L-tryptophan, an essential amino acid that we can only get from food, is used to manage insomnia. Here is how.
Weight watchers and body builders swear by proteins. Why is that? Protein is the building block of muscles, and it keeps you full for longer. It helps repair muscles that wear off during intensive workouts, hence helping you build the body you want for summer.
You have one more reason to love protein. This Holy Grail of food groups improves the overall wellbeing of your body. L-tryprophan, also known as tryprophan, is an essential amino acid with several benefits for the body. You get it naturally from animal and plant sources of protein.
Gives a Boost to Hormones
Tryptophan is a natural mood regulator that helps balance certain hormones that keep you feeling positive and happy. When consumed it breaks down into 5-hyrdoxytryptophan, a product that helps boost a sense of wellbeing by increasing the production of serotonin, popularly known as the happy hormone. The result of this production is a calming effect that helps you sleep.
How Tryptophan Works
The 5-hyrdoxytryptophan from Tryptophan helps affects (positively) the production of serotonin, which then signals nerve cells, altering your thinking and feeling to create a peaceful and a stress-free state of mind. In this state, depressive thoughts are calmed, and order is restored. That’s how Tryptophan comes to be known as amino therapy.
What Does Tryptophan Do?
Apart from making you calm and improving your mood, Tryptophan makes you a nicer person. Tests conducted showed that animals became less territorial when their diets were supplemented with tryptophan.
In humans, a study consisting of self-proclaimed dominant and “quarrelsome,” adults were seen to become more agreeable with a dose of 1000mg tryptophan administered three times a day. They also visibly became more willing to share and accommodate views of others.
Ever noticed that the quality of your sleep is affected by consumption of refined sugars especially if you take some before bedtime? Goodbye, peaceful snooze and hello tossing and turning. Supplementing tryptophan regulates your cravings over time, which then leads to better quality of sleep.
Too Much Of A Good Thing…
As they say, there is such a thing as too much, even in the case of Tryptophan. Oral consumption of L-tryptophan has been linked with over 1,000 cases of eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome (EMS). EMS is a neurological condition that is associated with fatigue, muscle and nerve pain and swelling of affected joints among others.
L-tryptophan was recalled from the markets in the 90s after being associated with EMS, but then reintroduced under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA). It has been working as expected, with no more worries of EMS.
Dosage and Interactions
The dosage will depend on age, gender, and other conditions. As much as L-tryptophan is a natural product, it still needs to be taken in the right dosages as will be prescribed by a medic.
It may interact with other drugs, and so you are advised to consult your doctor before combining it with any other medication.
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