The Best Non-Medication Medication
We all know that the supplementation market is flooded with products that claim they do this or that.
The hard part is figuring out EXACTLY what they do and how beneficial they are to us.
Do they interact with any medications? Do they do what they say they do? Will there be any long-term harm from taking it? How do I know which manufacturer is the best?
These are all valid points to look into.
Today, we will be discussing the one supplement that may help the entire world be nice and happy to one another!
Enter a nonessential amino acid- L Theonine.
All You Need Is Love
This little bugger is a pretty important and life-altering small branched protein that can significantly impact our life for the better.
Theanine, itself, is an amino acid analog of glutamate and glutamine and is naturally founds in specific plant and fungal species.
Breaking it down even further- glutamine is a very important amino acid that is used as a building block of protein and helps with our immune system.
Glutamate is the most abundant free amino acid in the brain and helps with multiple metabolic pathways.
Glutamate has excitatory effects on nerve cells and must be kept in a specific balance within our nerves to limit harm.
Keeping this in mind, L-theanine has the potential to counterbalance the excitatory effect of glutamate and can help calm us down, reduce stress and anxiety symptoms, and decrease the sympathetic response to many external stressors like stimulants.
Importantly, glutamine and L-theanine work very synergistically well with one another with intestinal stability and reducing an upset stomach.
The calming effect that L-theanine has across the body is very astounding and, personally, I feel that it is very much underutilized in medical practice.
Since this one amino acid can help calm undue stress across multiple body landscapes, it is a wonder that not everyone is incorporating this into their daily regime.
Even more enticing is that there is NO way anyone can overdose with this supplement. It is impossible!
You mean there is a supplement out there that can calm the entire population, enhance cognitive ability, heal our intestines, improve our immune system, lower our blood pressure, slow down our heart rate and we can’t overdose on it?
Sign me up, Charlie!!
Anxiety- The Downfall To Happiness
Everyone is so quick to be placed on a prescription medication that they forget that food happens to be the best medicine out there.
L-theanine is mostly found in tea leaves and mushrooms. Most teas have a natural calming effect and that is primarily from the amino acid called L- theanine.
This is a much better alternative than a controlled substance like Xanax, Klonopin, or even buspirone.
You do not need to consume exorbitant amounts of tea or mushrooms to get the desired effect you are looking for either.
Typical dosages can range from 200mg up to 800mg once or twice daily.
Physiologically, what happens when we are stressed out is that our sympathetic nervous system takes over (fight or flight) and increases heart rate, blood pressure, and symptoms of heightened awareness.
Glutamate is at an all-time high to help our body get ready to flee or fight for our life. Well, we aren’t fighting tigers in the forest anymore, but we walk around with our heads on fire from work, personal stressors, or relationships that have gone arie.
When glutamate is high, our nerves fire more rapidly, our cognitive thinking decreases, and become more focused on ‘survival’ mode.
To help dose our heads in water and have a calming effect, let’s add some L-theanine to reduce glutamate levels. This in turn reduces and lowers heart rate, blood pressure, and relaxes our muscles.
It is quite literally the antidote to stress and greatly enhances our cognitive ability- especially when coupled with caffeine.
When our bodies are in more of a parasympathetic state (rest and digest) we can think more clearly, feel more confident and calm about our decisions, think logically instead of reactionary, reduce GI upset, and improve liver health by allowing more detoxification of free radicals.
Using L-theanine, coupled with certain cognitive-behavioral techniques, like meditating, self-reflecting, and learning new coping skills can certainly lead to a more prosperous and righteous life.
Not to brag, but it has helped me calm my central nervous system down and lowered my resting heart rate and blood pressure enough to come off blood pressure medications!
Just saying…it is quite literally my secret weapon to happiness!
You Get What You Pay For
Much like anything in life, you certainly get what you pay for. If you purchase a car for 200 dollars, be prepared to spend more money in the not-so-distant future to keep it running.
The same goes for supplements.
Supplements that have corn, soy, and gluten are added as fillers to make the medication more stable because there are other additives in there that aren’t the best for our ingestion.
Make sure you do your research and look into the manufacturer.
Have they done third-party independent testing? Do they have a history of poor customer reviews? Are there fillers in the supplement? Are the ingredients locally sourced? Does the price seem too good to be true?
I use a specific brand, but I did my research and found out they have ultra-high quality products across the line.
The ingredients should just be what you are paying for. Plain and simple.
Much like any new supplement or medication, you start taking- do a trial run and ensure your safety is a priority.
You don’t know how you will react to the medication and certainly don’t drive right away until you know how your reactions will be affected.
Also, if you are taking medications to lower your blood pressure, have that conversation with your healthcare provider to ensure it will not lower your blood pressure too much.
The same goes for if you have a cardiac condition where your heart beats slower than the average bear.
Just want to cover the bases and make sure you are healthy when you venture into this realm instead of the pharmacologic one.
In my mind, the less money Big Pharma gets, the more we win as a society.
Have fun on this journey and learn a few things on the way!
Be strong. Be brave.
