glutamine

The amino acid glutamine improves low mood by addressing gut health, and it has calming effects too

October 3, 2025 By Trudy Scott 2 Comments

Recent research has shown that the amino acid glutamine can positively affect gut health by supporting the gut microbiome, gut mucosal wall integrity, and by modulating inflammatory responses.

As modulated by the vagus nerve, via the enteric nervous system, the gut-brain connection can impact the brain’s neurochemical environment. Poor gut health can disrupt the balance of neurotransmitters, which can result in neuropsychiatric based conditions such as depression.

Glutamine supplementation may provide significant adjunctive nutritional support in cases of depression by promoting proper gut health and function.

The above is an excerpt from the paper, The role of glutamine in supporting gut health and neuropsychiatric factors, published in 2021.

The authors do note the fact that glutamine is a “fundamental precursor to the most prevalent neurotransmitters, GABA and glutamate.” This is why glutamine supplementation can be calming for many individuals and may sometimes be too stimulating for some folks. It also highlights the importance of biochemical individuality and why it’s important to find your ideal dose (more on that below).

I appreciate their call for more research on glutamine, “as well as studies which could explore using glutamine in concert with other supportive amino acids, such as GABA and tyrosine, in an effort to restore neurotransmitter equilibrium” (more on that below too).

Read on below to learn more about how glutamine directly supports gut health and what harms the gut; how to know if glutamine will be calming or too stimulating, and how much to use; and other clues that you may benefit from glutamine; and additional resources when are new to amino acids such as glutamine, GABA and others.

How glutamine directly supports gut health and what harms the gut

From the above paper, glutamine:

1) has a positive impact on sustaining the balance of the gut microbiome
2) increases the expression of tight junction proteins and the integrity of the intestinal lining (i.e. it heals leaky gut)
3) helps to minimize the inflammatory response in situations of gut mucosal irritation (i.e the inner most lining of the digestive tract).

The authors also discuss all of the many factors that are harmful for the gut: highly processed foods, refined sugars, saturated fat, and minimal healthy fatty acids and antioxidants; lack of probiotics and prebiotics; blood sugar swings; stress and high cortisol; medications and alcohol consumption. Much of this is addressed in my book “The Antianxiety Food Solution”

It’s well-worth reading the entire paper for a full understanding of the two-way gut-brain connection via the vagus nerve and the role of the microbiome when it comes to neurotransmitter production and much more.

How to know if glutamine will be calming or too stimulating, and how much to use

As mentioned above, the authors share that glutamine is a precursor to GABA, a calming neurotransmitter i.e. it is often calming.

Glutamine is also a precursor to glutamate and can be too stimulating for some, typically when very high doses are used.

The paper mentions studies that “observed the effects of glutamine supplementation used at doses of between 15 g and 30 g,” however my recommendation is to start low and slowly increase based on your unique need. I have clients and those in my programs start with 500 mg once a day and increase to 1-3 x 500 mg, up to 3 or 4 times a day.

The only way to know if it will be calming or stimulating is to do a trial alone i.e. with no other new supplements, and carefully track the effects.

I also find using glutamine powder and holding it for 1-2 minutes on the tongue is more effective and less is often needed. This has additional benefits of stopping intense sugar cravings in their tracks (more on this below).

Other clues that you may benefit from glutamine: symptoms of low blood sugar

As mentioned above, glutamine helps reduce intense sugar cravings, and prevents low blood sugar (which can actually cause anxiety and panic attacks). This aspect is not mentioned in the paper but addressing low blood sugar is yet another application of glutamine when it comes to anxiety and low mood.

Here are all the symptoms we see with low blood sugar:

Crave sugar, starch or alcohol any time during the day
Irritable, shaky, headachey – especially if going too long between meals
Intense cravings for sweets
Lightheaded if meals are missed
Eating relieves fatigue
Agitated, easily upset
Nervous, anxious, panic attacks

And here are some other blog posts that illustrate some of the above:

Together with low serotonin and low GABA, addressing low blood sugar is one of the most effective approaches I use with clients to help ease anxiety. We achieve this with the use of glutamine and by controlling blood sugar by starting the day with a breakfast that includes quality animal protein.

We may also use tyrosine if there are low dopamine symptoms and d-phenylalanine if there are low endorphin symptoms, in an “effort to restore neurotransmitter equilibrium.”

Additional resources when you are new to using glutamine, GABA or tyrosine, or other amino acids as supplements

We use the symptoms questionnaire to figure out if low blood sugar (indicating a possible need for glutamine) or low GABA (indicating a possible need for GABA or theanine) or low dopamine (indicating a possible need for tyrosine) or other neurotransmitter imbalances may be an issue for you.

