The following info about 5-HTP is taken from
http://www.neuroreplete.com:
5-HTP alone is not optimal :!:
5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) has gained much attention in recent years. The fact is 5-HTP does not produce uniform results in all patients. NeuroResearch has found that treating a group of 100 patients for a given disease with 5-HTP, only about 10% to 15% will get good relief of symptoms. Another 10% to 15% of patients will get some relief of symptoms and the majority (65% to 70%) will get no relief of symptoms. NeuroResearch has found the answer to this problem patients not getting relief of symptoms from the amino acid 5-HTP.
Theory of Mixed Neurotransmitter Dysfunction
The following is from the NeuroResearch booklet, "Neurotransmitter Testing and Amino Acid Therapy" pages 14 through 19, and discusses the need for
both the catecholamine system and serotonin system to be functioning properly for the system as a whole to be healthy and function properly.
MIXED NEUROTRANSMITTER DYSFUNCTION THEORY
Based on clinical observations NeuroResearch has formulated the following theory known as the ?mixed neurotransmitter dysfunction theory?. 5% of patients with a given neurotransmitter dysfunction disease are purely a serotonin dysfunction, 5% of patients with a given neurotransmitter dysfunction disease are purely a catecholamine dysfunction, and the remaining 90% of patients are a mixture of both serotonin/catecholamine dysfunction and lie along a spectrum between the two extremes.
BOTH SYSTEMS MUST FUNCTION PROPERLY
The serotonin system and the catecholamine system (dopamine, norepinephrine, epinephrine) must both be functioning properly for the entire system to be healthy and free of neurotransmitter disease. This appears to be reflected in neurotransmitter testing by the fact that patients with dysfunction of the catecholamine system tend to need higher serotonin levels to compensate and obtain a clinical response.
Prior to his retirement, the head of the clinical science department at the local medical school on many occasions said, ?The serotonin and catecholamine systems must both be functioning properly for the system as a whole to function properly and be healthy.? Coming from the head of the clinical science department we took it as gospel truth. It was only after working with patients extensively in weight loss for several years did I fully appreciate what he meant.
There was one final truth to the equation and that is, ?5% of patients with neurotransmitter disease relating to the serotonin and catecholamine system are purely a serotonin dysfunction, 5% are purely a catecholamine dysfunction, and the remaining 90% are a mix of serotonin and catecholamine dysfunction lying somewhere along the spectrum between the two ends.
uni-g
