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Anti-aging Research > GABA
GABA (Gamma-aminobutyric acid)
Specific Recommendations:
CME:
-
The Role of GABA in the Pathogenesis and Treatement of Aniety and other
Neurophychiatric Disorders - vcu-cme.org, exp. -
"The cliché “If you find one thing wrong in the
brain, you’ll find more than one” clearly applies to psychiatric disorders.
Most individuals with psychiatric disorders suffer from one or more
additional disorders at some point, and it is not surprising that many
patients require multipledrug therapy to control their symptoms.
Unfortunately, many individuals with comorbid psychiatric disorders fail to
respond optimally to treatment. It is likely that specific GABA-enhancing
agents will play important roles as treatment for patients with anxiety
disorders, with or without comorbidity, and as adjunctive therapy in
patients with more complicated neuropsychiatric disorders."
News & Research:
-
Vitamin
B6 supplements could reduce anxiety and depression - Science Daily, 7/19/22
- "Vitamin B6 helps the body produce a specific chemical
messenger that inhibits impulses in the brain, and our study links this calming
effect with reduced anxiety among the participants ... The new study focused on
the potential role of Vitamins B6, which is known to increase the body's
production of GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid), a chemical that blocks impulses
between nerve cells in the brain ... more than 300 participants were randomly
assigned either Vitamin B6 or B12 supplements far above the recommended daily
intake (approximately 50 times the recommended daily allowance) or a placebo,
and took one a day with food for a month ... The study showed that Vitamin B12
had little effect compared to placebo over the trial period, but Vitamin B6 made
a statistically reliable difference" - See
vitamin B6 at Amazon.com.
-
Age-related GABA decline is associated with poor cognition - Science Daily,
1/17/17 - "The study, led by Ronald Cohen of University
of Florida's Center for Cognitive Aging and McKnight Brain Institute, shows an
association between higher GABA concentrations in the frontal lobe, a brain
region important for complex cognitive functioning, and superior performance on
a cognitive test in healthy older adults ... Interventions that increase GABA
levels (such as exercise) could potentially offset these changes, and this paper
opens up a pathway for investigating this exciting possibility" - See
GABA at Amazon.com
although little if any probably passes the blood brain barrier.
-
GABA
supplementation improves planning for actions, study shows - Science Daily,
8/18/15 - "30 healthy participants received 800 mg of
GABA or placebo ... Compared to when participants received the placebo, the
ingestion of the amino-acid GABA enhanced planning performance. Colzato: "Even
if preliminary, these results show that food supplements that include GABA, and
perhaps foods rich in GABA, are a healthy and cheap way to increase our ability
to prioritize planned actions. For instance, people driving a car may benefit
from additional GABA."" - See
GABA at Amazon.com.
-
Early
research shows dietary supplement may lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes
- Science Daily, 9/22/11 - "a naturally produced amino
acid-like molecule called GABA was given orally to mice that were obese, insulin
resistant and in the early stages of Type 2 diabetes. Researchers found that
GABA suppressed the inflammatory immune responses that are involved in the
development of this condition ... GABA helped prevent disease progression and
improved glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, even after onset of Type 2
diabetes in mice"
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Mind-altering microbes: Probiotic bacteria may lessen anxiety and depression
- Science Daily, 8/29/11 - "Probiotic bacteria have the
potential to alter brain neurochemistry and treat anxiety and depression-related
disorders ... mice fed with Lactobacillus rhamnosus JB-1 showed significantly
fewer stress, anxiety and depression-related behaviours than those fed with just
broth. Moreover, ingestion of the bacteria resulted in significantly lower
levels of the stress-induced hormone, corticosterone ... regular feeding with
the Lactobacillus strain caused changes in the expression of receptors for the
neurotransmitter GABA in the mouse brain, which is the first time that it has
been demonstrated that potential probiotics have a direct effect on brain
chemistry in normal situations" - See
probiotics at Amazon.com.
-
Scientists discover new role for vitamin C in the eye and the brain -
Science Daily, 7/15/11 - "cells in the retina need to be
'bathed' in relatively high doses of vitamin C, inside and out, to function
properly ... Because the retina is part of the central nervous system, this
suggests there's likely an important role for vitamin C throughout our brains,
to a degree we had not realized before ... The findings could have implications
for other diseases, like glaucoma and epilepsy. Both conditions are caused by
the dysfunction of nerve cells in the retina and brain that become over excited
in part because GABA receptors may not be functioning properly" - See
vitamin C products at Amazon.com.
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Trouble
with the latest dance move? GABA might be to blame - Science Daily, 3/3/11 -
"those who were more GABA responsive were also quicker
to learn the simple motor task. The brains of more GABA-responsive individuals
also showed greater activation in the motor cortex during learning. The
researchers also found that those with higher GABA concentrations at baseline
tended to have slower reaction times and less brain activation during learning
... GABA levels can change after that kind of brain trauma, and the findings
support the idea that treatments designed to influence GABA levels might improve
learning"
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Memory's
master switch: Molecular power behind memory discovered - Science Daily,
7/29/10 - "Higher concentrations of GABA near a synapse
induced a stronger activation of its receptors, weakening basal synapse
strength. As a result, GABA makes this synapse more liable to the formation of
new memories"
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Anxiety Protocol - Life Extension Magazine -
"Theanine is an amino acid found in green tea and produces a calming effect
on the brain (Yokogoshi H et al 1998). It easily crosses the blood-brain
barrier and produces subtle changes in biochemistry, including increased
production of GABA and dopamine, which cause a tranquilizing effect"
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PharmaGABA: Natural Support for Stress, Anxiety, and Insomnia - Dr.