If you suspect low levels of 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 practitioner/health 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, gluten, blood sugar control (this and glutamine is covered in an entire chapter too), sugar cravings, anxiety and mood issues. The importance of quality animal protein and healthy fats is also covered.

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 (if you have low GABA symptoms too). This is a paid online/virtual group program where you get my guidance and community support.

If you need serotonin support, the Serotonin QuickStart Program is a good place to get help. This is also a paid online/virtual group program where you get my guidance on using tryptophan and 5-HTP safely, and community support during 5 LIVE Q&A calls. You can sign up to be notified when the next live launch of this program is happening.

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.

Now I’d love to hear from you…

Has glutamine helped you with your leaky gut, low mood and/or offered calming effects?

What about intense cravings for something sweet or irritability and poor focus? And other low blood sugar symptoms?

How much do you find helps? And do you use powder or capsules?

Are you interested in a program to learn more about the safe and effective use of glutamine and/or tyrosine?

Feel free to share and ask your questions below.

GABA Calm and 5-HTP twice a day, after struggling with ADD-like symptoms, have made our day-to-day life so much better!

June 14, 2024 By Trudy Scott 14 Comments

Kimberly is a mom in the community and shared this wonderful feedback about her 8-year old son who is using just two amino acids:

I started my son on Gaba Calm and Serotrex (5-htp) twice a day after struggling with ADD-like symptoms for about 9 months. I’m not sure if he really has ADD or if his gut problems are to blame, but the amino acids have made our day-to-day life so much better!

I think we may need to do some work with his nervous system and on helping him learn to regulate his emotions, but he’s much less mouthy and argumentative than he was before. We still have hard days, but the supplements have helped pull me out of being exhausted and discouraged all the time from fighting with him constantly over everything.

I never get tired of hearing feedback like this and it’s not uncommon for young children (and adults) to see benefits like this very quickly.

She doesn’t know if he has ADD (attention deficit disorder) but she used the amino acids based on his symptoms (low GABA and low serotonin). We know it was the right choice because of his results. Could his symptoms improve even further? Absolutely! We typically increase one amino acid at a time watching for further improvement and stop when we reach the ideal dose.

Because she says “we still have hard days” I’d want to see her increase the GABA and 5-HTP (as mentioned above) and also consider a trial of DPA/d-phenylalanine (for low endorphin emotional symptoms) and possibly tyrosine (for low dopamine focus and attention issues). Low blood sugar can also cause an emotional rollercoaster and eating for blood sugar stability and glutamine helps so much.

When I hear “mouthy” and “argumentative” I immediately consider low serotonin but low blood sugar comes to mind too.

These additional amino acid trials would also be done one at a time with careful tracking of symptoms and adjustments up and down as needed.

If you’re not familiar with the symptoms of low serotonin, low GABA, low endorphins, low dopamine and low blood sugar you can see them all here.

Kimberly acknowledges that they may need to do work in other areas too – like learning to regulate his emotions and addressing gut issues. This is good as it’s seldom just one approach that is going to shift things.

Kimberly has also seen benefits with 5-HTP

I also love this feedback from Kimberly because she is less exhausted and no longer discouraged because her son is doing so much better.

By the way, this mom also experiences benefits from amino acids. 5-HTP helps her with sugar cravings. I shared her feedback in a blog post last year: Would using 5-HTP or tryptophan help when you crave sugar (as a sort of antidepressant) late afternoon/evening?

I was taking a break from tryptophan/5-HTP and realized after reading this post that that might be a mistake! So I added 5-HTP back in mid-afternoon and my sugar cravings are almost completely gone.

And 5-HTP also helped her late afternoon sadness and despair:

I took a 50 mg 5-HTP along with my mid-afternoon Endorphigen capsule, and within just a few minutes I felt the sadness and despair that I often feel in the late afternoon, start to lift. I was astonished at how quickly it worked!

I just love it when the amino acids work for mom and then mom helps her child.

It goes without saying that dietary changes are foundational in situations like this – often for the entire family. This means eating real whole foods, quality animal protein (especially at breakfast to help with blood sugar stability), organic veggies and fruit, fermented foods, healthy fats and no sugar/gluten/caffeine (all covered in detail in my book).

Assessing for and addressing nutritional deficiencies (like low zinc, low vitamin B6, low omega-3s, low iron etc.), removing toxins, addressing the gut (more on this below) and addressing infections are all important too. It’s always a comprehensive approach. But the good news is that you start to get results right away with amino acid supplementation, while you are figuring out everything else.

Gut issues and 5-HTP/serotonin and GABA

As mentioned above Kimberly also suspects possible gut problems with her son. These could include dysbiosis (microbiome imbalance), food sensitivities, leaky gut, parasites, candida and or digestive enzyme issues etc. These always need to be investigated and addressed – because they can all contribute to low GABA and low serotonin – but until the issues are resolved, you can start to see some symptom resolution with the amino acids.

