Amino Acids

5-HTP for anxiety, depression and insomnia: a clinically-effective serotonin precursor

October 16, 2015 By Trudy Scott 43 Comments

5-htp

5-Hydroxytryptophan or 5-HTP is an amino acid that increases production of serotonin in the brain alleviating anxiety, depression, insomnia, pain, carbohydrate cravings and more.

Here are some excerpts from an excellent paper published in Alternative Medicine Review in 1998 titled 5-Hydroxytryptophan: a clinically-effective serotonin precursor:

5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) is an aromatic amino acid naturally produced by the body from the essential amino acid L-tryptophan. Produced commercially by extraction from the seeds of the African plant, Griffonia simplicifolia, 5-HTP has been used clinically for over 30 years. The clinical efficacy of 5-HTP is due to its ability to increase production of serotonin in the brain.

In the central nervous system (CNS), serotonin has been implicated in regulation of sleep, depression, anxiety, aggression, appetite, temperature, sexual behavior, and pain sensation.

Therapeutic administration of 5-HTP has been shown to be effective in treating a wide variety of conditions, including depression, fibromyalgia, binge eating associated with obesity, chronic headaches, and insomnia.

I advise my clients to take all the amino acids between meals and away from protein containing food so they are no getting competition from other amino acids, thereby affecting absorption of the targeted individual amino acid they are taking. I typically make the same recommendation for taking 5-HTP however I simply do this to make things less complicated. In actual fact, 5-HTP can be taken with meals:

Intestinal absorption of 5-HTP does not require the presence of a transport molecule, and is not affected by the presence of other amino acids; therefore it may be taken with meals without reducing its effectiveness.

The recommended starting dose for 5-HTP is 50mg two or three times a day and it is well absorbed:

Initial dosage for 5-HTP is usually 50 mg three times per day with meals. If the clinical response is inadequate after two weeks, dosage may be increased to 100 mg three times per day. For insomnia, the dosage is usually 100-300 mg before bedtime. Because some patients may experience mild nausea when initiating treatment with 5-HTP, it is advisable to begin with 50 mg doses and titrate upwards.

5-HTP is well absorbed from an oral dose, with about 70 percent ending up in the bloodstream. It easily crosses the blood-brain barrier and effectively increases central nervous system synthesis of serotonin.

It’s well recognized that 5-HTP (and tryptophan) can impact both serotonin and melatonin levels but is often less recognized that other neurotransmitters can be increased too:

Other neurotransmitters and CNS chemicals, such as melatonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and beta-endorphin have also been shown to increase following oral administration of 5-HTP.

You can read the complete paper here at altmedrev.com, a publication of Thorne Research Inc.

The author does seem to favor 5-HTP over tryptophan but I have found that many of my clients do better on one versus the other. I typically start my clients on tryptophan unless they have benefited from 5-HTP in the past. I would also recommend tryptophan at night if someone is wired-tired and adrenal testing shows high cortisol levels as 5-HTP can raise cortisol levels.

It really all comes down to our own biochemical individuality. I recommend doing a trial to see which amino acid is going to work for your symptoms. I write about this in this blog: How to do an amino acid trial for anxiety

Low serotonin MAY be a factor in anxiety and/or depression (and research shows this to be a fact). Anxiety and/or depression could have one of many possible causes – low serotonin, blood sugar instability, poor diet, not eating enough protein, sugar, caffeine, gluten, low dopamine (for depression), pyroluria, inflammation etc.

If low serotonin is a factor then 5-HTP (or tryptophan) is one way to start to raise serotonin levels so you can feel calm, confident, happy, pain-free again, as well as sleep through the night and end the afternoon and evening cravings.

Have you found 5-HTP to be effective? Please share how much you take/took and when, and how it made you feel. Did you also try tryptophan and do you prefer 5-HTP? We’d love to hear in the comments below.

Have you got questions? Feel free to ask in the comments below.

If this information sounds intriguing and you’d like practical help to figure out if you could possibly benefit from 5-HTP or one of the other amino acids, I invite you to join us in one of The Amazing Aminos for Anxiety homestudy group programs. This homestudy group program will provide guidance with using each of the targeted individual amino acids.

How to do an amino acid trial for anxiety

October 9, 2015 By Trudy Scott 184 Comments

The best way to figure out if you have a particular brain chemical imbalance and if you’ll benefit from a certain amino acid, is to do a trial. This is something I do with all my clients with anxiety, when we’re working one-one-one and with those in group programs, and it works really well.

