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The seasonality of GABA: worsening anxiety, insomnia and intrusive thoughts in winter (and the need for increased GABA supplementation)

January 7, 2022 By Trudy Scott 26 Comments

Seasonal variations in serotonin have long been documented with much research on the winter blues and SAD lamps. There is less awareness about GABA seasonality and I only recently started to look into the research when I wrote about the need to increase tryptophan or 5-HTP temporarily when a winter dip in serotonin causes more severe anxiety, OCD and/or the winter blues.

Following on from my blog post on the seasonality of serotonin, it’s important to be aware of the seasonality of GABA and that GABA levels may also be lower in the winter months. This is also due to shorter days and less light because of more overcast and cloudy/rainy/snowy days.

You may find you need to increase your GABA supplement dosing during this time, in order to get the same benefits for your low GABA physical anxiety, stiff and tense muscles, insomnia (the low GABA lying-awake-tense type), feelings of overwhelm, intrusive thoughts (the low-GABA type), and stress-eating or self-medicating with alcohol.

Read on to learn more about seasonal fluctuations in GABA, an example of how adjusting GABA could look and some of the possible mechanisms.

Intuitively increased GABA without knowing about the seasonality of GABA

A few weeks ago I shared on Facebook that GABA has a seasonal aspect and an increase may be needed in winter when it’s darker earlier and colder. Elicia offered this input:.

I use GABA Calm and usually take 1 or 2 a day. The past two days I’ve taken 4 because I suspected that I needed an increase.

I take it for physical anxiety, insomnia and intrusive thoughts. My symptoms had been worsening recently. The increased GABA seems to be helping.

She also asked what an increase in GABA would look like.

My feedback for her is (you guessed it!) that it depends on each person. If 4 x instead of 1 or 2 x GABA Calm a day helps to ease her symptoms then that’s the right amount for her unique needs at this time. It may be less or more for someone else. And it’s going to change again after the winter season.

I’m so glad to hear she intuitively increased her dose without knowing about the seasonality of GABA and that she saw her worsening symptoms improve.

Other approaches to boost GABA levels may help too: Yoga, meditation, tai chi and essential oils.

Seasonal fluctuations are also found in anxiety disorders and bulimia nervosa

As I mentioned above, SAD or seasonal affective disorder, appears to be relatively common and is well-recognized.

This review paper, An overview of epidemiological studies on seasonal affective disorder mentions anxiety and other conditions too:

Seasonal variations in mood, depressive symptoms usually peaking in winter
SAD was more prevalent at higher northern latitudes, but the prevalence varied across ethnic groups.
SAD has also been identified in children and adolescents.
Seasonal exacerbations and remissions are not limited to mood disorders, it has also been found in bulimia nervosa, anxiety disorders and other psychiatric illnesses.

Some of this may be related to low serotonin and as you’ll see below, melatonin and low GABA (and low dopamine too), and the liver, all may play a role too.

GABA is higher in summer/lower in winter and tied to liver function

In this animal study, Effect of the pineal gland on 5-hydroxytryptamine and γ-aminobutyric acid secretion in the hippocampus of male rats during the summer and winter, they report that

GABA secretion in the hippocampus of rats had a seasonal rhythm consisting of increased secretion in summer and decreased secretion in the winter.

Additionally, the liver can regulate the content of active substances, including GABA, and its function is controlled by brain centers, especially in the marginal lobe.

This paper reports similar seasonal changes with respect to serotonin, stating that both fluctuations may be related to the seasonal changes of “regulation by the liver”. The authors remind us that in Chinese Medicine the liver is closely related to emotions, and that the liver functions well in hot weather and is weak in winter.

GABA exhibits seasonal rhythms related to the pineal gland and melatonin

The introduction of this animal study (by the same authors), Molecular mechanisms of seasonal photoperiod effects of the pineal gland on the hippocampus in rats highlights a number of points related to seasonal variations in mood:

Based on the theory of “five Zang-organs corresponding to the seasons” in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), physiological functions including emotions vary with the seasons.

The production of mood-related neurotransmitters such as 5-hydroxytryptamine [serotonin], γ-aminobutyric acid [GABA], dopamine, and norepinephrine exhibits seasonal rhythms, which are related to the regulation of the hippocampus by the pineal gland-MT [melatonin] system.

In other words, GABA (and these other neurotransmitters) exhibit seasonal rhythms related to melatonin secreted by the pineal gland, thereby impacting the hippocampus.