The amino acids he is taking offer an added gut benefit too. In an animal study, Effects of Serotonin and Slow-Release 5-Hydroxytryptophan on Gastrointestinal Motility in a Mouse Model of Depression, 5-HTP was shown to normalize gut motility and growth of the enteric epithelium. The paper concludes that slow release 5-HTP “might be used to treat patients with intestinal dysfunction associated with low levels of serotonin.”

Interestingly, an in-vitro (test-tube) study found that: “Serotonin showed antifungal activity towards all isolates of candida.” This was for certain strains, such as albicans, glabrata, tropicalis, and a few others).

This review article published earlier this year, Gamma-aminobutyric acid as a potential postbiotic mediator in the gut-brain axis discusses the role GABA plays in “psychological disorders, including anxiety, depression, and stress” and also attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The authors also share that GABA has an impact on “gut microbiota composition” and confirms what has been reported in other research and what we see clinically: the “possibility that GABA may be a potent mediator of the gut-brain axis.”

Additional resources when you are new to using amino acids as supplements

As always, I use the symptoms questionnaire to figure out if low GABA or low serotonin or other neurotransmitter imbalances may be an issue.

If you suspect low levels of 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 practitioner/health 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, gluten, blood sugar control (this is covered in an entire chapter too), sugar cravings, anxiety and mood issues.

Wrapping up and your feedback

I’m thrilled Kimberly saw these benefits with 5-HTP and then helped her son with 5-HTP and GABA. I asked if I could share here to inspire other moms and give them hope and she said yes. I do always appreciate feedback from the community and being able to share it on the blog.

Now I’d love to hear from you – Does any of this resonate with you? If yes, which amino acid has helped you and your child and how has it helped?

If you’re a practitioner have you seen GABA and 5-HTP help in situations like this?

Reactive hypoglycemia in binge eating disorder, food addiction and intense sugar cravings, and how glutamine stops the cravings

February 9, 2024 By Trudy Scott 6 Comments

A number of years ago a woman came to see me looking for help for her anxiety, insomnia and out of control sugar cravings which she described as an “almost demonic urge to eat sugar and all things sweet.”

Before working with me she had been trying to control her low blood sugar levels (or hypoglycemia) by eating the right foods at the right times i.e. healthy fats and quality protein especially at breakfast. But this wasn’t enough to eliminate her intense sweet cravings. She would make and eat sweet treats all day long, using “healthier” sweeteners like monk fruit and maple syrup.

I had her complete the brain chemistry symptoms questionnaire and she scored high on all the low blood sugar symptoms as well as low GABA and low serotonin. We focused on low blood sugar first and the solution for her cravings was using 500 mg of glutamine opened onto her tongue.

Initially she was sure this would NOT work – how would she possibly be able to use glutamine in the midst of experiencing reactive hypoglycemia or low blood sugar?

I had the same conversation that I have with all my clients who would obviously rather eat something sweet than open a glutamine capsule onto their tongue: “If you have an intense craving for something sweet, tell yourself that you’re going to indulge, but also humor your nutritionist and take the glutamine anyway. You may be surprised to find your urge completely disappears.”

She did that and it worked time and time again, ending her demonic urge to eat something sweet every time and very quickly. And it helped her with all her low blood sugar symptoms.

This blog addresses the role of low blood sugar or reactive hypoglycemia in intense sugar cravings, binge eating disorder and food addiction, and how glutamine helps.

Research: Reactive hypoglycemia in binge eating disorder and food addiction

The 2023 paper, Reactive hypoglycemia in binge eating disorder, food addiction, and the comorbid phenotype: unravelling the metabolic drive to disordered eating behaviours, highlights the fact that “impaired metabolic response” such as fasting blood glucose fluctuations are a factor in binge eating and food addiction, driving out of control and “repetitive consumption of highly processed food.”

The researchers “investigated hypoglycemia events during a 5-hour-long oral glucose tolerance test” in 200 participants and “the association between the severity of eating psychopathology and the variability in hypoglycemia events was explored.”

The authors conclude as follows:

People with binge eating disorder/BED or food addiction/FA are prone to experiencing reactive hypoglycemia; food addiction severity may predict early and symptomatic hypoglycemia events. This can further reinforce disordered eating behaviours by promoting addictive responses, both biologically and behaviourally.

You can read the study here.

It’s worth noting that the participants did not have diabetes. I mention this because most of the reactive hypoglycemia research looks at diabetic patients. Reactive hypoglycemia in the non-diabetic population is considered controversial even amongst functional medicine and/or integrative practitioners. This paper stands out for this reason.