Because the effects of amino acids can be felt within a few minutes to a few days, it’s easy to confirm whether you do in fact have a deficiency in a certain area and whether you’ll benefit from supplementing with the associated amino acid.

How does doing a trial work?

I have my clients complete the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution and check off their symptoms on the low serotonin, low GABA, low catecholamines, low endorphins, and low blood sugar sections. The rating uses scale of 1-10 with 10 being worst.
I also have my clients review the Amino Acids Precautions and we figure out which amino acids they can and can’t use
I have them do a trial of the amino acid that resonates the most with them. For example if they have really bad obsessive thoughts, anxiety in the head, negative self-talk we’ll start with trying to address low serotonin with tryptophan or 5-HTP. If they resonate more with physical tension and overwhelm, we’ll start with trying to address low GABA with GABA.
We trial one amino acid at a time and use them opened onto the tongue or chewed (and held there for 1 to 2 minutes) for getting immediate feedback.
I have my client rate themselves before the trial and then afterwards (10 is worst), looking for benefits and how many notches they improved. This helps us figure out how much to start with.
- If it’s a big improvement (like 4 or 5 notches) they may start on 1 of the lowest dose (for example 1 x 500mg tryptophan or 1 x 125 mg GABA).
- If they see a small improvement (like 1 or 2 notches) we may start with the lowest dose and give them a range to try over the next week (for example 1-2 x 500mg tryptophan or 1-2 x 125 mg GABA)
During the trial and over the next week we also look for possible negative effects, such as a headache or feeling light-headed. If the adverse effects of supplemental amino acids are uncomfortable, taking 1,000 mg of vitamin C is an effective short-term antidote.
If someone is very sensitive to small amount of supplements, we may have them do a trial with a dab or two rather than a whole capsule and start really low during the next week.
We typically allow a week to see how the selected amino acid is working and adjust up or down during that week until we find the optimal amount.

What are the advantages of doing a trial?

You are able to target the amino acid for your specific needs – I write more about this here: Targeted individual amino acids: what do we really mean?
You get feedback immediately – the amino acid works or doesn’t
You are able to figure out what your starting dose of the amino should be and are able to adjust upwards accordingly
You get more in tune with your symptoms and how certain amino acids affect you
You can use the results (provided you log them – this is something I recommend and encourage) if you ever need a tune up in the future

Which amino acids have you found to be effective? Did you do a trial to figure out which one to try and how did that work for you? We’d love to hear in the comments below?

Have you got questions about doing a trial? Feel free to ask in the comments below.

If this information is useful but also sounds a little overwhelming, check out the The Amazing Aminos for Anxiety homestudy program. This homestudy group program provides guidance with using each of the targeted individual amino acids and how to do a trial.

The Amazing Aminos for Anxiety Homestudy program launch

October 8, 2015 By Trudy Scott 53 Comments

I’m so excited to launch the home study version of the Amazing Aminos for Anxiety program!

A powerful home study program on how to use five of the top individual amino acid supplements to help you eliminate anxiety, social anxiety and panic attacks. The added bonus is that you will also feel less stressed and overwhelmed, happier, more energetic and focused and will sleep through the night! Your cravings and emotional eating will be a thing of the past – no willpower required and no feelings of being deprived. You really do deserve to feel on top of the world and the amino acids may well be the answer!

Here’s what a past participant said about the live version I offered earlier this year:

This class was extremely helpful for me personally and professionally. I was intimidated with amino acids and Trudy’s class improved my understanding and confidence. In addition to her well organized class materials and information, she also shared personal experiences which made me feel like I wasn’t the only person with anxiety issues and there is a solution to managing anxiety.

I’m also seeing how gluten, alcohol and sugar really change my mood and anxiety/depression levels. I am very conscious of the consequences for me personally if I choose to eat/drink any of these. Before, I knew it was not good for me or anyone, now I know what happens with anxiety and brain function, in addition to the digestive and weight issues.

We’re offering 3 versions:

#1 Basic: Homestudy if you’re a DIY person OR
#2 Plus: Homestudy + 2 Q and A Live with Trudy (if you need some guidance and will have questions you can opt for this one) OR
#3 Premium: Homestudy + 4 Q and A live + private Facebook group for group discussions and interactions.

