Cutler says ALA is one of the few agents that moves mercury out of the brain. Cilantro does as well, but Cutler is a scientist and wants to know exact dosages, which can't happen with cliantro the way it can with ALA. Thus, Cutler does not recommend using cilantro, but using ALA.

Cutler also says you need to use ALA after reducing the body load of mercury or else taking the mercury in the brain and adding to the load already in the body will only result in overload where the mercury may be redustributed back into the brain.

He also believes the load of ALA, as well as the chelating agent DMSA or DMPS needs to be fairly constant or symptoms will get worse. Thus, it is known as the frequent dose chelating method, or use frequent low dosages with as much time off as on. His protocol is specific with an extensive learning curve. There are many sites and some good Yahoo newsgroups devoted to his protocol.

Hey, Cutler folks, am I getting this straight?

When I used Cutler's protocol I was down to opening ALA capsules and just like a drug deaerl on B-movies, I found myself cutting the ALA into smaller packets because I was reacting so strongly to even small doses of it during a round.

I think I was down to about 12mg of ALA per dose, and my system couldn't handle that. I was working with a professional who said she talked regularly with Cutler, but no suggestion would make the rounds tolerable so I ended up quiting, which didn't do me any good in the long run.

We are all really trying to find what works for us. Some professionals say that if you reduce the body's load of mercury there will be a natural equalization in the body where mercury in organs like the liver, kidneys and thyroid, as well as the brain, will begin to release the mercury deposited there over time. Thus, reduce the body's load and the organs and brain will detoxify themselves.

However, other professionals, and I believe Cutler is in this latter group, do not believe that the brain will naturally get rid of mercury if you reduce the body's load first. They believe you need something like ALA to move the mercury out, but again, they caution that the body load should be reduced first before using ALA or you can cause more problems by redistributing mercury throughout the body's organs and even back into the brain itself.

Having tried Cutler's method and failed, I am using other methods to continue chelating mercury, because, like you, I continue to experie3nce mental symptoms and don't have much of a life because of mercury. I have concluded that I need to do whatever is necessary to get the mercury out if I am ever to hope to get a life.

In the end we all need to find what works for us, which is why newsgroups like this one are so good, we get ideas to try, we get to find what worked for others, what didn't work, and all kinds of suggestions.

But in the end, you and I both need to find what will get us healthy, even though what works for us may not work for someone else, and viseversa.

I hope this has helped....and good luck to all of us.