Be sure to read the paper for additional information on depression, seasonal affective disorder and bright light therapy; the seasonal effects of the pineal gland on the hippocampus; the role of melatonin and photoperiod/length of night; the hippocampus and melatonin receptors and more.

The authors were looking for direct evidence of the signalling mechanisms that cause this to happen:

Our findings suggest that the MTR-Gs/Gi-cAMP-PKA-CREB signaling pathway is involved in the seasonal photoperiod [length of night] effects of the pineal gland on the hippocampus and may underpin seasonal changes in emotions.

Feel free to read more about all this in the paper too as it’s beyond the topic of this blog.

Other factors to consider: sugar/alcohol, stress/pyroluria and low serotonin

I’d also consider the following:

The increased consumption of sugar at this time can lead to reduced zinc, magnesium and B vitamins (like vitamin B6 and thiamine) and this can further reduce GABA levels, which relies on these nutrients as cofactors for production. By boosting GABA levels with the amino acid GABA (and higher amounts if needed) you can actually reduce some of the cravings and stress-eating.
Overindulging in alcoholic holiday beverages can also deplete zinc and B vitamins, further affecting GABA production. Using higher amounts of the amino acid GABA (if needed) can also prevent self-medicating with alcohol. This often happens when trying to fit in and socialize.
If you have the social anxiety condition called pyroluria, the added stress of family and holiday gatherings can also contribute to zinc and vitamin B6 being dumped, and further impacting serotonin production.
The need to also increase tryptophan or 5-HTP temporarily when a winter dip in serotonin causes more severe anxiety (the low serotonin worry-type), OCD and/or the winter blues.

Resources if you are new to using GABA as a supplement

If you are new to using the the amino acid GABA as a supplements, here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution (you can see the low GABA and other low neurotransmitter symptoms) and a brief overview here: Anxiety and targeted individual amino acid supplements: a summary.

If you suspect low levels of GABA 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 so you are knowledgeable. And be sure to share it with the team you or your loved one is working with.

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 GABA products that I use with my individual clients and those in my group programs.

Have you noticed worsening anxiety, insomnia, intrusive thoughts or even bulimia in the winter months?

Have you noticed you need more GABA in the winter? And then you ease off at the end of winter again?

What changes in your dosing have made a difference with your symptoms?

Did you adjust intuitively or were you aware of the GABA seasonality aspect?

And do you notice something similar with serotonin support and needing additional melatonin in winter too (if you already use it)?

If you’re a practitioner, do you have your clients/patients make adjustments too?

Feel free to ask your questions here too.

Tryptophan doesn’t work, then it does and then it doesn’t: could it be hormonal shifts, dietary factors and/or parasites?

November 26, 2021 By Trudy Scott 18 Comments

Have you been in a situation where tryptophan doesn’t work, then it does work, and then sometimes it doesn’t work as expected? There is a reasonable explanation as to why it may not work initially – too much or too little was used. The variable results and the need to switch between lower and higher doses on an ongoing basis can happen but it’s not very pronounced unless there is a specific reason. In this blog I cover some of these reasons – hormone shifts, dietary factors and parasites/other digestive issues.

I’m writing this blog in response to a question that was posted on one of my speaker pages on the Anxiety Summit: Gut-Brain Axis. This is the actual question:

I tried to use tryptophan the first time (whole capsule) and got really high. Some time later I tried again, but used 1/4 of a capsule and had a good result. A few weeks later 1/4 of the capsule didn’t work at night. So I went up to half a capsule. And that’s where I am now. But some nights (very rare) I can only get good results from a whole capsule. I use it along with the same amount of GABA. Is that a normal reaction for tryptophan?

I don’t know what brand of tryptophan she was using but assume 500mg was her starting dose and she now shifts between 125 mg (¼ capsule) and 250 mg (½ capsule) with variable results.

It’s not unusual for someone to not feel great on 500 mg if that dose is too much for their unique needs. She did the right thing by lowering her dose. It’s also reasonable that someone may find 500 mg as an initial dose isn’t enough to reduce symptoms.

The variable results and the need to switch between 125 mg and 250 mg can happen but it’s not very pronounced unless there is a specific reason. Some of these reasons include hormone shifts, dietary factors, parasites/other digestive issues, thyroid issues, low lithium, product quality and environmental factors. More on all this below.