You can read all about it and sign up here:
https://www.everywomanover29.com/aminosforanxietyhs

Got questions or comments? Please comment below

Amino Acids and Neurotransmitters: Trudy Scott’s MINDD interview

September 18, 2015 By Trudy Scott 16 Comments

mindd-interview

This time last year folks from the MINDD Foundation interviewed me at the Integrative Medicine for Mental Health conference. The MINDD Foundation helps practitioners and patients discover and implement effective treatments for Metabolic, Immunologic, Neurologic, Digestive, Developmental conditions that often affect the mind.

In this video I share about the amino acids tryptophan and 5-HTP for raising low serotonin levels, and the amino acid GABA for raising low GABA levels.

Here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution so you can see if low serotonin or low GABA may be a factor. Be sure to check the Amino Acid Precautions and work with your doctor if you are taking an SSRI.

Here are some useful related blog posts on the topic of amino acids:

It’s very timely to be sharing this information. In the recent webinar I shared that we know benzodiazepines do patients more harm than good and a brand new study shows that the psychiatric drug called Paxil, claimed to be a safe and effective treatment for depression in adolescents, is actually ineffective and associated with serious side effects. It is a reanalysis of an influential study originally published in 2001.

While the amino acids and other nutrients are powerful, we must always remember to get the foundations in place – real whole traditional food, no sugar, no caffeine and no gluten. This paper published earlier this year says it perfectly: Nutritional medicine as mainstream in psychiatry

Evidence is steadily growing for the relation between dietary quality (and potential nutritional deficiencies) and mental health, and for the select use of nutrient-based supplements to address deficiencies, or as monotherapies or augmentation therapies.

We advocate recognition of diet and nutrition as central determinants of both physical and mental health.

I will add that many of the recent “real whole traditional food” papers are not yet mentioning the mental health effects of gluten. Many say to include “whole grains.” So I’d like to share this wonderful testimonial recently posted on this blog: Bipolar, disruptive mood or gluten and junk food?

Ever since childhood I could not concentrate and focus at school. This seriously affected my grades. This continued into my working career and caused me to loose several jobs. Whilst I had periods of wellness this condition always returned to plague me. In one job as a retail manager I became driven for a six month period and then I crashed into deep depression sleeping for 18 hours a day. Prior to this crash I was stuffing my face with bread and fats. I was stressed and anxious. Ten years later this happened again.

I was diagnosed with bipolar 2. Only now at the age of 58 I discovered that I have an intolerance to wheat (gluten) after an elimination diet I feel so much better – all my symptoms are gone. It is like a MIRACLE! MY diagnosis is nonsense.

If the information in this video and article sounds intriguing and you’d like guidance with using targeted individual amino acids like tryptophan, 5-HTP and GABA (as well as glutamine and DPA/endorphigen), together with making diet and lifestyle changes, stay tuned for the launch of The Amazing Aminos for Anxiety homestudy group program.

You can add your name in the comments if you’d like to be notified when it launches. You’re also welcome to sign up here to be notified when we have more details about the start date.

Feel free to ask additional questions in the comments.

Oral GABA supplementation allows better prioritizing of planned actions: new research

September 4, 2015 By Trudy Scott 43 Comments

gabaexamples — Prothera 500mg GABA and Source Naturals GABA Calm (with 125mg GABA) are examples of GABA products I use with my clients

A paper recently published in Scientific Reports: γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) administration improves action selection processes: a randomised controlled trial provide the first evidence for a possible causal role of the GABA-ergic system in modulating performance in action cascading:

In order to accomplish a task goal, real-life environments require us to develop different action control strategies in order to rapidly react to fast-moving visual and auditory stimuli. When engaging in complex scenarios, it is essential to prioritise and cascade different actions.

A good example of when we may do something like this is driving a car in busy traffic:

you are fast-moving
there are noises all around you – for example: wind, hooting horns, big trucks, rain and water, passengers talking etc.
you are seeing things all around you – for example: the steering wheel, the speedometer, the other cars, the road, road signs, billboards, the scenery, your passengers etc.

The findings of this study, which involved the administration of 800 mg of synthetic GABA (compared to placebo), found that study participants were better able to prioritize planned actions (for example: make safe driving decisions).

