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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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Posted by 3 Beer Effect on December 22, 2001, at 13:03:26
I am trying to find a way to elevate the amount of GABA (A) in my brain in order to help with my social phobia & anxiety. I take Klonopin but my doctor will only give me 1 mg/day so it is only partially effective.
I bought GABA in pill form from a health food store but someone said that orally ingested GABA cannot pass the blood brain barrier & so it is a waste of time.
Since you can take 5-HTP to increase serotonin, L-Tyrosine to increase dopamine, & Phenylalanine to increase norepinephrine what amino acid do you take to increase GABA?
I read something about either L-glutamine or glutamic acid metabolizing to GABA in the brain but they sound so similar but I think they are different? Which one is a precursor to GABA?
Posted by jay on December 22, 2001, at 14:31:53
In reply to L-glutamine or glutamic acid to increase GABA?, posted by 3 Beer Effect on December 22, 2001, at 13:03:26
> I am trying to find a way to elevate the amount of GABA (A) in my brain in order to help with my social phobia & anxiety. I take Klonopin but my doctor will only give me 1 mg/day so it is only partially effective.
>
> I bought GABA in pill form from a health food store but someone said that orally ingested GABA cannot pass the blood brain barrier & so it is a waste of time.
>
> Since you can take 5-HTP to increase serotonin, L-Tyrosine to increase dopamine, & Phenylalanine to increase norepinephrine what amino acid do you take to increase GABA?
>
> I read something about either L-glutamine or glutamic acid metabolizing to GABA in the brain but they sound so similar but I think they are different? Which one is a precursor to GABA?
Hi:A couple of major cautions about this.
First, I had used L-glutamine for awhile, and it *really* made me feel horrible. Don't forget, yes there is a co-relation between GABA and the effect of benzodiazepines, BUT, benzo's have their own receptor in the brain. This affects GABA in a rather different way then GABA-enhancing drugs. I have used benzo's for *many* years, and there is almost no way I felt ANY similarity between taking a benzo and L-glutamine.
Second, many folks don't know that glutamic acid plays a major part in strokes. I recall that when we have a stroke, what happens is a massive amount of glutamic acid is released in the brain.
Hence, I would just be cautious, and I honestly wouldn't advise it. You may want to do some research beforehand.Jay
Posted by JGalt on December 22, 2001, at 23:01:43
In reply to L-glutamine or glutamic acid to increase GABA?, posted by 3 Beer Effect on December 22, 2001, at 13:03:26
Any of these supplements only work on an empty stomach, at most, you can have sugar, but nothing with protein when you take it in your stomach or else the other proteins (particularly phenylaline) will compete and likely dominate getting into the blood brain barrier. Also, phenylaline and tyrosine are both fully capable of producing dopamine+norepinephrine, phen. is just one step down in the line to producing it. The next step after tyro. is l-dopa, but then you'd have to take something like caribdopa to get much effect out of it...now onto your question.
L-glutamine can indeed convert to GABA. Pretty sure glutamic acid can too. The problem is getting L-glutamine into your blood stream. This problem is fairly well known in the bodybuilding world...bodybuilders use it because glutamine is supposed to be great for post workout recovery, but the studies that back this up were from IV glutamine. Supposedly, L-glut also happens to be one of your intestines fav. foods and thus very little of it ever gets into the blood stream. Thus without taking massive amounts (some people suggest around 10 grams) of glutamine, very little will ever wind up in your blood stream to get into your brain. Also, L-glutamine, once it reaches your brain, can become either GABA or remain as glutamine. The problem here being that GABA is inhibitory and glutamine is excitory, and you have no way of controlling which it becomes. Thus I believe it has little use for most people. As always, YMMV.
JGalt
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