Hormone shifts/more serotonin is needed in the luteal phase

I have my clients track when the variability happens, with female clients documenting their cycles. Some women need more serotonin support in the luteal phase i.e. after ovulation and right up to before their periods. Some may even need additional tryptophan for the first few days of their periods too.

Write about tryptophan working well in the luteal phase in this blog – Tryptophan for PMS: premenstrual dysphoria, mood swings, tension, and irritability

In a study published in 1999, A placebo-controlled clinical trial of L-tryptophan in premenstrual dysphoria, tryptophan was found to reduce symptoms of PMS when used in the luteal phase or second half of the cycle (i.e. after ovulation):

37 patients with premenstrual dysphoric disorder were treated with L-tryptophan 6 g per day, and 34 were given placebo. The treatments were administered under double-blind conditions for 17 days, from the time of ovulation to the third day of menstruation, during three consecutive menstrual cycles.

They looked at dysphoria, which is defined as a state of unease or generalized dissatisfaction with life, plus mood swings, tension (and anxiety), and irritability and they found a 34.5% reduction of symptoms with tryptophan compared to 10.4% with placebo.

The paper concludes: “that these results suggest that increasing serotonin synthesis during the late luteal phase of the menstrual cycle has a beneficial effect in patients with premenstrual dysphoric disorder.”

It’s a small study but the results are powerful and it’s something I see clinically with my clients. The one big difference is that I typically have clients using tryptophan throughout the month.

But if you are seeing tryptophan work and then not work at similar times each month this is something to consider and track. And then if need be, increase and decrease tryptophan accordingly (and track again).

Dietary factors – collagen, gluten, sugar, wine and coffee

There are other factors to consider too and dietary impacts is one. For example, collagen leads to a higher need for tryptophan in susceptible individuals (due to it’s serotonin-lowering effects – I blog about this here)

Another dietary factor is accidental gluten exposure in susceptible individuals or a newly discovered gluten issue

High sugar intake, alcohol and/or caffeine consumption may also be a factor – contributing to added stress for the adrenals and depletions in zinc and the B vitamins. This can contribute to lowered serotonin and a need for a higher dose of tryptophan.

Now imagine if it’s just before her period and she adds collagen to her diet and she also eats out and gets zapped by gluten. Triple whammy for this woman!

And she goes to a party and happens to indulge in cocktails or wine, and then goes on a binge at the dessert table, followed by a few cups of coffee (or even one dessert and one cup of coffee).

A food-mood log really helps you figure things out. And then, if need be, increase and decrease tryptophan accordingly. And track again and address the dietary issues.

Parasites and other gut issues

If she has a very pronounced shift in symptoms for 4-5 days around a full moon each month – more severe insomnia, more anxious, more depressed – I would want to check for parasites.

I would also want to check for other digestion issues like dysbiosis, SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), candida and liver health as they may all be factors. With SIBO and candida, dietary slip-ups may make symptoms worse right after the slip-up, for example increased bloating making sleep and anxiety worse.

Using tryptophan sublingually/opened on the tongue may bypass some of the digestive/liver issues until they are resolved.

As mentioned above, if need be, increase and decrease tryptophan accordingly. And track again and address the underlying issues.

Other factors to rule out – thyroid, lithium, environmental factors and the product

Two other underlying root causes we always want to rule out when we see variable results using tryptophan (and any of the amino acids) are Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (because we can have variable thyroid results – sometimes hypo/low and sometimes hyper/high) and low levels of lithium (because this can affect the results we see with all the amino acids).

And we always check environmental factors like mold, EMFs and outside stresses. And look for infections like Lyme disease or EBV. If the basics are not unearthing the solution we continue to dig deeper and do a full functional medicine workup. And adjust the tryptophan as needed.

And finally the quality of the product is key. I find Lidtke Tryptophan to be better than many other brands. I’ve also had many clients switch to Lidtke tryptophan and see better results and often need a lower dose.

Resources if you are new to using tryptophan and the amino acids as supplements

If you are new to using the amino acids tryptophan/5-HTP and the other amino acids as supplements, here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution (you can see the low serotonin symptoms here) and a brief overview here, Anxiety and targeted individual amino acid supplements: a summary.

If you suspect low serotonin 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 so you are knowledgeable. And be sure to share it with the team you or your loved one is working with.

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 acid products that I use with my individual clients and those in my group programs.

