
5HTP (5-Hydroxytryptophan also known as Oxitriptan) is an amino acid that is produced naturally by the body. 5HTP is made from amino acid tryptophan that is derived from food items. 5-HTP is the primary precursor to serotonin. It is also an Nootropic and nutritional supplement, 5-HTP is a favorite among people who believe in its efficacy in the treatment of depression. In addition, it is used to treat other serotonin-related illnesses. However, using 5-HTP to treat anxiety and depression isn’t scientifically supported.
This research contradicts the way 5-HTP is perceived by manypeople, including medical professionals. If we look into the studies, we discover that 5-HTP could be contraindicated for those suffering from depression. marketers recommend the use of. We’re all about increasing the neurotransmitter levels and enhancing the performance of our brains here on National Lab Day. However, every now and then we come across an dietary or nootropic supplement that is gaining popularity. However, it could also be an especially dangerous idea. We’ll explore the way 5-HTP functions in the brain with this article. We’ll discuss why it’s crucial to brain health. There are many reasons to be looking for a different way to increase the levels of serotonin within your brain. 5-HTP can help:
- Anxiety & Depression. 5-HTP is converted into serotonin within brain cells. Serotonin levels that are elevated can ease the symptoms of depression and anxiety.
- Neurotransmitters. 5HTP is an essential ingredient in serotonin synthesizing, which improves social and mood, enhances memory and regulates appetite, digestion and sleep. It also regulates sexual desire, sleep and functions.
- Brain Optimization. A balanced balance of the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine are essential to ensure that the brain is highly efficient. If these neurotransmitters aren’t in equilibrium, it can affect mood and memory cognitive function, decision-making sexual desire, and many other vital essential functions of life.
Table of Contents
5-HTP Supplement Overview
5-HTP (5-Hydroxytryptophan or oxitriptan) is an amino acid made from the amino acid tryptophan. 5-HTP Tryptophan is hydroxylated by tryptophan hydroxylase to 5-HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan), then decarboxylated to serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine or 5-HT).
Tryptophan 5-HTP Serotonin
80-90 percent of the serotonin in your body is produced by the intestines of your body. However, serotonin isn’t able to traverse through the brain-blood barrier. Therefore, all the serotonin your brain requires must be produced in the brain. This is the place where 5-HTP is found… 5-HTP traverses the blood-brain barrier more quickly that tryptophan. It is synthesized to serotonin in a much faster manner than the tryptophan.
As an neurotransmitter serotonin affects both indirectly and directly most brain cells. If you’re looking to increase serotonin levels within your brain many find that taking 5-HTP supplements is superior to taking tryptophan. Tryptophan is the ingredient that your body makes to create 5-HTP is found in chicken, turkey milk, potatoes, sunflower seeds, pumpkin turnip, collard and turnip greens as well as seaweed. 5-HTP as an Nootropic supplement is an amino acid that is derived from the seed pods from Griffonia simplicifolia that are located throughout West as well as Central Africa. The 5-HTP levels in the extracts of the plant range between 2 and 20.83 percent (from seeds sourced from Ghana).
What does 5-HTP do?
5-HTP is an precursor to serotonin. The neurotransmitter serotonin is involved in appetite, sleep and memory, as well as mood, learning and sexual function. If tryptophan’s function in converting into 5-HTP to boost serotonin isn’t working effectively and the result is usually anxiety, chronic headaches and insomnia. A trial with an open label was carried out in Italy to test the effectiveness of 5-HTP treatment in children with excessive levels of “romantic anxiety”. Serotonin is linked to human romantic attraction. Researchers in this study sought to measure the brain’s levels in brain-derived
Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and serotonin in connection to changes in stress levels during the course of the study. Healthy participants (mean of 23.3 years) who experienced an ” romantic breakup” participated in the study. Participants were given 60 mg of Griffonia simplicifolia, a plant extract that contained 12.8 mg of 5-HTP every day for six weeks. The subjects were screened for the BDNF as well as serotonin level prior to the start of the study, after 3 weeks , and again after the six-week study. The researchers observed significant improvement in the scores of romantic stress from the weeks of 0 to 3.
