Serotonin deficiency

The transmethylation hypothesis depended on the psychosis of mescaline as an example of how methylated compounds similar in structure to the monoamine neurotransmitters could be psychotogenic, and demonstrated how methionine, the precursor of the methyl donor S-adenosylmethionine, could exacerbate the psychotic symptoms of schizophrenia in patients. This theory was fed by studies of the now notorious pink spot, an amine found in paper chromatography of urine extracts from schizophrenics and thought to be 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine (i.e., O-methylated dopamine). Subsequent studies eventually identified this as another compound or compounds, primarily of dietary origin. Another methylated derivative erroneously proposed to be found in higher quantities in schizophrenia was dimethyltryptamine. This compound is similar in structure to LSD, the hallucinogenic nature of which was the key to the serotonin deficiency hypothesis, which proposed that the known antagonism of serotonin (5-HT) by LSD indicated that psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia may result from a hypofunction of 5-HT. 

Blunted prolactin response to such agents as fenfluramine, methadone, and l-tryptophan may be secondary to a possible serotonin deficiency in depression. 

Voderholzer U, Homyak M, Thiel B, Huwig-Poppe C, KiemenA, Konig A, Backhaus J, Riemann D, Berger M, Hohagen F (1998) Impact of experimentally induced serotonin deficiency by tryptophan depletion on sleep EEG in healthy subjects. Neuropsychopharmacology 18 112-124... 

Holland JM. Serotonin deficiency and prolonged bleeding time in beige mice (39137). Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 1976 151 32-39... 

Loer CM, Kenyon CJ. 1993. Serotonin-deficient mutants and male mating behavior in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. J. Neurosci. 13 5407-17... 

Ferguson, FI. B., Pappas, B. A., Trites, R. L., Peters, D. A., and Taub, FI., Plasma free and total tryptophan, blood serotonin, and the hyperactivity syndrome No evidence for the serotonin deficiency hypothesis, Biol. Psychiatr., 16(3), 231, 1981. 

I explained to Mary that this temporary relief from anxiety or sadness was not a purely psychological phenomenon. She was probably suffering from a beta-endorphin deficiency on top of a serotonin-deficient depression. 

Atkins Diet This low-carb high-protein weight-loss plan starts out pretty harshly, with almost no calories from carbohydrates in the first several weeks of the diet. This sudden loss of carbs is fairly hard on most people and may be especially difficult for someone who is serotonin-deficient. Atkins is also a high-fat diet that pays little attention to the difference between healthy and unhealthy fats—again, a problem for someone who needs a certain level of... 

If you re under a lot of stress, having particular problems with sleep, or fit the description of serotonin deficiency in the chart below, you niight go for a more intense supplement along with your vitamins or minerals. Try 5-HTP, a precursor to tryptophan, the amino acid that your brain uses to produce serotonin. Start slowly only 50 mg at night. If you don t notice any side effects after a few days, up your dose to 150 mg at night if helpful for sleep, or else just take 50 to 100 mg three times a day. 

Signs of serotonin deficiency suggesting a need to supplement with 5-HTP ... 

Choose these when you re feeling restless anxious, or inattentive. These are especially helpful for people with serotonin deficient depression. 

Interestingly, the instability of vata energies in Ayurveda corresponds with the Western scientific notion that a serotonin deficiency is the most common problem associated with depression. Just as vata energies can become unbalanced even in pitta and kapha types, so can serotonin become deficient even in people with other types of brain chemical imbalances, such as norepinephrine/dopamine excess or deficiency. So when people have either vata imbalances or serotonin deficiencies, I usually try to treat those first, no matter what other problems they re experiencing. 

I still don t get it, Jeff said when I d explained the notion of vata im" balance, If it really is the same thing as serotonin deficiency, why do you need the Ayurvedic stuff Why not just stick to the Western diagnosis ... 

Western brain chemistry connection When depressed, likely to be diagnosed with anxious depression or serotonin depletion may be helped by dietary and exercise recommendations for serotonin deficiency. Ayurvedic connection Corresponds in many ways to Air type, or vata may be helped by Ayurvedic Mind-Body medicine recommendations for Air types. 

W. Poldinger, et al., A Functional-Dimensional Approach to Depression Serotonin Deficiency as a Target Syndrome in a Comparison of 5-HTP and Fluvoxamine. Psychopathobgy 24 (1991) 53-81. 

The hormone melatonin induces sleep, but serotonin is involved in dreaming both are produced in the pineal gland. If the brain has low serotonin levels, dreaming will not occur. Serotonin is also important in learning, memory, and mood. It is deficient in the brains of depressed patients. Serotonin deficiency can result in an inability to fall asleep at night, panic attacks, loss of concentration, and thoughts of suicide or attempted suicide. 

Serotonin deficiency is related to a broad array of emotional and behavioral problems, ranging from depression, premenstrual syndrome, anxiety, alcoholism, insomnia, violence, aggression, suicide, and compulsive gambling. 

Barry Sears has promoted the idea that the increasing incidence of depression in modern life is related to a low intake of fish and fish oil. Depression leads to an increasing intake of serotonin-boosting drugs, including Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft. He postulates that many people of the United States have a serotonin deficiency. SPECT studies of regional cerebral blood flow show that high-doses of dietary fish oil improve cerebral blood flow. 

We already mentioned that serotonin deficiency is a major cause of depression, which is the most widespread disease in the western world. Once I heard from a renowned neuroscientistt l that the Phoenicians (an ancient people who used to live along the shores of Lebanon and who founded the superpower Carthage that was later destroyed hy the Romans) had a magic solution for the treatment of depression. They used to collect all the depressed members of the community, put them in wrecked ships, and send them to an unknown destination. When these members did not return, the Phoenicians assumed that they were healthy and content wherever they settled. 

Many amines are physiologically active. They affect the brain, spinal cord, and nervous system. These compounds include the neurotransmitters epinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine. Epinephrine, commonly called adrenaline, stimulates the conversion of glycogen into glucose. Serotonin is a hormone that causes sleep. Serotonin deficiency is implicated in some forms of mental depression. Parkinson s disease is accompanied by a low concentration of dopamine. 

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