GABA

What is Gaba?

GABA (Gamma-aminobutyric acid) is a non-essential amino acid formed from glutamic acid with the help of vitamin B6.  GABA is found in almost every region of the brain, and is formed through the activity of the enzyme glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD).  GAD catalyzed the formation of GABA from glutamic acid.  GAD requires vitamin B6 (pyridoxal phosphate) as a co-factor, which can be used to regulate the levels of GABA.
GABA is one of the major inhibitory neurotransmitters in the central nervous system to block the transmission of an impulse from one cell to another in the central nervous system.  GABA’s calming neurotransmitter regulating properties are critical for the nervous system’s healthy function.  GABA increases the wakeful alpha brain waves producing a relaxed and effortless alertness, and it decreases stressful beta brain waves that decrease mental concentration and focus.  GABA induced higher alpha and lower beta brain waves result in heightened relaxation, arousal, anti-stress, and better concentration.  And this is very important, because as you know, anxiety and stress are well known factors in the reduction of the immune system’s function.  Therefore, by increasing alpha and reducing beta brain waves an individual develops a stronger immune system, thus leading to better health. See Smart drugs

Stress and Anxiety

What you probably do not know, is that stress and anxiety are debilitating conditions that can shorten life span while lessening performance, well being, and the enjoyment of life.  Stress can also impair the ability to perform mentally and it may result in reactions to situations that cause enhanced frustration, hostility or even injury.  Stress slowly destroys the immune system, lowering resistance to disease and thus allowing degenerative and opportunistic diseases to occur.  Stress is a tool that aids in the promotion of depression.   Everyone is subjected to stress related factors at one time or another.  In a 1998 survey, nearly 65 percent of the adult population experienced some form of stress in their lives, and more than 23 million Americans suffer from some form of anxiety related illness.  Have you ever heard the expression, “stress can kill?”  Be aware, it can!

Functions and Uses

As previously mentioned, Gamma-aminobutyric acid functions as a neurotransmitter in the central nervous system and has calming, anti-epileptic, and neurotransmitter regulating properties which are critical for the nervous system’s healthy function.  Many disorders such as anxiety, panic disorders, tension, insomnia, and epilepsy are thought to be due to the inability to manufacture sufficient levels of GABA.  Drugs taken to increase the effects of GABA like Valium, Neurontin, Valproate, and Baclofen have dangerous addictive and other side effects where GABA has none.
GABA also has a physiological role in many systems outside the central nervous system, including regulating cardiovascular functions, regulating pituitary functions and growth, hormone production, mammalian fertilization, and healthy renal (kidney) function.  Also, it is clinically demonstrated that GABA and GABA enhancing compounds, like the amino acid L-theanine, play an important role in stabilizing mood disorders.

Health Benefits

Studies show that GABA improves sleep cycles leading to more restful sleeping.  GABA has powerful stabilizing effects on blood pressure.  GABA is a very effective analgesic, eliminating pain from chronic conditions such as arthritis and lower back pain.  GABA supplements can help to relieve the intensity of pain.  GABA may also lessen pain-related nerve impulses.
GABA naturally stimulates the anterior pituitary gland to secrete higher levels of human growth hormone (HGH).  GABA signals the pituitary to naturally release HGH.  HGH is a hormone that is widely known for its powerful anabolic (muscle building) effects, as well as lipotropic (breakdown and utilization of body fat) effects.  Human growth hormone is produced stored and secreted by the pituitary gland located at the base of the brain.
GABA has been used to treat both epilepsy and hypertension where it is thought to induce tranquility in individuals who have a high activity of manic behavior and acute agitation.  Levels of GABA in the brain may influence seizure activity in individuals with epilepsy.  GABA appears to inhibit nerve cells in the brain from firing and setting off seizures.  Gamma-aminobutyric acid analog gabapentin has been approved in the Unites States for the treatment of epileptic seizures and post-herpetic neuralgia.   GABA has also shown efficacy in controlled studies for treating neuropathic pain of varying etiologies.

