What is 5-HTP(5-HYDROXY TRYPTOPHAN)?

   5-HTP (5-hydroxy tryptophan) is an effective replacement for tryptophan. It is a breakdown product of tryptophan, an essential amino acid present in most protein foods.
   5-HTP is a precursor to serotonin & works essentialy the same as does tryptophan, and in fact is one chemical step closer to serotonin. Read extensively about tryptophan in Dr. Slagle's book, "The Way Up From Down."
   5-HTP naturally increases the serotonin levels in the brain & body, whereas the antidepressants, Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Effexor, Serzone, Luvox, Remeron, etc, unnaturally increase serotonin levels and have many significant side effects. Do not take 5-HTP together with these drugs or you may increase the serotonin too much & create unpleasant symptoms.
   Tryptophan was used by millions of people for many years & is safe. It was removed from the market because of problems caused by a contaminant from a China supplying company. Political reasons have kept it off the over-the-counter market. It is available by prescription from many compounding pharmacies.
   L-Tryptophan is an essential amino acid that is converted into 5-HTP in the body. 5HTP is then converted into serotonin and melatonin.
   Low levels of serotonin have been associated with uneasiness, carbohydrate cravings and weight gain, mood, sleep disorders and substance dependence.* Every lot of A.R.G. 5-HTP is carefully tested to ensure its purity and to guarantee the absence of contaminants*.
   5-HTP (5 Hydroxy-tryptophan) is a natural substance already in our body that is made from tryptophan. 5-HT, minus the P, is the symbol for serotonin and your body naturally converts 5-HTP to 5-HT. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter, involved in the transmission of nerve impulses. At the neurochemical and physiological level, neurotransmitters are extremely important, since they carry impulses between nerve cells.
   5-HTP promotes self-assurance and can give your emotions stability and balance. It gives you the ability to think rationally, not emotionally. It can increase your ability to concentrate and restore lost drive and inspiration. 5-HTP is also used for supressing the appetite.
   

 Pharmacology of 5-HTP(5-hydroxy tryptophan):

   Low serotonin levels are believed to be the reason for many cases of mild to moderate depression which can lead to symptoms like anxiety, apathy, fear, feelings of worthlessness, insomnia and fatigue.
   5-HTP enhances the activity of serotonin,a hormone produced by the brain that is involved in mood, sleep and appetite.
   Decreased levels of this neurotransmitter has been associated with depression, insomnia, obsessive/compulsive disorders as well as eating disorders leading to obesity, or the reverse/bulimia.
   In a study employing positron-emission tomography(PET) scanning, eight healthy volunteers and six people diagnosed with major depression received infusions of radio labelled 5-HTP.
   The researchers found that significantly less 5-HTP crossed the blood-brain barrier into the brains of the depressed subjects than into the brains of the normal controls1. A significant reduction in anxiety was observed on three different scales designed to measure anxiety2. In a study of 20 people with panic disorders, several experienced a feeling of "relief" after receiving 5-HTP. A group of Italian researchers reported that 20 obese patients taking 5-HTP (900 mg/day) lost a significant amount of weight, had less carbohydrate intake, and consistently became sated earlier than a similar group taking a placebo.
   Therapeutic Uses:It alleviates the effects of a variety of conditions, including depression, anxiety, insomnia and obesity.
   

 5-Hydroxy L-Tryptophan (5-HTP)- regulates brain serotonin levels:

   5-HTP is a safe, a natural treatment for weight loss, anxiety, depression, and an effective antidepressant.
   HPLC Tested for Purity. The other ingredients are magnesium, white rice and water.
   The maximum recommended dose usually 100mg is sufficient.
   What do depression, insomnia, anxiety, suicide, migraines, PMS, obsessive/compulsive behavior, stress, obesity, and addiction have in common?
   All of these conditions are manifestations of low levels of serotonin. Many of the new prescription drugs that have become available since the absence of L-Tryptophan are designed to regulate brain serotonin levels (called Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors or SSRIs).
   Now, a natural and safe alternative to these drugs is available in the form of 5-Hydroxy L-Tryptophan (5-HTP). 5-HTP, a compound synthesized in the body from the amino acid tryptophan is ten times more active than L-Tryptophan and is the immediate precursor to serotonin (5-Hydroxy typtamine or 5-HT) which is found in the brain, blood platelets, and duodenal mucosa cells of the gastrointestinal tract, Since serotonin is found in the brain and central nervous system it has many implications on mood, behavior and sleep patterns.
   The function of antidepressant drugs, is to increase the availability of serotonin in certain brain synapses. Unfortunately, these drugs can produce many unpleasant and dangerous side affects (2). Since 5-HTP cannot be patented, drug companies have no interest in supplying this compound to the public.
   Now that tryptophan is restricted by the FDA, researchers have clinically investigated 5-HTP in comparison to antidepressant drugs. The results of the studies were astounding. Using the standard depression scale, both the drug and 5-HTP groups displayed identical reduction in depression. Depressed patients who received 100mg of 5-HTP, three times daily, showed at least a 50% improvement in their symptoms, without any reported side effects(3). Similar studies with depressed children demonstrated equal benefit.
   Subsequent studies were performed using 5-HTP for anxiety, panic disorder, sleep difficulties and obesity. In his research R.S. Kahn observed an obvious decline in anxiety symptoms when supplementing with 5-HTP (5), and patients with panic disorder noticed a feeling of relief after receiving 5-HTP (6). Melatonin, which helps regulate our sleep-wake cycle, is a metabolite of serotonin. Early research studies show that supplementing with 5-HTP may have positive effects on sleep patterns. In a six week clinical study with obese patients, those supplemented with 5-HTP were able to reduce carbohydrate intake, and experienced a feeling of early satiety, which contributed to significant weight loss(8).
   

