The Talk Show for Grownups
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| Stimulating The Brain’s Feel Good Chemicals
According to NAPS there’s encouraging news for people who are struggling with their weight or coping with mild depression. Boosting a chemical naturally produced by the brain—serotonin—may offer relief from mild depression and for some people can make it easier to lose weight. Scientists say that people with low levels of serotonin tend to be depressed, irritable, irrational, aggressive and inattentive. They often crave carbohydrates, especially candy, baked goods and other sources of simple sugars. As a result, these people with low serotonin levels are not only depressed, they tend to overeat and get fat. Although in the human physiology, serotonin is produced from the amino acid tryptophan, many people cannot produce enough. Emotional and physical stress, as well as illness, all hamper the ability of the body to convert tryptophan to serotonin. One way some people are overcoming mild depression and obesity is by using a nutritional formula containing 5-hydroxytrytophan (5-HTP). 5-HTP is a compound derived from tryptophan that the brain can easily convert to serotonin. When serotonin levels in the brain are elevated, a person may be less prone to overeating. The use of 5-HTP to elevate serotonin levels can produce astounding results for both depression and weight loss, said Michael Murray, N.D., author of 5-HTP: The Natural Way to Overcome Depression, Obesity and Insomnia (Bantam Books, 1998). In a clinical study conducted at the Osaka University Medical School, 107 patients received 5-HTP daily. Within four weeks, 74 of them reported significant improvements in mood. As for weight loss, in one study, women receiving 5-HTP lost an average of 4.39 pounds in the first six weeks and 11.63 pounds after twelve weeks. One of the criteria for mild depression is that a person is depressed most of the time for two years. |