Lisinopril and cysteine

I have been taking lisinopril for about 2 1/2 years now. About 4 weeks ago I was having trouble sleeping, my legs hurt real bad and when I would wake up I would have a numbing tingling sensation in my legs and feet. Went to the doctor asked her if it could be the meds and she said she didn't think so and to continue to take it. I still continue to have problems, tired, weak muscles, hurt and a raw lump in the throat feeling. She sent me for a brain mri that showed white lesions on the brain. She said it could be from high blood pressure but said my has never really been that high or it could be MS. I am right now waiting to see a neuro dr to see if I have ms but after reading all these post I am wondering if it is the lisinopril. Has any one else had these types of symptoms?

I am a 57 yr old female who has been taking lisinopril for about 4 years, after the Zestril became too expensive. I have had the cough and intermittent shortness of breath for several years, but really did not attribute the shortness of breath to the drug until it became quite severe recently. I stopped taking it three days ago, and of course, am concerned that my BP will be out of control. I exercise, eat pretty well, and am about 20 lbs overweight. I also experience abdominal bloat that by evening I look six months pregnant, but no ankle swelling. I hate that. It doesn't seem to matter what I eat, still the bloat. Anyone else bloating? My question, have any of you who stopped taking the drug finally experienced an end to the shortness of breath? I notice I can still exercise moderately, and have the shortness regardless of sitting or exercising. Anyone out there truly get relief for symptoms and how soon after stopping

Any further info re cysteine / selenium depletion ? Also sources if possible.
Also, any info re muscle tension, fragility ?
I stopped Lisinopril earlier because of muscles tearing.
On taking it again, old muscle tears re-opened, forearm and back musles very tight.
Thank you.

This medicine can cause weight gain, energy and stamina problems, shortness of breath, etc...

It does this, I believe, mostly by interfering with thyroid function due to selenium and cysteine depletion.

Selenium (and zinc too) is depleted as the immune system uses these minerals to detoxify from the lisinopril and its associated chemicals and toxins.

Cysteine is depleted because it is used in repairing the lungs from the damage caused by lisinopril with the cough side-effect.

With selenium and cysteine depleted, the body runs low on selenocysteine, which is necessary for thyroid hormone reception and response all through out the body.

Also with selenium depletion, the thyroid has more difficulty making the thyroid hormone.

There are presently 56 pages of complaints about lisinopril.

Reading through them, there are a number of people who have weight issues due to lisinopril. I have had them myself. I used to be able to control my weight by just jogging a bit more, but while on lisinopril - and for a long long time after, no amount of jogging helped. I also started feeling more and more exhausted and finally couldn't even sustain a minimum amount of jogging.

You should consider getting off lisinopril before you catch any of the other side effects, as they can be debilitating and extremely long lasting, perhaps permanent (even after quitting).

You might consider supplementation with L-Carnitine or Acetly-L-Carnitine for increased energy and fat burning metabolism. (I have also found L-Glutamine to be helpful on my stomach - the lisinopril gave me lots of stomach problems, among other things.)

My opinion of one thing that's going on with the lisinopril is that it places a heavy (detoxification) load on the liver, and as a result the liver is not able to produce the same level of the so-called "conditional nutrients", such as L-Carnitine (important for fat burning metabolism) and N-Acetly-Cysteine (important for lung health, e.g. to fight the cough). As this medication shifts the primary function of the liver from normal operation to heavy detoxification, it also uses up valuable minerals, such as zinc and manganese, and vitamins, such as vit-b group. Eventually, these nutritonal depletions will result in some complex side effects, energy, and health issues (in addition to the other more directly-caused side effects like the cough).

I also believe that supplementation is the best way to get some of these nutrients. You'd have to eat a ton of food (and gain weight, which is counter productive to hypertension and other health issues) to get the specific nutrients that are being depleted.

Best of luck to all.