 What effect does 5-HTP have on weight loss?

   As far back as 1975, researchers demonstrated that administering 5-HTP to rats that were bred to overeat and be obese resulted in significant reduction in food intake. It turns out that these rats have decreased activity of the enzyme that converts tryptophan to 5-HTP and subsequently to serotonin. In other words, these rats are fat as a result of a genetically determined low level of activity of the enzyme that starts the manufacture of serotonin from tryptophan. As a result, these rats never get the message to stop eating until they have consumed far greater amounts of food than normal rats.
   There is much circumstantial evidence that many humans are genetically predisposed to obesity. This predisposition may involve the same mechanism as that observed in rats genetically predisposed to obesity. In other words, many people may be predisposed to being overweight because they have a decreased conversion of tryptophan to 5-HTP and, as a result, decreased serotonin levels. By providing preformed 5-HTP, this genetic defect is bypassed and more serotonin is manufactured. 5-HTP literally turns off hunger.
   The early animal studies that used 5-HTP as a weight loss aid have been followed by a series of three human clinical studies of overweight women, conducted at the University of Rome. The first study showed that 5-HTP was able to reduce caloric intake and promote weight loss despite the fact that the women made no conscious effort to lose weight. The average amount of weight loss during the five-week period of 5-HTP supplementation was a little more than 3 pounds.
   The second study sought to determine whether 5-HTP helped overweight individuals adhere to dietary recommendations (9). The twelve-week study was divided into two six-week periods. For the first six weeks, there were no dietary recommendations; for the second six weeks the women were placed on a 1,200-calorie diet. As shown in Table 1, the women who took the placebo lost 2.28 pounds, while the women who took the 5-HTP lost 10.34 pounds. As in the previous study, 5-HTP appeared to promote weight loss by promoting satiety-the feeling of satisfaction-leading to fewer calories being consumed at meals. Every woman who took the 5-HTP reported early satiety.
   In the third study involving 5-HTP, for the first six weeks there were no dietary restrictions, and for the second six weeks the women were placed on a 1,200-calorie-per-day diet. The results from this study were even more impressive than the previous studies for several reasons. The group that received the 5-HTP had lost an average of 4.39 pounds at six weeks and an average of 11.63 pounds at 12 weeks. In comparison, the placebo group had lost an average of only 0.62 pounds at six weeks and 1.87 pounds at twelve weeks. The lack of weight loss during the second six-week period in the placebo group obviously reflects the fact that the women had difficulty adhering to the diet.
   Early satiety was reported by 100 percent of the subjects during the first six-week period. During the second six-week period, even with severe caloric restriction, ninety percent of the women taking 5-HTP reported early satiety. Many of the women who received the 5-HTP (300 mg three times per day) reported mild nausea during the first six weeks of therapy. However, the symptom was never severe enough for any of the women to drop out of the study. No other side effects were reported.
   Wasn't the drug Redux, which raises serotonin levels, taken off the market because it caused damage to the heart valves? Is there a risk with 5-HTP doing the same?
   In September 1997, the popular weight loss drug Redux and its chemical cousin fenfluramine, part of the "fen-phen" combination, were taken off the market based on a study showing that these drugs may have caused permanent damage to heart valves in as many as one-third of the people who took them. There is no evidence that 5-HTP produces these effects. Unlike Redux, 5-HTP does not raise blood serotonin levels to a significant degree nor does it block reuptake of serotonin. The point here is that 5-HTP does not disrupt the normal process of serotonin release, reabsorbtion, and elimination from the body. 5-HTP is not a synthetic drug; it is an amino acid produced naturally by your body's metabolism.