I always appreciate good questions like this and hope this feedback has helped her and you too if you’ve experienced something like this (or if you do in the future). In case you’re wondering, this question was posted after someone tuned into my interview, “GABA & Tryptophan: Gut-Anxiety Connections” on the Anxiety Summit 5: Gut-Brain Axis.

Have you had a variable response to tryptophan (or 5-HTP) and can you relate to any of this?

What did you figure out to be the reason?

Feel free to ask your questions here too.

MegaSporeBiotic™: A spore-based probiotic for leaky gut, IBS, anxiety, depression, liver health and colitis

May 7, 2021 By Trudy Scott 41 Comments

MegaSporeBiotic™ is “a 100% spore-based broad-spectrum probiotic shown to maintain healthy gut barrier function” i.e. leaky gut. Research and clinical results show it is promising for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), recovery from liver injury caused by acetaminophen, and is protective in ulcerative colitis (an inflammatory bowel disease). Given the gut-brain connection and the fact that the majority of serotonin is produced in the gut, it’s not surprising that spore-based probiotics may also help ease anxiety and depression.

Here are some of the studies supporting this spore-based probiotic for gut issues:

Oral spore-based probiotic supplementation was associated with reduced incidence of post-prandial dietary endotoxin, triglycerides, and disease risk biomarkers

The key findings of the present study is that oral spore-based probiotic supplementation reduced symptoms indicative of “leaky gut syndrome”.

Bacillus spp. Spores-A Promising Treatment Option for Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome

The results demonstrated that patients treated with MegaSporeBiotic, compared with those treated with rifaximin followed by nutraceutical or low-FODMAP diet, had similar severity scores and rectal volume sensation test results for all parameters tested and statistically significant improvement in measurements of quality of life.

Probiotic Bacillus Spores Protect Against Acetaminophen Induced Acute Liver Injury in Rats

This is important because “Acetaminophen is one of the most used analgesics [pain-reducing] and antipyretic [fever-lowering] agents in the world. Intoxication with acetaminophen is the main cause of acute liver toxicity in both the US and Europe.”

Probiotic Bacillus Spores Together with Amino Acids and Immunoglobulins Exert Protective Effects on a Rat Model of Ulcerative Colitis

Pretreatment with probiotic spore-forming Bacillus strains and a supplement of amino acids in combination with immunoglobulins exhibited anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects in an AA-induced rat model of ulcerative colitis.

In one study, Bacillus coagulans (one of the spore-forming strains in MegaSporeBiotic™), when used alone was shown to help ease depression and gut problems in IBS patients. It was a randomised, double-blind, placebo controlled, multi-centre, pilot clinical study and:

The improvement in depression and IBS symptoms was statistically significant and clinically meaningful. These findings support B. coagulans MTCC 5856 as an important new treatment option for major depressive disorder in IBS patients.

During The Anxiety Summit 5: Gut-Brain Axis, I interviewed Kiran Krishnan who is a microbiologist, one of the founders of Microbiome Labs and a co-creator of MegaSporeBiotic™. He reminds us about the gut-brain connection and how anxiety and mental health issues come from the gut “because the vast majority of serotonin in your body – more than ninety percent of it – is actually produced in the gut” and not in the brain.

He talks about the type of cell in the gut that produces serotonin – the enterochromaffin cell – and the fact that “spore forming bacteria are some of the best stimulators of the enterochromaffin cell to produce serotonin.”

With low levels of serotonin you’ll experience the worry-type of anxiety with ruminations, obsessing, panic attacks, insomnia (often lying awake worrying). Other low serotonin symptoms include low mood/depression, late afternoon and evening carbohydrate cravings, pain, PMS, irritability, rage and anger, TMJ, low confidence, imposter syndrome and perfectionism. This type of low-serotonin anxiety is different from the low GABA physical/tension type anxiety.

These cells also play a crucial role in gastrointestinal regulation, particularly intestinal motility. We know low serotonin also contributes to digestive/IBS-type symptoms.

You can see a list of all the low serotonin symptoms here.

Brandy’s positive feedback on digestive issues and mental health

Brandy Oto, a marriage, couple and family counselor, incorporates an integrative nutrition approach with her clients and she shares this:

MegaSporeBiotic™ makes a HUGE difference in my body! I have used every probiotic I can think of. Megaspore has not only resolved my digestive issues and allows me regular bowel movements, I find my mental health is much better! I have decided to use it in my practice as well now. Clients consistently report better mental health!