I’m really pleased the study addressed the GABA-blood brain barrier controversy:

In the literature, there are controversial findings about GABA entering the brain through the blood brain barrier (BBB). The BBB is a tightly sealed layer of cerebral endothelial cells that form continuous tight junctions and prevent most solutes from entering the brain on the basis of size, charge, and lipid solubility. However, as pointed out by Shyamaladevi and colleagues, recent studies have demonstrated that the BBB is much more dynamic than assumed in the past, and some passage of solutes can occur by transcytosis, carrier-mediated transport, or simple diffusion of hydrophobic substances

While there is some evidence in favor of only a limited penetration of GABA into the brain, a more recent study with rats has shown that the administration of GABA alone increased brain GABA concentration, when compared to untreated rats.

In addition, the synthetic GABA-like agent gabapentin, which mimics the chemical structure of GABA, leads to an overall increase in central GABA levels and a recent study using 7-T MRS reported an increase in GABA concentration in the visual cortex of healthy participants after gabapentin administration.

Michael Jurgelewicz, DC, DACBN, DCBCN wrote this Designs for Health article about the study: GABA supplementation may help improve ability of prioritizing planned actions, mentioning two possible mechanisms of action as to how GABA supplementation may improve prioritizing planned actions as well as reducing anxiety:

Oral GABA supplementation can act directly on the CNS in a peripheral aspect through the gut. There is definitely a gut-brain relationship between nutrition and the gut microbiome and how they support brain health and function. The gut and brain communicate through the nervous system, immune system, and hormones.

In addition, the hypothalamus (emotional neuroendocrine control center of the brain) is outside and not protected by the blood brain barrier, so these two factors can explain how GABA affects the CNS. It is clear in the research that GABA is helpful with anxiety, and there are many case studies which demonstrate its effectiveness.

Here are some comments from 3 different people on facebook, demonstrating GABA’s effectiveness:

GABA was huge for super tight neck and shoulders! Within 5 min of taking I experienced tremendous relief of muscles and anxiety too

I like True Calm for clients that can’t wind down at night too, it has GABA in it.

GABA, definitely. It’s really helped my tight upper back and neck to feel better.

If you’re looking for more GABA info, during season 2 of The Anxiety Summit, I talked about the BBB, the GABA challenge (which I’m not in favor of) and GABA-receptors in peripheral tissues: Targeted individual amino acids for eliminating anxiety: practical applications.

I would like to add that 800mg of GABA is a much higher dose than I have my clients start with. I have them start on 125mg (as part of Source Naturals GABA Calm) and go up from there. Enzymatic Therapy has a nice 250mg GABA product and I really like the Nutritional Fundamentals for Health GABA-T SAP which has GABA 300 mg and 150 mg l-Theanine 150 mg. The Prothera 500mg GABA is a good choice if you can tolerate higher amounts. Here are links to these and other brands I like. I don’t typically use pharmaGABA but it does work for some individuals (so it may be worth doing a trial. Always consider possible histamine reactions to pharmaGABA if you have histamine intolerance or MCAS (mast cell activation syndrome).

I do not recommend phenibut under any circumstances. Even though the FDA warned companies to cease distribution in 2019 I am shocked to see it’s still available and is still recommended to children.

The promising results of this randomised controlled trial show that oral GABA intake makes a difference and does have an impact on behavior. This is big news!

Resources if you are new to using GABA as a supplement

If you are new to using GABA as a supplement, here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution (you can see all the low GABA symptoms). It has been updated with “Inability to prioritize planned actions”.

If you suspect low levels of GABA or any of the neurotransmitters and do not yet have my book, The Antianxiety Food Solution – How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood, and End Cravings, I highly recommend getting it and reading it before jumping in and using amino acids on your own so you are knowledgeable. And be sure to share it with the team you or your loved one is working with.

There is an entire chapter on the amino acids and they are discussed throughout the book in the sections on gut health, blood sugar control, sugar cravings, self-medicating with alcohol and more.

The book doesn’t include product names (per the publisher’s request) so this blog, The Antianxiety Food Solution Amino Acid and Pyroluria Supplements, lists the amino acids that I use with my individual clients and those in my group programs.

If, after reading this blog and my book, you don’t feel comfortable figuring things out on your own (i.e. doing the symptoms questionnaire and respective amino acids trials), a good place to get help is the GABA QuickStart Program. This is a paid online/virtual group program where you get my guidance and community support.