It’s also recently published which makes me excited. This research is confirming what we see clinically.

This research is very much in line with the demonic urge my client described, and directly tied to her low blood sugar and blood sugar swings. My client did not do a 5 hour oral glucose tolerance test. Instead we used the low blood sugar symptoms questionnaire (see below) and a trial of glutamine.

My client was also not diagnosed with binge eating disorder or food addiction but didn’t have to be for us to recognize the issue and have her benefit from nutritional support in the way of glutamine and learning to eat for blood sugar stability.

Unfortunately the authors do not discuss glutamine as a solution in this particular paper or in any other research on human participants who are non-diabetic. There are a few animal diabetes studies, with this 2013 study reporting that “glutamine was more effective in promoting glycemia recovery if compared with glucose, lactate, glycerol, or alanine.” The authors call for further investigations which I look forward to reading.

Low blood sugar symptoms and a glutamine trial

As a reminder here are the signs of low blood sugar:

Sugar cravings, binge eating and addiction symptoms:

Crave sugar, starch or alcohol any time during the day
Very intense cravings for sweets/sugar
Binge eating and/or food addiction (updated with this based on this research)

There are also anxiety, mood, sleep and energy symptoms when you have low blood sugar:

Nervous, anxious, panic attacks
Irritable, shaky, headachey – especially if you go too long between meals
Lightheaded if meals are missed
Agitated, easily upset
Eating relieves fatigue
Waking in the night or early hours with a jolt of anxiety/shakiness (I blogged about this here)

As I mention in the waking with a jolt/low blood sugar blog the good news is it’s relatively easy to figure out if low blood sugar is causing your symptoms. First I have clients rate their symptoms on the low blood sugar questionnaire and do a trial of glutamine. Next is figuring out the dosing and timing of glutamine, looking at a current food log and making dietary changes as needed.

Glutamine is always best opened on to the tongue but it must be used this way for stopping the intense sugar cravings quickly – as in immediately. It’s also used away from meals like all the amino acids.

If you notice improvements it’s very likely that reactive hypoglycemia or low blood sugar is a factor.

Glutamine for low blood sugar cravings: dosing and timing

As I share in my book and other blog posts, typically 500 mg glutamine is a good starting dose for intense cravings for sugary foods. We may increase based on individual needs and you may find you do need to use 500 mg -1000 mg two to three times a day when the intense desire for something sweet strikes – as blood sugar dips. Using a glutamine powder is a great way to use it especially if you find you do need more than 500 mg each time.

As I mentioned above when you use glutamine powder directly on the tongue (rather than mixed in water), the benefits are seen almost immediately and even if you don’t believe it could possibly work – like my client – your desire for sugar disappears.

GABA and serotonin support too

My client also needed GABA and serotonin support for her anxiety and sleep issues. Again, we used the low GABA and low serotonin symptoms questionnaire and did trials of GABA and tryptophan for her which helped further.

Sugar cravings and binge eating with other neurotransmitter imbalances too

Keep in mind that there is a sugar cravings aspect to all the neurotransmitter imbalances. The type of craving can be found on the above symptoms questionnaire. It’s not uncommon to need support more than one area:

Low blood sugar /hypoglycemia – glutamine for intense cravings at any time of the day
Low serotonin – tryptophan or 5-HTP for afternoon/evening cravings
Low endorphins – DPA for comfort/reward eating
Low catecholamines – tyrosine for low energy sugar cravings
Low GABA – GABA for stress eating

Glutamine product options – capsule vs powder

Products I recommend include Pure Encapsulations 500 mg l-glutamine (capsules opened on to your tongue) and Designs for Health l-glutamine powder as you find you need higher amounts. You can purchase these from my online store (Fullscript – only available to US customers – use this link to set up an account).

If you’re not in the US, Now l-glutamine 500 mg and Doctor’s best l-glutamine powder are products I recommend on iherb (use this link to save 5%).

Additional resources when you are new to using glutamine and other amino acids as supplements

We use the symptoms questionnaire to figure out if low blood sugar and/or low serotonin and/or low GABA and other neurotransmitter imbalances may be an issue for you.

If you suspect low levels of 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 practitioner/health team you or your loved one is working with.

Have you had success with glutamine for blood sugar stability and binge eating, food addiction and intense cravings for sugar and carbs?

Have you also found it helps with sleep, leaky gut and anxiety during the day?

If yes, how much helps you? And how often do you use it? And what sugary foods have you been able to stop eating?

If you’re a practitioner do you use glutamine and with clients/patients with these low blood sugar cravings? Do you recognize reactive hypoglycemia as a very real issue in non-diabetics?

And please let me know if it’s helpful that I’m now including product recommendations and where to get them?

Feel free to share and ask your questions below.