The 5-HTP appears to work. However, no improvements were observed from the weeks 3 to six. Even though the younger people were significantly more deficient in BDNF as well as serotonin.
5-HTP Depression
The ” romantic breakup” study is an excellent illustration of how the use of 5-HTP as a treatment for stress and depression may not be effective. If it does however, it’s not likely to last long. Depression can be more than just serotonin deficiency.
Depression may also be linked with catecholamine imbalance, such as dopamine or norepinephrine. or a mixture with serotonin and catecholamine dysfunction. If you consume 5-HTP on its own it also depletes dopamine, norepinephrine and the hormone epinephrine. The synthesis of serotonin by 5-HTP and dopamine from L-DOPA is facilitated through the enzyme the L-aromatic amino acid decarboxylase (AAAD). Serotonin precursor and dopamine supplementation should be used in a proper proportion. Since when you only use 5-HTP, it is the dominant chemical on level AAAD. AAAD enzyme synthesizing level.
The blockage of dopamine synthesis in the AAAD enzyme by inhibiting competitive activity can result in the depletion of dopamine as well as the other catecholamines. Looking back to the Italian study of teenagers who were suffering from “romantic stress” The subjects stopped responding to 5-HTP during the 2 2nd portion of our study. Most likely because their catecholamine levels decreased due to the continuous use of 5-HTP. Research has shown that once dopamine levels are low enough the 5-HTP receptor ceases to perform its function.
5-HTP Supplement for Depression
If the levels of catecholamine neurotransmitters (dopamine or norepinephrine) affect the mood, adding 5-HTP by itself is not the best method to take. Since you could reduce the levels of dopamine and norepinephrine increasing the severity of the condition and its root cause. However, this contraindication isn’t only confined to depression. It is applicable to all illnesses in which catecholamine dysfunction is implicated. This includes ADHD and anxiety, obesity as well as seasonal affective disorder. Parkinson’s Disease.
Serotonin is a precursor of amino acids. (i.e. 5HTP) as well as dopamine (i.e. L-Tyrosine) collaborate during the process of synthesis, metabolism, and transport until they function as one unit. If dopamine and serotonin are in a balanced state and functioning properly, those functions that are controlled only by serotonin can be controlled by manipulating the levels of dopamine.
Functions that are controlled only by dopamine in this equilibrium state are regulated through manipulation of the levels of serotonin. If you disturb this balance and don’t properly add serotonin or dopamine precursors, you won’t achieve the desired effects of this Nootropic. You also increase the risk of adverse negative effects. If you supplement your diet with just the one of your precursors (i.e. 5-HTP to increase serotonin) which dominates another system (i.e. dopamine synthesizing) and it is likely that depletion of the dominant system will take place (i.e. depleted dopamine). If this effect is too strong that you don’t receive the benefits you were seeking when you supplement with the precursor that was originally used (i.e. 5-HTP).
An excellent example of this effect can be seen in the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease where the effects of L-DOPA have been seen over time because of the depletion of serotonin. Serotonin and dopamine are unable to traverse through the brain-blood barrier The amount of dopamine and serotonin molecules within the brain is dependent on the quantity of nutrients (amino acid precursors) that can be converted into neurotransmitter molecules. Enhancing the brain’s function while minimizing side negative effects is not a result of taking supplements until you have sufficient levels of amino acids. It’s about getting the right balance between dopamine and serotonin.
5-HTP Benefits
5-HTP is essential for the synthesizing serotonin in your brain. However, supplementing 5-HTP with 5-HTP to increase serotonin levels is not working effectively. The use of 5-HTP for treating depression has not had much results in the past few decades of biohacking and clinical trials. Incorporating 5HTP in the Nootropics stack is a lot more complex than just adding 5-HTP to increase serotonin levels. 5-HTP by itself is not effective for depression, or for any other problem you’re facing that involves catecholamines (dopamine and norepinephrine as well as epinephrine) due to 5-HTP’s ability to reduce these neurotransmitters. 5-HTP can increase serotonin levels in your brain. However, 5-HTP should be carefully placed in conjunction with precursors to dopamine and norepinephrine, or you could make the situation even worse. It is best to be careful not to supplement with just one of the dopamine or serotonin amino acid precursors. If amino acid precursors aren’t in equilibrium, you will end having a lower effectiveness of this nootropic, more adverse effects as well as loss of the dominant system.