If you are a practitioner, join us in The Balancing Neurotransmitters: the Fundamentals program. This is also a paid online/virtual program with an opportunity to interact with me and other practitioners who are also using the amino acids.

Have you noticed that you can handle complex planned tasks and are better at prioritization when you are taking GABA (or have taken it in the past)?

And would you say that it’s the overwhelm factor that is being removed/lessened when taking GABA?

If you are a practitioner are you seeing results like this with your clients/patients?

If you have questions please share them here too.

Targeted individual amino acids: what do we really mean?

August 21, 2015 By Trudy Scott 54 Comments

tryptophan — Lidtke Tryptophan 500mg is an example of an individual amino acid

You’ve heard me talking about using targeted individual amino acids with my clients but what do we really mean by targeted and individual?

“Targeted” means the amino acids are very specific for a person who may have anxiety, or low mood, or feelings of negativity or worry or overwhelm or experience emotional eating.

The big focus is that they’re targeted to a person’s “individual” needs. We each have our own unique biochemistry and therefore our needs are different. There is no one-size fits all.

There is another aspect to “individual” amino acids – it means they are not part of a combination product but are standalone amino acids such as tryptophan, 5-HTP, GABA, tyrosine, glutamine and DLPA. This allows them to be easily titrated up or down as needed based on your individual needs. There is one combination product I really like and use a lot and that is GABA Calm (it has GABA, tyrosine and glycine). Here are the brands I like.

These targeted individual amino acids work really well and are very powerful when you figure out the right amino acids you need. I have all my clients complete the Amino Acid Questionnaire and we start our trials based on this.

These targeted individual amino acids also work well when you take them in the correct amounts – doing a trial and starting low is the best way to do this. Most people can start with the typical starting amount. For example, 500mg tryptophan is typical to start with and I like to start my clients on 125mg GABA. However, if you’re very sensitive, you may be what we call a “pixie dust” person and may need a few dabs to start.

These targeted individual amino acids also work best when you take them at the right time. Different amino acids are more effective at certain times: like tryptophan/5-HTP later in the day; tyrosine earlier; and GABA, glutamine and DPA throughout the day.

You may have changed your diet to a real whole foods diet, you may be on medications for anxiety or depression, and maybe you’re not getting results or maybe you’re experiencing side-effects from the meds.

Even though you’ve quit coffee and sodas you still feel anxious and overwhelmed and you still stress-eat. You just know intuitively that you’ve got to get to the root cause of the problem.

Maybe you’ve removed gluten, sugar and other carbs but you still feel deprived. You still feel like you need that reward or treat. Maybe the addictive nature of gluten/sugar/carbs is getting the better of you still can’t quit and there’s something missing.

When there’s this “something that’s missing”, this is when you would consider targeted individual amino acids. We are figuring out if you’ve got this deficiency, and then we are supplementing short-term, for 3 to 12 months, to raise your levels so you can start to feel good, calm, happy and motivated again, with no more cravings.

Please be aware that not everyone benefits from individual amino acids. They only work if you have a deficiency and actually need them. If you don’t need them they won’t make any difference or they may even make you feel worse. For example, if you don’t need tryptophan and take it (or even if you take too much) you may feel more anxious and more emotional. This can happen even if you score high on the low serotonin section of the Amino Acid questionnaire. There are many other causes of anxiety: low blood sugar, not enough protein in the diet, food sensitivities, poor gut health/low levels of good bacteria, parasites, candida, caffeine and/or sugar consumption, high cortisol and many more. I share the 60+ causes here.

If you do have a deficiency and do find the correct combination of targeted individual amino acids you will amazed at the results and like me, you will soon be calling them the amazing amino acids.

Please do share if you’ve experienced benefits from the amazing amino acids (targeted and individual of course). If you’ve been using them for awhile you may find some answers to your common questions here: Amino acids for anxiety – which ones and for how long? And here is a blog called Troubleshooting when you are not getting results.

If this is all new to you please share how you score on the Amino Acid Questionnaire.

If this all sounds intriguing and also a little overwhelming, stay tuned for the launch of The Amazing Aminos for Anxiety homestudy group program that will be starting in September. This homestudy group program will provide guidance with using each of the targeted individual amino acids. You’re welcome to sign up here to be notified when we have details about the start date and more.