Waking with a jolt, feeling shaky and anxious: low blood sugar/hypoglycemia, glutamine and eating for blood sugar stability

February 2, 2024 By Trudy Scott 22 Comments

Low blood sugar is one of a number of causes of waking in the night or early hours, often with a jolt and feelings of anxiety or feeling like you’re having a panic attack. As shared in a recent blog post, cortisol that is high at night can cause very similar symptoms.

Because of a low blood sugar question on the high cortisol blog, today I’m explaining the very different solutions to each root cause: glutamine and eating for blood sugar stability when you have low blood sugar versus Seriphos when you have high cortisol.

Katherine shares that she has low cortisol and suspects hypoglycemia or low blood sugar, and is hesitant about using Seriphos:

My last 4 point cortisol test showed mine is low throughout the day. But I’m having episodes where I’m waking up in the mornings feeling a jolt (every time I wake up from sleeping) and sometimes also shaky and anxious.

A functional pharmacist suggested my blood sugar may be dropping during the night and hypoglycemia could cause an adrenaline surge.

I don’t know. I’m nervous to try something [such as Seriphos] to lower cortisol when it seems mine is already too low.

I agree with her functional pharmacist that hypoglycemia is likely a factor as it often is with adrenal dysfunction and low cortisol. And I am glad Katherine is being cautious about using Seriphos.

I shared that Seriphos is not the solution in this instance because she doesn’t have high cortisol based on her adrenal saliva test (4 collections). Instead, she has low cortisol throughout the day and using Seriphos would lower her cortisol even further. What many folks don’t realize is that high cortisol and low cortisol can lead to similar symptoms of anxiety, shakiness and waking in the night and early hours.

The good news is it’s relatively easy to figure out if low blood sugar is causing your symptoms. First I have clients rate their symptoms on the low blood sugar questionnaire and do a trial of glutamine. Next is figuring out the dosing and timing of glutamine, looking at a current food log and making dietary changes as needed.

If Katherine notices improvements – typically seen within a week – it’s very likely that hypoglycemia is a factor.

Finally, if additional support is needed for her anxiety I’d consider looking at low GABA and low serotonin symptoms and doing a trial of GABA and/or tryptophan.

Longer term solutions include all the dietary changes mentioned in my book – gluten-free, no sugar, no caffeine or alcohol, using nutritional support for the adrenals and addressing toxins, infections, trauma etc.

Low blood sugar symptoms

First I have clients rate their symptoms on the low blood sugar questionnaire and do a trial of glutamine if they have low blood sugar symptoms.

Here are the low blood sugar symptoms which are rated on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being most severe:

Crave sugar, starch or alcohol any time during the day
Irritable, shaky, headachey – especially if too long between meals
Intense cravings for sweets
Lightheaded if meals are missed
Eating relieves fatigue
Agitated, easily upset, nervous
Waking in the night or early hours with a jolt of anxiety/shakiness

If the ratings indicate the possibility of low blood sugar i.e. any cluster of the above symptoms, we do a trial of the amino acid glutamine on the tongue and record before and after ratings of a few symptoms.

Glutamine is a key amino acid for blood sugar stability and helps quickly while the adrenals heal and the dietary changes are figured out.

Glutamine for low blood sugar: dosing and timing

Typically 500 mg glutamine is a good starting dose. I see many folks start too high, like 5000 mg / 5 g and up multiple times a day, and it’s not necessary. However, we increase based on individual needs and you may find you do need to use 500 mg -1000 mg two to three times a day. Using a glutamine powder is a great way to use it especially if you find you do need more than 500 mg each time.

When you use glutamine powder directly on the tongue (rather than mixed in water), the benefits are seen almost immediately.

For someone like Katherine, using glutamine throughout the day may set her up for night time or early morning low blood sugar. She may also find she needs to use some glutamine just before bed too.

GABA and/or serotonin support too?

Depending on the causes of her anxiety and shakiness, in addition to glutamine, Katherine may need to consider GABA and/or tryptophan too. We use the low GABA and low serotonin symptoms questionnaire and do trials of GABA and/or tryptophan/5-HTP.

All three amino acids can be used before bed and during the night if needed but trials are best done one at a time.

Glutamine for low blood sugar, healing the gut, to reduce sugar cravings and for better sleep

In addition to helping with blood sugar stability and sleep issues, glutamine also helps to heal the gut and helps reduce sugar cravings. Laura shared how it’s been helping her with all of this on another blog:

I am currently struggling with gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining) as well as a lifetime of low blood sugar and irritability. I started glutamine a few days ago (15 grams a day) and I am amazed at how it has calmed my gut as well as calmed the sugar cravings. I am also sleeping better!

I did share that 15 g is considered a high starting dose of glutamine. She may well get similar benefits with much less.

