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Neurochem, diet, & depressive symptoms
Dec. 28th, 2008 01:55 amThe amino acid tyrosine, which is found in "high protein" foods, gets metabolised to dopamine, which acts to produce (nor)epinephrine. The technical term for that is adrenergic (producing adrenaline) - this ties in with something I found a while back about possible variants of (pseudo)hypoglycaemia, ie. showing the symptoms of hypoglycaemia (which amount to "adrenaline has eaten all your blood glucose and is rampaging about looking for something else tasty") without a noticeable blood glucose drop.
Dopamine is easily oxidized, so foods high in antioxidants are a good idea. The classic quick-and-easy option for that is green tea.
Usual symptoms of low dopamine levels are lethargy and sluggishness - dopamine is what makes the brain light up, basically. This is of course a vast oversimplification.
Phenylalanine also produces dopamine - it's found in nuts, seeds, pulses, and fish. And in diet Coke, but it's not worth my drinking that.
The amino acid tryptophan is metabolised to serotonin in the presence of vitamins B1, B3, and B6.
Leptin potentiates the satiety response, which is one of the things that disappears quite quickly when blood glucose drop symptoms hit.
(Notes from Hemat's Orthomolecularism - check on this one)
Insomnia correlates with hypoglycaemia.
Specific against hypoglycaemia: vitamin C/chromium/Zn. Glycerine is not recognised by the pancreas as a sugar. Fructose uses the same metabolic pathways, but may raise triglyceride levels (WTF?) Thiamine/pantothenic acid for sleep.
Dopamine is easily oxidized, so foods high in antioxidants are a good idea. The classic quick-and-easy option for that is green tea.
Usual symptoms of low dopamine levels are lethargy and sluggishness - dopamine is what makes the brain light up, basically. This is of course a vast oversimplification.
Phenylalanine also produces dopamine - it's found in nuts, seeds, pulses, and fish. And in diet Coke, but it's not worth my drinking that.
The amino acid tryptophan is metabolised to serotonin in the presence of vitamins B1, B3, and B6.
Leptin potentiates the satiety response, which is one of the things that disappears quite quickly when blood glucose drop symptoms hit.
(Notes from Hemat's Orthomolecularism - check on this one)
Insomnia correlates with hypoglycaemia.
Specific against hypoglycaemia: vitamin C/chromium/Zn. Glycerine is not recognised by the pancreas as a sugar. Fructose uses the same metabolic pathways, but may raise triglyceride levels (WTF?) Thiamine/pantothenic acid for sleep.
