Post by catatonic on Jan 15, 2004 15:10:56 GMT -5
In the Harvard Med study of neutraceuticals vs Ritalin, which concluded that a supplement regimen worked as well as Ritalin, one of the categories of supplements used was amino acids. This is the list:
tyrosine - 900-1,800mg
glutamine - 600-1,400mg
histidine - 25-75mg
l-carnitine - 30mg
alpha ketoglutarate - 25-75mg
Obviously, the major components are tyrosine and glutamine. Tyrosine aids in increased production of dopamine. I know that I started my boy at 300mg per day and then increased him to 600mg daily. Looks like we will add a 3rd capsule once we see how he adjusts to the current dose. Tyrosine is generally considered safe with no real hazards, and there is some indication that it works better when used with glutamine.
Glutamine is one you've got to be careful of. The body metabolizes it into glutamate and because of this, anyone who is sensitive to monosodium glutamate (MSG) may do poorly on glutamine. It should also NOT be taken by anyone who is on medication for seizure-control, since many of these medications work on the principal of blocking glutamate receptors and glutamine supplements may cause the anti-seizure medication to stop working. It also ought to be approached with caution by anyone suffering from bipolar as it has been linked to manic episodes. Glutamine ought to raise GABA levels (GABA is an inhibitory neurotransmitter.)
The amino acids are probably the only area of supplementation in this study that might be ambiguous. The rest is very straightforward, with extremely remote possibility of making any symptoms worse. Amino acids are a different story. I would recommend using these very cautiously and monitoring any changes very closely.
The alpha-ketoglutarate is probably safely ignored. It is a carbon skeleton of glutamine and at the level used, it's hard to see what impact it has. I may be off base on that, but it's not that common a supplement, not that cheap, and impossible to find in such a tiny amount.
Carnitine has shown evidence of alleviating some ADHD symptoms, although the normal starting dose is 200mg. It's hard to see what 30mg will achieve. It might be worth experimenting with the addition of a separate carnitine capsule to see if it helps.
Histidine was also used in a subtherapeutic dose. There is some evidence that histidine imbalance may play a role in ADHD. However, as with several other imbalances, some children may have elevated histidine levels, others may have depressed levels. This one is probably worth trying out, but separately, since it could either help or hurt.
tyrosine - 900-1,800mg
glutamine - 600-1,400mg
histidine - 25-75mg
l-carnitine - 30mg
alpha ketoglutarate - 25-75mg
Obviously, the major components are tyrosine and glutamine. Tyrosine aids in increased production of dopamine. I know that I started my boy at 300mg per day and then increased him to 600mg daily. Looks like we will add a 3rd capsule once we see how he adjusts to the current dose. Tyrosine is generally considered safe with no real hazards, and there is some indication that it works better when used with glutamine.
Glutamine is one you've got to be careful of. The body metabolizes it into glutamate and because of this, anyone who is sensitive to monosodium glutamate (MSG) may do poorly on glutamine. It should also NOT be taken by anyone who is on medication for seizure-control, since many of these medications work on the principal of blocking glutamate receptors and glutamine supplements may cause the anti-seizure medication to stop working. It also ought to be approached with caution by anyone suffering from bipolar as it has been linked to manic episodes. Glutamine ought to raise GABA levels (GABA is an inhibitory neurotransmitter.)
The amino acids are probably the only area of supplementation in this study that might be ambiguous. The rest is very straightforward, with extremely remote possibility of making any symptoms worse. Amino acids are a different story. I would recommend using these very cautiously and monitoring any changes very closely.
The alpha-ketoglutarate is probably safely ignored. It is a carbon skeleton of glutamine and at the level used, it's hard to see what impact it has. I may be off base on that, but it's not that common a supplement, not that cheap, and impossible to find in such a tiny amount.
Carnitine has shown evidence of alleviating some ADHD symptoms, although the normal starting dose is 200mg. It's hard to see what 30mg will achieve. It might be worth experimenting with the addition of a separate carnitine capsule to see if it helps.
Histidine was also used in a subtherapeutic dose. There is some evidence that histidine imbalance may play a role in ADHD. However, as with several other imbalances, some children may have elevated histidine levels, others may have depressed levels. This one is probably worth trying out, but separately, since it could either help or hurt.