I asked her how quickly she notices an improvement when using MegaSporeBiotic™ and what aspects of mental health improve for her and her clients. She shares this:

I personally notice physical and mental anxiety decrease usually about 4-5 days, bowel movements easy within a couple days, ability to tolerate foods I was sensitive to after 6 or so months on them.

Clients report all types of improvements from anxiety, depression, to digestive issues improving. I have even heard from one client that when she gets off the probiotic symptoms of schizophrenia return.

In Brandy’s mental health practice, she does use amino acids to address neurotransmitter deficiencies too (for example tryptophan or 5-HTP to address low serotonin symptoms like worry, fear, panic attacks). She uses this spore-based probiotic to address underlying issues that cause those deficiencies.

It’s not one or the other – the probiotics and amino acids are part of a comprehensive plan.

Not everyone raves about this probiotic and some folks report it either does nothing for them or is too strong for them. So, as with everything, it’s very individualized.

How do spore-based probiotics differ from other probiotics?

During the Anxiety Summit interview with Kiran, he explains how they differ from other probiotics and why this is important for them to get into the gut:

These are organisms that have a unique capability of covering themselves in a thick calcified protein-like coating. So it’s armor, essentially, around the bacterial cell.

This allows these bacteria to come in through the gastric system, through the oral route, and survive the gauntlet that bacteria have to go through just getting through the process of digestion.

So the first step is the stomach acid. The stomach acid is called the gastric barrier and that’s because it acts as an actual physical barrier through the function of hydrochloric acid to try to kill off as many microbes that are trying to enter the system through food and other exposure.

If something gets past the stomach acid then the second piece of the gauntlet are the bile salts. Bile salts are released into the duodenum itself. Those are very strong antimicrobials and part of their function is to act as an antimicrobial to protect the system against a lot of bacteria coming in on a regular basis.

And then the last part is the pancreatic enzymes that help you digest your food – they also act as antimicrobials.

So there’s this really difficult gauntlet that the microbes that are entering the system through the oral route have to go through in order to make it past these initial systems to get to the site of action in the deeper part of the intestines where they’re supposed to function as a probiotic.

These spores have developed this unique, natural capability of covering themselves in this armor which allows them to survive through all of that.

This study, Survival and persistence of Bacillus clausii in the human gastrointestinal tract following oral administration as spore-based probiotic formulation confirms the above for one particular strain and concludes that “Bacillus clausii spores survive transit through the human gastrointestinal tract.”

Where can I buy MegaSporeBiotic™?

These are the spore-based bacteria contained in the MegaSporeBiotic™ product: Bacillus Licheniformis, Bacillus Indicus HU36™, Bacillus Subtilis HU58™, Bacillus Clausii and Bacillus Coagulans.

You can purchase MegaSporeBiotic™ directly from Microbiome Labs once you have set up an account with them under my name. Use this link (and make sure the Direct2Patient™ Code says tscott).

You can also read more about the product on the Microbiome Labs site here.

If you already have an account with Fullscript, my online supplement store, you can purchase from there too.

If you don’t yet have an account with Fullscript you can read more about how to set up an account here.

Let us know if you’ve used MegaSporeBiotic™ with success and how it helped you with anxiety, depression and/or gut and liver health.

Let us know if you’ve used another spore-based probiotic and which one? Or do you have a favorite probiotic that is not spore-based?

I’m going to a product review like this once a month so please let me know if you like this format with research, feedback and mechanisms. And let me know what other products you’d like me to review.

Feel free to post your questions here too.

[The above statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.]

The liver/thyroid/serotonin and liver/GABA/progesterone connections: The Anxiety Summit 6

September 30, 2020 By Trudy Scott 10 Comments

Dr. Ameet Aggarwal is one of my guest experts on The Anxiety Summit 6: Toxins/Meds/Infections!
and our topic is Liver Function and Bile: Anxiety, Detox, the Gut and Hormones. Here is some of what we cover in our interview:

The liver/anxiety connections: thyroid/serotonin, microbiome and GABA/progesterone
Foods and nutrients like NAC, triphala, turmeric, taurine and lycopodium
Gilbert’s syndrome and schizophrenia; misophonia; family constellations therapy; giving and endorphins

and much more.

We discuss a number of the mechanisms as to why poor liver function affects your mood. There is the liver/thyroid/serotonin connection, and the liver/GABA/progesterone connection.