5-HTP Dosage for Anxiety
The reactions to the supplementation with 5-HTP can vary but one thing that is consistent is the initial feeling of well-being more sleep, less requirement to sleep, better mood and less social anxiety. less appetite, a better capacity to handle stress, and better cognitive functioning.
After a few weeks of taking 5-HTP, adverse effects start to manifest. Serotonin overdose causes the depletion of dopamine and norepinephrine. The side effects can include depressive, sluggishness, brain nausea, brain fog, and headaches. The worst case scenario could be nausea, vomiting, and possibly being blacked out. Neurohackers who have had consistently good results with supplementation using 5-HTP, stack it with B-Vitamins which is a dopamine precursor similar to NALT and use only 5-HTP when it is needed. People who have had a negative experience with 5-HTP right from the beginning often don’t know the reason they’ve experienced a negative reaction. But an educated guess is their depression was catecholamine (dopamine, norepinephrine, epinephrine)-related. Serotonin boosting caused their dopamine-related problems to get worse.
5-HTP Withdrawal
Don’t use 5-HTP in conjunction with or with antidepressant medicine. You are in real risk from Serotonin syndrome that could eventually kill you.
5-HTP Dosage
Supplements with 5-HTP are widely advertised as a natural cure for depression. However, the research doesn’t support the use of 5-HTP to treat depression. There are many years of clinical trials to choose from. There is no proof of the effectiveness of using 5-HTP to treat depression. The Department of Public Health at the University of Queensland Medical School in Australia conducted a systematic review of the literature from 1966 to 2000 on “5-HTP” as well as “depression”. Researchers discovered 108 studies in clinical trials of which just two studies, one involving serotonin (5-HT) and the other with L-Tryptophan, for a total of 64 patients, met the requirements for quality to be considered. The research suggests serotonin (5-HT) as well as L-Tryptophan may be more effective than placebo in reducing depression. But the researchers noted “the small size of the studies, and the large number of inadmissible, poorly executed studies, cast doubt on the results from potential publication bias, and suggests that they are insufficiently evaluated to assess their effectiveness.”
5-HTP Fibromyalgia
A double-blind, placebo-controlled study in Italy examined the effectiveness of 5-HTP for treating the symptoms of fibromyalgia. 50 patients suffering from primary fibromyalgia syndrome were chosen to participate in this study. The study from 1990 did not release the dosage of 5-HTP taken. However, the researchers observed an improvement in the symptoms of fibromyalgia, with only minor and temporary adverse negative effects.
5-HTP Reviews
Insufficient neurotransmitter activity serotonin and norepinephrine is the central component of the depression model that is widely believed by neurobiologists of today. In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, a variety of studies were conducted in which patients suffering from depression were treated with the serotonin precursors, L-Tryptophan and 5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) as well as the precursors to norepinephrine and dopamine Tyrosine and L-Phenylalanine.. A report published within the Alternative Medicine Revue looked at the results of all these studies. The author pointed out the fact that the nature these research makes the process difficult for drawing solid conclusions about the effectiveness of neurotransmitter precursors to treat depression. There is evidence to suggest that the loading of precursors could be effective, especially for serotonin precursor 5-HTP further studies with a suitable size and design “might result in more definitive results”. The studies haven’t materialized since the report was released sixteen years ago.
5-HTP Dosage for Anxiety
The recommended dosage for 5-HTP if you’re planning to test the product is fifty mg one three times per each day. Certain studies have utilized higher doses than the recommended dosage, however 5-HTP is toxic in very high doses. For depression or anxiety For depression or anxiety, 5-HTP should be dosed between 150 and 300 mg daily. To relieve post MDMA (Ecstasy) depression, 5-HTP 100 mg on Day 3-7 after MDMA use.