thyroid, pregnenolone, progesterone, gelatin, salt, calcium with vitamins D and K, magnesium, vitamin B1 and coffee. He called vitamin E and salt the safest supplements.

How much vitamin E did Ray Peat suggest?

The amount he mentions in his articles is about 100 units a day of natural vitamin E, not taken together with iron-rich food. He wrote that its protection against polyunsaturated fat is only partial.

How did Ray Peat take aspirin?

He wrote that dissolving it in water minimizes stomach irritation and that the dose can be raised gradually. Aspirin can cause bleeding, so regular use should be discussed with a doctor.

What did Ray Peat say about niacinamide?

That it inhibits the release of free fatty acids, which lets cells use glucose. He listed it first among supplements for diabetes-like conditions and with aspirin and carbon dioxide for fatigue.

What thyroid supplement did Ray Peat mean?

One that contains some T3, the active hormone, not T4 alone, judged by temperature, pulse and symptoms. Thyroid hormone is a prescription drug and needs medical supervision.

What did Ray Peat say about pregnenolone?

He described it as the main brain-protective steroid with a strong anti-stress action. He was more cautious about DHEA, noting that the body makes about 12 to 15 mg a day in youth and that excess raised estrogen.