Glutamine for early morning low blood sugar and headaches

As you can see in this case, Cat finds 500 mg glutamine just once a day works well for her unique needs:

I found a powder that I mix approximately 500 mg of with water. It works within about 15 minutes and keeps me going for about 2 – 3 hours — long enough to reach a reasonable time for lunch.

I’m thrilled to have this option as anytime that I travel, low blood sugar becomes a huge issue as I suffer from ketotic hypoglycemia and end up with massive headaches and vomiting for 6-8 hours.

Dietary changes for blood sugar control and adrenal support

All my clients keep a food log and we look at what they are eating on a typical day and when. It’s key to eat in a certain way in order to control blood sugar:. breakfast on waking, healthy snacks 3 to 4 x day and some folks do well with a snack before bed. These meals and snacks should include quality animal protein and healthy fats. This is all outlined in detail in the diet and low blood sugar chapters in my book “The Antianxiety Food Solution”.

A protein smoothie in the morning is a good option too and especially helpful if you have the social anxiety condition pyroluria, where morning nausea and a low appetite is common initially. This blog highlights a research paper about breakfast smoothies helping to reduce anxiety and hypoglycemia symptoms.

Nutritional support for adrenal function includes a good B vitamin complex, extra vitamin B5/pantothenic acid, vitamin C and adaptogenic herbs such as rhodiola and ashwagandha.

Glutamine product options – capsule vs powder

If you’re not in the US, Now l-glutamine 500 mg and Doctor’s best l-glutamine powder are products I recommend on iherb (use this link to save 5%).

Additional resources when you are new to using amino acids as supplements

We use the symptoms questionnaire to figure out if low blood sugar and/or low serotonin and/or low GABA and other neurotransmitter imbalances may be an issue for you.

If you suspect low levels of 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 practitioner/health team you or your loved one is working with.

Have you had success with glutamine for blood sugar stability and waking with a jolt of anxiety/panic at night or in the early hours?

Have you used it for blood sugar stability, reduced cravings, leaky gut and anxiety during the day?

If yes, how much helps you? And how often do you use it?

Have dietary changes and adrenal support helped too?

If you’re a practitioner do you use glutamine and dietary approaches with clients/patients with low blood sugar?

And please let me know if it’s helpful that I’m now including product recommendations and where to get them?

Feel free to share and ask your questions below.

Glutamine for hypoglycemia/low blood sugar: “500mg mixed in water works in 15 minutes and keeps me going for 2 – 3 hours”

November 3, 2023 By Trudy Scott 27 Comments

Cat shared this feedback about how effective just 500mg of glutamine is for her low blood sugar and how quickly it helps:

I recently followed one of your posts on GABA down the rabbit hole to a linked blog post and then to another post where I found a mention of using glutamine for hypoglycemia. This is the only reference that I have read on this in 35 years of research on the subject. I follow a low carb, higher protein, healthy fat diet, but still suffer low blood sugar issues consistently at one particular time of the day. After so many years of eating a second breakfast to prevent the lows, I was ready to give any other healthy option a try.

It works!!! I found a powder that I mix approximately 500 mg of with water. It works within about 15 minutes and keeps me going for about 2 – 3 hours — long enough to reach a reasonable time for lunch.

I’m thrilled to have this option as anytime that I travel, low blood sugar becomes a huge issue as I suffer from ketotic hypoglycemia and end up with massive headaches and vomiting for 6-8 hours.

You have freed me from a huge weight! Thank you and hugs!

(And thank you for researching and sharing the tremendously helpful information in your books, webinar presentations and blogs.)

Thank you Cat for sharing your success and you are most welcome! I’m sharing this as a blog post because you may also be new to this.

Glutamine dosing, using powder vs capsules and using it on the tongue

Cat finds 500 mg glutamine works well for her unique needs. This is a good starting dose. I see many folks start too high, like 5000 mg / 5 g and up multiple times a day, and it’s not necessary. However, we increase based on individual needs and you may find you do need to use 500 mg -1000 mg two to three times a day.

Using a glutamine powder is a great way to use it especially if you find you do need more than 500 mg each time.

One thing I mentioned to Cat is when you use glutamine powder directly on to the tongue (rather than mixed in water), the benefits are seen more quickly i.e. right away rather than having to wait 15 minutes.

If you do start with glutamine capsules, be sure to open the capsule on the tongue too, But watch for fillers which can be irritating to some folks. Powders are typically glutamine-only and don’t taste bad at all. But when traveling, capsules may be a better option (at least when on a plane).