In the discussion on the liver/thyroid/serotonin connection and anxiety, Dr. Ameet shares from this paper – The Relationship between the thyroid gland and the liver (paraphrased as I don’t yet have transcripts):

Thyroxine and tri‐iodothyronine are essential for normal organ growth, development and function
These hormones regulate the basal metabolic rate of all cells, including hepatocytes, and thereby modulate hepatic [liver] function
The liver in turn metabolizes the thyroid hormones and regulates their systemic endocrine effects.
Thyroid dysfunction may perturb liver function
Liver disease modulates thyroid hormone metabolism.

The catecholamine and thyroid interrelationship is well recognized but less is known about the serotonin and the thyroid. Dr. Ameet shares the synergy between the thyroid hormones, serotonin and mood:

animal studies shows that the thyroid economy has a modulating impact on the brain serotonin system
studies in hypothyroid patients have shown that thyroid replacement therapy improves serotonin production

In summary, if we have compromised liver function and/or low thyroid function this may impact serotonin levels and lead to increased anxiety.

Here is a snippet from our discussion on the liver/GABA/progesterone and anxiety:

We often think about mental health as being neurotransmitters alone but it also depends on hormones. Progesterone affects how GABA works in the brain.
GABA is your anti-anxiety neurotransmitter but it requires progesterone to work well in your brain and your liver metabolizes all your hormones through phase 1 and phase 2 detoxification
If your liver is compromised then you’re likely to have lower progesterone levels and estrogen dominance.
With low progesterone GABA won’t work as well as well in the brain, leading to anxiety and insomnia.

Again, if we have compromised liver function this may impact progesterone levels, having an effect on how GABA works and causing increased anxiety.

If you recall, I shared this GABA/progesterone snippet a few weeks ago before the site was ready and now it’s ready for you to register.

This interview is one of the registration gifts so you can listen to it right away as soon as you register (there will also be a complimentary transcript made available as soon as it’s completed.)

Here is a little about the summit… as you know, anxiety can be related to your daily life experiences BUT it can also be triggered by:

foods you eat and what you drink (like wheat, oxalates, alcohol and more)
environmental toxins (like lead, plastics, fragrances, insecticides, fluoride and more)
many types of medications (like the birth control pill, acne medication, fluoroquinolone antibiotics and more) and/or
chronic infections (like Lyme disease, PANDAS, parasites, candida and more).

Once you identify the root causes and understand anxiety’s mechanisms you can support the liver/gallbladder, detox, address infections, implement targeted and supportive solutions, and get relief!

WHY ATTEND?

This is my 6th Anxiety Summit, featuring all new topics and the latest research related to anxiety and toxins, medications and infections.

I’ve also experienced many of these health challenges myself – lead and mercury toxicity, gluten issues and candida – and I’m currently dealing with chronic Lyme disease and dietary oxalate issues. You’ll hear some of my healing journey and my solutions in a few interviews too.

WHAT SETS THIS ONLINE EVENT APART?

What sets this apart from other events on toxins and infections is being able to make the many connections to GABA (the main calming neurotransmitter) and serotonin (a happy and calming neurotransmitter) AND how to use the amino acids GABA and tryptophan to ease your anxiety right away while you are dealing with the other underlying root causes – which take longer to address.

You will see this woven into each of the expert interviews (just like this one with Dr. Schaffner) and also addressed in detail in my 3 interviews where I do a deep dive into specific applications.

For example, in my toxins interview, I share how GABA reverses fluoride-induced anxiety and hypothyroidism, and how tryptophan and vitamin C ease anxiety symptoms associated with lead toxicity (I’ll be sharing more about this in the future so stay tuned….)

Over the course of the next 6 weeks you’ll be seeing frequent emails from me with snippets and highlights from various interviews – like this one. I do hope you continue to enjoy them and get excited about the summit! Please do share if you know someone who has anxiety!

It’s been wonderful to get all the emails saying how excited you are and seeing so many of you signing up. These last few months have been full-time on research and interviews and I’ll shortly get to share it all with you!

You’ve heard me say the Anxiety Summit has been called “a bouquet of hope!” My wish for you is that this summit is your bouquet of hope!

I hope you’ll join me and these incredible speakers, be enlightened and find YOUR solutions!

Here’s to no more anxiety and you feeling on top of the world again!