Murray's Natural Living, 5/17/07
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Brown rice may act against onset of Alzheimer’s - Nutra USA, 5/25/04 -
"Pre-germinated brown rice, high in levels of the
nutrient GABA, significantly improved levels of spatial learning in mice"
- Sleep Problems,
Anxiety May Be Connected - WebMD, 9/12/03 -
"both sleep and
mood problems may result from a lack of the same brain chemical ... The
brain chemical -- gamma-aminobutryric acid, or GABA -- is involved in
regulating brain activity ... Specifically, GABA deficiencies interfere with
the most important stage of sleep -- the "deep" delta sleep" - See
GABA at Amazon.com.
- Chemical helps aging brains
feel younger - MSNBC, 5/1/03 -
"in old primates, both human and monkey, there is a
decline in the levels of GABA, a chemical that inhibits neuron signals in
the brain. Without enough of that control, he said, the brain is distracted
and overwhelmed by stray signals, in the same way the ear is overwhelmed
when trying to hear a whisper at a rock concert ... When minute quantities
of GABA were injected directly into neurons, the brains of the older monkeys
responded just like those of the young animals ... Added GABA appeared to
have no effect on the young"
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Old Monkey Study Might Help Old Human Brains - HealthDay, 5/1/03 -
"brain cells in the old monkeys have lost much of
their ability to respond to the specific signals carried by GABA. Giving
GABA to young monkeys did very little in terms of brain function, but it
helped the old monkeys a lot ... GABA restored selectivity, so the cells
worked better ... What's true for vision probably is true for other
functions controlled by the cortex ... GABA is found throughout the brain,
so if GABA function is diminished, brain function is diminished"
- Gabitril Receives Approval
For the Treatment of Epilepsy - Doctor's Guide, 6/17/96 -
"Being the first drug specifically designed as a
GABA uptake inhibitor, Gabitril(R) is a new type of antiepileptic drug"
Abstracts:
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Intake of 200 mg/day of γ-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) Improves a Wide
Range of Cognitive Functions - A Randomized, Double-blind,
Placebo-controlled Parallel-group Clinical Trial - 薬理と治療 Volume
48, Issue 3, 461 - 474 (2020) - "The
objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of intake 200 mg
of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) on cognitive function in healthy adult
subjects aged over 40 years. Methods This was a randomized,
double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group clinical trial.
Thirty healthy participants were each assigned to either the placebo
group or the GABA group; those in the latter group were given
capsules containing 200 mg GABA daily for 12 weeks. Cognitive
functions were assessed using Cognitrax and the Repeatable Battery
for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) test.
Quality of life (QOL) was assessed using the MOS 36-Item Short-Form
Health Survey (SF-36). Results GABA improved or maintained cognitive
function on the domain of Non-Verbal Reasoning, Working Memory, and
Sustained Attention in Cognitrax and on the domain of Visuospatial/Constructional
and Delayed Memory in RBANS. Regarding QOL, the GABA group showed
significant improvement in SF-36 domain of Role-Physical, Vitality,
and Mental Health. IGF-1 levels within the GABA group increased in
comparison to the levels before intake. No adverse effects or
clinically concerning changes were observed." - [Nutra
USA] - See GABA at Amazon.com
and
iHerb.
-
Improvement of Memory and Spatial Cognitive Function by Continuous
Ingestion of 100mg/day of γ—Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) - A Randomized,
Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Parallel-group Clinical Trial -
薬理と治療 Volume 48, Issue 3, 475 - 486 (2020) - "As
the aging population of the world is increasing, it is important to
prevent cognitive decline in the elderly before they develop
dementia. Previously, in a preliminary study using animal model, we
found that GABA might improve cognitive function. Thus, we aimed to
evaluate the effect of 100 mg of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) intake
on cognitive function in healthy adult subjects aged ≥40 years for
practical applications ... Thirty healthy participants each were
assigned to either the placebo group or the GABA group; those in the
latter group were given capsules containing 100 mg GABA daily for 12
weeks. Cognitive functions were assessed using Cognitrax and the
Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status
(RBANS) test. Quality of life（QOL）was assessed using the MOS 36-Item
Short Form Health Survey（SF-36）. Results GABA improved or maintained
cognitive function on the domain of Visuospatial/ Constructional and
Delayed Memory in RBANS. Regarding QOL, the GABA group showed
significant improvements in SF-36 domain of Physical Functioning. No
adverse effects or clinically concerning changes were observed"
- See GABA at Amazon.com and
iHerb.
-
Oral
Supplementation Using Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid and Whey Protein
Improves Whole Body Fat-Free Mass in Men After Resistance Training
- J Clin Med Res. 2019 Jun;11(6):428-434 -
"Oral gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) supplementation increases
growth hormone (GH) serum levels and protein synthesis. Therefore,
post-exercise supplementation using GABA and protein may help
enhance training-induced muscle hypertrophy ... Twenty-one healthy
men (26 - 48 years) were randomized to receive whey protein (WP; 10
g) or whey protein + GABA (WP + GABA; 10 g + 100 mg) daily for 12
weeks ... After 12 weeks, the WP + GABA group exhibited
significantly greater increase in whole body fat-free mass than the
WP group" - [Nutra
USA] - See
GABA at Amazon.com.
-
Combined Oral Intake of GABA with Whey Protein Improves Lean Mass in
Resistance-trained Men - Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2016 May;48(5
Suppl 1):54 - "After 12 wk, change in whole body lean mass was
significantly higher in the WP+G group compared to the WP group (1340
+/- 465 vs. 146 +/- 218 g." - [Nutra
USA] - See
GABA at Amazon.com.
GABA is part of my sleep cocktail. I'm sticking with leucine
for the protein part.
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