Ketotic hypoglycemia, adrenal dysfunction and breakfast

Ketotic Hypoglycemia International defines ketotic hypoglycemia as “a condition characterized by low blood sugar (glucose) and elevated ketones, typically occurring after fasting, like sleeping overnight. Ketotic hypoglycemia (KH) is not a disease itself but rather a symptom or a clinical presentation that can occur as a result of various underlying conditions.” I’ve asked Cat if she is aware as to what is causing her ketotic hypoglycemia and I’ll report back.

I have also asked if she has had salivary cortisol testing done as adrenal dysfunction plays a role in all types of low blood sugar and will need to be addressed. This can take awhile to test and figure out nutritional support. Until then, glutamine is wonderful for preventing low blood sugar episodes.

I’m also curious what her breakfasts look like and will update the blog when I find out. Cat does mention that she follows “a low carb, higher protein, healthy fat diet” so I assume her first breakfast is a good one. But it’s always something to confirm. As you can see on this blog, Anxiety and Hypoglycemia Symptoms Improve with Diet Modification, a healthy breakfast is key for blood sugar stability and preventing anxiety.

Low blood sugar symptoms and all the ways glutamine may help

This is the blog she commented on: Glutamine for calming, intense sugar cravings, gut healing and low blood sugar

I share all the symptoms we see with low blood sugar:

Crave sugar, starch or alcohol any time during the day
Irritable, shaky, headachey – especially if going too long between meals
Intense cravings for sweets
Lightheaded if meals are missed
Eating relieves fatigue
Agitated, easily upset
Nervous, anxious, panic attacks

As you can see, in addition to helping with low blood sugar symptoms, glutamine has calming properties (low blood sugar can also cause anxiety and panic attacks), helps reduce intense sugar cravings (sometimes described as a demonic urge to eat all things sweet and also helps with healing a leaky gut. Be sure to read these two blogs I’ve linked to above.

Glutamine has also been researched to help with addiction recovery. In this blog, An amino acid supplement with DLPA, glutamine and 5-HTP eases alcohol withdrawal symptoms at an inpatient detoxification program, glutamine is paired with two other amino acids.

Resources if you are new to using glutamine and other amino acids as supplements

We use the symptoms questionnaire to figure out if low blood sugar may be an issue for you.

If you suspect blood sugar or low levels of 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 practitioner/health 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, gluten, blood sugar control (this topic has an entire chapter), sugar cravings, anxiety and mood issues.

I really appreciate Cat for sharing her story and giving me permission to share as a blog.

Has glutamine helped you with low blood sugar/hypoglycemia? If yes, in what way has it helped – reduced anxiety, less sugar cravings (or other addictions), and not as irritable and cranky/angry?

And how much helps and how quickly? Are you using it on the tongue?

Has glutamine also helped with leaky gut?

If you’re a practitioner are you using glutamine this way with your clients/patients?

Feel free to share and ask your questions below.

Tryptophan had the added benefit of turning me completely off alcohol when I took it to improve mood and sleep during perimenopause

May 12, 2023 By Trudy Scott 33 Comments

I started taking tryptophan 3 years ago to improve mood and sleep (not recognizing I was in perimenopause which it helped), but had the added benefit of turning me completely off alcohol! Lol. What serendipitous timing! I use amino therapy with pretty much all my perimenopause patients now. Thanks to you and Julia Ross’s work. Forever grateful.

Victoria shared this wonderful feedback about the benefits she experienced with tryptophan on a recent Facebook thread and kindly gave me permission to share.

Self-medicating with wine (and other alcoholic beverages) is common when we are anxious or stressed and typically we use it to wind down at the end of the day and to fit in socially. This is common when GABA levels are low and also happens due to low serotonin which declines from mid-afternoon into the evening.

I asked what she had been drinking and how often? And if it was calming for her? This was her response:

Red wine the minute I walked in the door in the evening. I guess it was calming… maybe more reward driven? It would be my reward for getting home from work via picking kids up from sport and doing a grocery shop and … (fill in the blank) that we working mums do and then having to walk straight into the kitchen to start on dinner.

The wine was like my little treat or reward to motivate me to just keep moving with my chores. No time to sit and unwind, just pour the wine and start chopping! Lol… I had tried to stop before but just couldn’t pick up a knife without the wine glass!

Within days, the tryptophan made the wine taste like cat’s pee! Haven’t touched it since. No desire at all. Almost hypnosis like?

How much tryptophan Victoria used and how did it help her quit?

Victoria used the Now Tryptophan 1000 mg at 3pm and 9pm for about a year, eventually stopping it and saying: “Alcohol still does not interest me at all.”

What wonderful results! A typical starting dose for tryptophan is 500 mg midafternoon and evening and she increased this to find her ideal dose of 1000 mg twice a day. She did report that 5-HTP didn’t work for her the way tryptophan did. This is not unusual as some folks do better with one versus the other.