If you’re already familiar with some of this information and practice some of this already please share how it’s helped you. That way we can all learn.

If you’d like to ask a question, please post in the comments below.

I’d also love to hear from you once you’ve listened to this interview. Please do come back and comment about some of the highlights of this interview and what changes you plan to make.

Even if you already receive my newsletters and signed up some time ago to be notified about the upcoming Anxiety Summit 6, you will still need to register at the new link here, because Health Talks Online is doing the production and backend work for me.

If you don’t register you won’t get access to the daily summit emails with all the interviews.

You will however, continue to get these emails from me.

This is my 6th Anxiety Summit and it is all new content!

The content is research-based and practical, and is geared to anxious individuals who are health-savvy and to practitioners who work with anxious individuals.

If you are totally new to functional medicine and nutritional solutions for anxiety, you will still learn so much so just take in what you can and know you’ll get all this eventually.

PQQ for Stress, Sleep, Mitochondria and Gut Health with Dr. Michael Murray: The Anxiety Summit 5

October 28, 2019 By Trudy Scott 4 Comments

Michael Murray, ND is one my guest experts on The Anxiety Summit 5: Gut-Brain Axis and our topic is: PQQ for Stress, Sleep, Mitochondria and Gut Health. What You’ll Learn –

Pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) for calm energy – what it is and how to use it
How it is protective against every known toxin
A study where participants report “improved happiness and fullness of social life”

Pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) is a fascinating nutrient that provides calm energy, helps with sleep, is protective against every known toxin and support mitochondrial health. PQQ also supports digestive health because the liver and gut is mitochondria-dense (Tara Hunkin shares more about this in her mitochondria/anxiety interview).

When I discovered that Dr. Michael Murray, ND is an expert on PQQ I reached out to invite him to speak on the summit. I was not disappointed – our interview is fabulous, meaty and exciting.

(We actually ended up doing it twice because of technical issues with the first one. There are always plenty of “fun and games” when hosting a summit!)

Dr. Murray shares some of the many benefits of this vitamin-like compound that is found in kiwi fruit, leafy green vegetables, papaya and other fruits and vegetables:

It’s been shown to be neuroprotective, protecting brain cells, it promotes nerve growth factors, it’s been shown to be memory restorative in animal and human studies. It has some interesting effects on anxiety and improving sleep quality. And it exerts many synergistic effects with Coenzyme Q10 and some of the other nutritional compounds that influence the mitochondria.

He feels that “eventually, PQQ is going to be recognized as essential for human nutrition.” And in case you’re curious about the pronunciation, this is how you say it: pyrro-lo-quin-o-line quinone.

We discuss this paper: “Effects of Oral Supplementation with Pyrroloquinoline Quinone on Stress, Fatigue, and Sleep” and Dr. Murray shares how PQQ is

really quite interesting because normally when we think of substances exerting an anti-stress or an anti-anxiety effect, we think about things that maybe calm us down and maybe even make us a little tired.

PQQ is able to promote a calming effect, an anti-stress effect, an anti-anxiety effect, but it actually enhances mental energy and physical energy.

The results in the study were pretty profound and I quote some of the findings the study authors report participants experienced (this, of course, was subjective feedback):

Fullness of social life improved
Happiness and fullness in the family life improved
Fullness and satisfaction in overall daily improved

They also found improved quality of life on measures of appetite, and pain, and obsession, as well.

The authors have this conclusion about a possible mechanism: “The anti-oxidative capacity or mitochondrial biogenesis function of PQQ might be responsible for the outcomes in this study.”

Some of the other topics we discuss around PQQ:

why taking PQQ is likely a better approach than using resveratrol
how it compares with vitamin C in terms of being an antioxidant (this really amazes me)
how it “been shown to protect against every known toxin on the brain”
possible benefits for Parkinson’s disease (by preventing the formation of alpha-synuclein) and also for Alzheimer’s disease
how “PQQ influences the microbiome in a very favorable way”
how a single dose, used one time, dramatically reduced C-reactive protein (a marker of inflammation) in one study
possible concerns about oxalates
optimal dosages and when to use it with coenzyme Q10
best products and much more

Be sure to listen to Tara Hunkin’s interview to get a solid understanding of the bidirectional connection between mitochondria and anxiety: Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Anxiety

Please join us and listen to this interview and all the others on The Anxiety Summit 5: Gut-Brain Axis.