Anti-Aging Benefits

There have been studies that indicated increasing levels of GABA may help decrease the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.  New York (Reuters Health) reported that a shot of brain chemical called GABA essentially turned back the clocks in the brains of older monkeys, whose brain function briefly operated at levels normally seen in monkeys of less than half their age.   This finding hopefully may one day help scientists reverse similar age-related deterioration in the brain.
According to Dr. Audie G. Leventhal of the University of Utah, School of Medicine, in Salt Lake City, GABA is a messenger chemical that is essential for optimizing how brain cells transmit messages to each other and acts to put a damper on unwanted brain signaling activity.
Although GABA’s age-related decline has not been documented in humans, a host of studies in mammals, including other primates, suggests that a similar process is at work in people, explained Leventhal.
In a current study, Leventhals’s team evaluated how a brain region called the visual cortex in old and young monkeys responded to micro-shots of GABA.  Monkeys between the ages of 26 and 32 – considered very old for monkey – that  got GABA directly delivered to their neurons responded to visual patterns, such as flashing vertical and horizontal lines, in much the same way as monkeys aged 7 to 9 years old did, according to Leventhal.
Without GABA delivery, the monkeys’ aged brains had more difficulty firing neurons that specifically gauge various aspects of depth perception motion and color, explained Leventhal.  Instead older monkeys have more random firings that make it difficult to observe visual nuances.
In younger monkeys, GABA had no effect since their brains already had optimal GABA functioning.
The challenge now is to go and look at a variety of GABA increasing drugs and how they influence other areas of the brain and whether or not they improve brain functions known to decline as people age, such as hearing and memory, said Leventhal. It may be, however, that already approved GABA boosting drugs have a positive effect on mental decline in the brains of older adults, but nobody has ever examined this.
Nonetheless, the findings raise some hope that someday a general decline in GABA may be correctable.  As Leventhal noted, people are born and die with the same nerve cells and more research should be conducted in preserving their functions.

Addictions

Addicts, including those addicted to Alcohol, Drugs, Tobacco, Caffeine, Food, Gambling, Shopping, Sex, even the Internet all have one thing in common, not enough of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA is available to prevent over stimulation.
We feel good when neurons in the reward pathway of the brain release a neurotransmitter called dopamine.  Dopamine provides a jolt of pleasure and normally excess dopamine is checked by GABA before becoming over activated.  Studies indicate that people with addictive behavior patterns do not produce enough GABA to suppress over stimulated neurons that are responsible for addictive cravings.  Without enough GABA to dampen excitatory messages set off by alcohol, drugs and other mental stimulants, the brain never appreciates that it has been satisfied.
Vigabatrin an anti-epilepsy treatment that is marketed in 60 countries (but not in the U.S.) is a GABA booster.  In epileptics, vigabatrin suppresses over activated motor neurons that cause muscles to contract and go into spasm.  Studies are underway to evaluate the effects of vigabatrin with the hope that enhancing GABA in the brains of addicts could help them control their cravings.
Another fundamental target for addiction treatments is the stress network.  In the study of animals it has been shown that stress can increase the desire for drugs.  Take for instance in rats trained to self-administer a substance, stressors such as a new environment, an unfamiliar cage mate or a change in daily routine push the animals to depend on the substance even more.

Dosage Intake

Some doctors recommend GABA in the amount of 2 grams four times daily.  Doses of GABA as high as 5 grams per dose are recommended within hard-core bodybuilding circles to stimulate spikes in plasma growth hormone levels, bur smaller doses of 1-2 grams are probably more realistic.  Doses are typically taken on an empty stomach prior to sleep.
GABA appears to be safe at recommended doses.  There are no known negative side effects with the use of GABA, however, at high doses GABA can actually increase anxiety and insomnia.  It may also cause numbness around the mouth and tingling in the extremities, mild nausea, a slight shortness of breath that lasts for a few minutes and temporary tingling of the skin.

Hopefully, this information will assist you in making an informed decision, before experimenting with GABA and GABA enhancing compounds!