Raymond on L-Theanine
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looking for a peat quote about l theanine's effects on either the serotonin or the cortisol in the brain? I don't recall exactly but would love to find it.
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@Cearrson said in Raymond on L-Theanine:
looking for a peat quote about l theanine's effects on either the serotonin or the cortisol in the brain? I don't recall exactly but would love to find it.
I didn't find specifically a detailed answer but I have this in my bank:
Theanine Completely Abolishes The Cortisol Response To Stress In Humans
Anti-Stress, Behavioural and Magnetoencephalography Effects of an L-Theanine-Based Nutrient Drink: A Randomised, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Crossover Trial.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26797633
Subjective stress response to a multitasking cognitive stressor, was significantly reduced one hour after administration of the l-theanine drink when compared to placebo. The salivary cortisol response to the stressor was reduced three hours post-dose following active treatment.
https://raypeatforum.com/community/threads/theanine-completely-abolishes-the-cortisol-response-to-stress-in-humans.9719/#post-125737
Haidut comments:
Given theanine's half-life of 3 hours in blood, and the 5 hours peak in the brain, I would expect an effect that starts after 2h/3h and lasts for up to the 7th hour (4-5 hours of total effect). So, dosing theanine at 200mg every 6 hours seems optimal for this purpose. This is also the dose sufficient for lowering serotonin and raising dopamine. Keep in mind that anything that lowers serotonin will also lower cortisol, so a good portion of theanine's effects may be due to serotonin inhibition. That would make it one of the few multi-mechanism cortisol blockers since it would act both through the GABA pathway and the serotonin blocking pathway. Theanine is also a glutamate antagonist and that is yet another very cool property. Anti-glutamatergic, anti-cortisol, and anti-serotonin drugs have separately been shown to be very potent anti-depressants. Theanine, combing all of these effects, would make a really good anti-depressant IMO. Unsurprisingly, it is being studies as a possible cure for PTSD, which is a disorder that combines all of these dysfunctions. -
I have this also:
Stress and Brain Waves
http://americannutritionassociation.org/node/257
Theanine acts on alpha waves
Alpha waves (8.0-13.9 Hz) are connected with relaxation, focus, wakefulness and the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter in the brain and gut that modulates mood, sleep, sexuality, aggression, and anger. Beta waves (14.0-30 Hz) are associated with concentration, arousal, alertness, and cognition but also anxiety, unease, fight and flight.
Alpha waves are the main brain wave pattern in the wakeful state when relaxed. A normal, healthy day should be spent oscillating from delta/theta to alpha then back to theta/delta. However, in the modern average life a different oscillation pattern is seen.
Additional benefits of L-Theanine include:
L-Theanine closely resembles the chemical structure of glutamate, which is a neurotransmitter related to memory. L-Theanine helps provide a focused concentration and supports healthy neurons.
Reduces stress.
Lower anxiety.
Improves attention.
Protects neurons from damage and death.
Helps prevent cognitive decline.
Boosts serotonin and dopamine.
Raises gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels.
Increases problem-solving abilities. -
@LucH Great stuff thank you.