When you register now you’ll get access to there 3 interviews right away:

Fix the Brain to Fix the Gut – Datis Kharrazian, DHSc, DC, MS, FACN, CNS
MTHFR, B12 Genes and Anxiety – Carolyn Ledowsky, ND
Why Bile is the Key to Anxiety & Hormone Havoc – Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS

If you have already signed up for the summit, I hope you enjoy these interview highlights.

If you have yet to sign up, please do come and join us and learn.

If you’re considering purchasing the summit to keep for your learning library, you have a number of options that include:

Online only or flash drive or both
A PDF or printed transcripts of all the interviews
The Best of Anxiety-Gut interviews from previous Anxiety Summits
Easing Anxiety Program (GABA Quickstart) (a group program with me on how to actually use GABA for your physical anxiety, with a private Facebook group and live Q & A call)

Purchase options

Have you already used PQQ and found good results? Please share so we can all learn.

I’ll be reporting back more in the coming weeks and months based on my own personal findings and based on feedback from my clients and my community. I’ve already had this feedback from someone who has seen the speaker line-up:

Registered for the summit today. So excited about it. And excited to see PQQ, one of my favourite, must-have supplements, getting its own piece.

If you’d like to give feedback or ask a question, please post in the comments section at the bottom.

I’d also love to hear from you once you’ve listened in to Dr. Murray’s interview and the others.

Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Anxiety with Tara Hunkin on The Anxiety Summit 5

October 18, 2019 By Trudy Scott 2 Comments

Tara Hunkin, NTP, CGP, RWP is one my guest experts on The Anxiety Summit 5: Gut-Brain Axis and our topic is: Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Anxiety. In this interview you’ll learn:

The role of mitochondria in the gut, brain and anxiety
Causes (such as medications and environmental toxins), testing, and signs and symptoms of mitochondrial dysfunction
Healing nutrients: Carnitine, COQ10, folinic acid, meal timing (as well as antioxidants and many other nutrients such as PQQ)

Tara starts with an overview of mitochondria, the energy powerhouses of our bodies and why they are so important in both physical and mental health.

You can hear some of this background information in this short in-person interview we did in San Diego recently.

(Note: The dates for the 2021 Anxiety Summit 5 is November 8-14, 2021)

You’ll also hear Tara share about this new bidirectional relationship that has been identified between anxiety and mitochondrial dysfunction. One of the papers she is referring to is this 2019 review paper: Anxiety and Brain Mitochondria: A Bidirectional Crosstalk. Here are the highlights:

Despite the established link between mitochondrial dysfunction and various psychiatric disorders, the contribution of mitochondria in anxiety disorders has not been extensively addressed.
Mitochondria are emerging as modulators of anxiety-related behavior, as evidenced both in animal and human studies.
There is a bidirectional link between mitochondria and anxiety. Mitochondrial, energy metabolism, and oxidative stress alterations are observed in high anxiety; conversely, changes in mitochondrial function can lead to heightened anxiety.

Tara shares how important the mitochondria are when it comes to digestion and gut health too:

the liver is heavily mitochondrial-dense and is needed to help eliminate toxins we are exposed to (toxins that affect our mitochondria and increase anxiety)
the mitochondria are also important when it comes to digestion – the lining of digestive tract (the epithelial cells of the microvilli) contain large numbers of mitochondria

The authors also highlight that “Pharmacological manipulation of mitochondria may be a potential therapeutic approach to relieve high anxiety symptoms.” One of the objectives of this summit is to highlight non-pharmacological approaches and Tara does exactly this in our interview.

She covers both lifestyle and nutritional approaches for addressing mitochondrial dysfunction (acetyl-l-carnitine, glutathione, antioxidants, coenzyme Q10, folinic acid and many more).

I also mention two other interviews on the summit where we talk about nutrients that also support mitochondrial function: PQQ (pyrroloquinoline quinone) and TUDCA (tauroursodeoxycholic acid).

Be sure to listen to these interviews for more about these two nutrients:

Jay Davidson, DC, PScD: Parasites, Anxiety and TUDCA for Your Liver
Michael Murray, ND: PQQ for Stress, Sleep, Mitochondria and Gut Health

We also discuss testing and all the environmental factors that impact the mitochondria including medications such as risperidone/risperdal (and antipsychotic medication), valproic acid (used for seizures), fluoroquinolone antibiotics like Cipro (and others) and also benzodiazepines (the commonly prescribed anti-anxiety medications).