She has a great explanation regarding how tryptophan helped her quit without having to use willpower. She had no time to sit and unwind ….. so she was experiencing some of the calming aspects of getting serotonin support with the amino acid tryptophan. This is a very common benefit.

Serotonin appears to regulate the secretion of beta-endorphins

It is interesting that Victoria mentions a reward/treat benefit which is often due to low endorphins rather than low serotonin. This paper, Roles of β-Endorphin in Stress, Behavior, Neuroinflammation, and Brain Energy Metabolism, states that β-endorphins, in addition to their “potent analgesic effects” i.e. pain relief (both physical and emotional pain), are also involved in “reward-centric and homeostasis-restoring behaviors.”

However, as stated in this same paper, beta-endorphins play a role in stress-relief (common with working moms like Victoria) and are closely connected with serotonin. In fact “serotonin appears to regulate the secretion of β-endorphins” and vice versa. The body is fascinating and so smart.

Amino acids for alcohol addiction: 5-HTP, DLPA and glutamine

We know that amino acids help with alcohol cravings and addiction and have even been used in inpatient settings. This blog illustrates this well – An amino acid supplement with DLPA, glutamine and 5-HTP (and a few other nutrients) eases alcohol withdrawal symptoms at an inpatient detoxification program.

The study authors state that: “the physiological craving for alcohol may be the result of a deficiency of the naturally occurring opiate like substances as well as other neurochemical deficits (i.e., dopaminergic, GABAergic, and serotonergic).

Both tryptophan and 5-HTP support low serotonin worry-type anxiety, low mood and insomnia. Victoria happened to benefit from tryptophan. Someone else may benefit more from 5-HTP or DLPA or glutamine or a combination as illustrated in the above study. And even GABA, which can help with stress-drinking or stress-eating, as well as physical anxiety.

DPA and DLPA support endorphins and provide the reward/treat benefits from red wine that Victoria mentions. You can read about the difference between DPA and DLPA here.

What if you have afternoon and evening sugar cravings instead of wine?

You may self-medicate with sugar, carbs, gluten, dairy instead of wine. Late afternoon/evening cravings are typically related to low serotonin when there are other low serotonin symptoms like low mood, anxiety, ruminations, worry, insomnia, PMS etc. You can see all the low serotonin symptoms here.

In this case, tryptophan or 5-HTP can be used in a similar way to stop the cravings with no willpower required and no feelings of being deprived. You’ll also experience reduced anxiety, improved mood and better sleep. Read more about this on this blog: Would using 5-HTP or tryptophan help when you crave sugar (as a sort of antidepressant) late afternoon/evening?

Other changes Victoria made and how is she doing now?

Victoria did also share that hot flushes “got me in the end though and I gave in to body identical progesterone for the final year of peri” and takes estradiol transdermally now that she is in menopause. Based on seeing these benefits while in perimenopause, she is now trialing tryptophan again for increased irritability. That is a huge plus with amino acids: once we’ve experienced the benefits, you have them at our disposal again and again in the future as your hormones or situation starts to change.

I love that she now uses tryptophan with her patients. She is a physio/physical therapist and exercise scientist turned Functional Health Practitioner having studied with IFM during the pandemic.

Of course, I thanked her for the kind words and shared how fortunate I was to work in Julia Ross’ clinic for 2 years. I also appreciate her for sharing this feedback and allowing me to share it here as a blog post so you get to learn, be inspired and have hope.

And finally, all this illustrates that there is no one-size-fits-all and we often get unexpected side-benefits when using amino acids.

Tryptophan and 5-HTP product options

Victoria happens to respond well to tryptophan and yet some folks do better with 5-HTP so it’s a matter of doing a trial of each.

Products I recommend include Lidtke 500 mg Tryptophan, and Pure Encapsulations 50 mg 5-HTP. You can purchase these from my online store (Fullscript – only available to US customers – use this link to set up an account).

If you’re not in the US, Doctor’s Best L-Tryptophan 500mg and Source Naturals 50 mg 5-HTP are products I recommend on iherb (use this link to save 5%).

Resources if you are new to using amino acids as supplements

If you are new to using amino acids as supplements, here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution (you can see all the symptoms of neurotransmitter imbalances, including low GABA, low serotonin and low endorphins).

If you suspect low levels of 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 practitioner/health 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, gluten, blood sugar control, sugar cravings, anxiety and mood issues.

Has tryptophan helped you quit alcohol easily when you could not do so with willpower alone?

Does tryptophan also help with your low mood, anxiety and sleep issues?

What about 5-HTP (some folks do better on one versus the other)?

And has either tryptophan or 5-HTP helped with other afternoon/evening cravings like sugar and other carbs?

If you have questions and other feedback please share it here too.