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This independent site is for education and information about digestive enzymes. There is a large need to provide practical and general information on enzyme therapy for a wide range of uses. Enzymes have been around a very long time. Hopefully this site will help reduce the learning curve. Ideas, comments, and questions are welcome.  |
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Repetitive behaviors (called 'stimming') and hyperness continues to be a main concern particularly among children with neurological conditions such as autism and ADHD spectrum, even with enzymes. Certain enzymes seem to help reduce stimming/hyperness more than others. There are several reasons this can occur. We see that the proteases tend to increase stimming/hyperness which may be due to:
I have been thinking about the stimming/hyperness issue and have a suggestion for those who are still looking for methods to reduce these behaviors if necessary. The Idea It might also be that the amino acids in the protease enzymes themselves contribute to this issue along with the amino acids produced by food digestion. I have ask a couple enzyme supplement vendors what the percentage of proteases are in their products, and specifically what is the ratio of the amino acid tryptophan to other amino acids in the enzymes (have not heard back at this point). If the enzymes also have a low ratio of tryptophan to the other amino acids, and all those amino acids are added to the total amount of amino acids from the food, that would further deplete trytophan levels, making the problem worse. To increase trytophan levels which increases serotonin and thereby decreases hyperness/stimming, you need to give carbohydrates and not animal meat (or not as much animal meat), to minimize competition by the other amino acids. Foods high which promote tryptophan are milk, whole grains, banana, eggs and turkey. Eating a food in complex starch along with the tryptophan promoting food helps tryptophan get to the brain. Good combinations are cheese on grain crackers, milk and cookies, or a turkey sandwich. It is no wonder these combinations are popular and helpf folks "relax." By giving proteases and proteins, although we are decreasing the opiate peptides, we are also decreasing tryptophan levels and hyperness can results. When people add a broad spectrum enzyme product, this increases the carbohydrates broken down, and then we increase tryptophan and the serotonin levels, and have the calm Happy Child Effect. This is probably not the entire reason, but a contributing factor. So, if you are trying to increase tryptophan and want to see if this reduces the stimming/hyperness, here are some guidelines: Apparently, the serotonin level from food effects a person pretty rapidly, from immediately upon eating and lasting to two hours. This isn't like using the serotonin re-uptake drugs such as Prozac, Zoloft, or the tricyclics medications which influence set levels of tryptophan over a day or so. Food potentially provides 'new' serotonin into the body whereas the SSRIs reuse whatever amount is there. Here is something else that is interesting. I looked into the high-protein diets and found that "hyperness" "anxiety" or "stressed out" were conditions that can occur when someone (anyone) goes on a high-protein, low-carb diet. These 'side-effects' of a high-protein diet occur for the same reasons given here: high-protein diets decrease serotonin levels and anxiety, hyperness, or jitters can result. If you don't have a serotonin deficiency to begin with, you may never notice a slight decrease in levels. The research done in this area finds some people with autistic spectrum conditions have too little serotonin, some have too much, and the rest are reasonably balanced. Similar research has found similar results in related conditions. This idea or theory would apply mostly to the people who are seeing too much stimming or hyperness, and may be serotonin deficient.
What about taking tryptophan supplements? You can buy a supplement of the next precursor in the line on its way to becoming serotonin. It is called 5-HTP. The 5-HTP is supposed to work well and even performed equally to Prozac in one study. It doesn't have as many side effects that the prescription drugs do but some people do experience side-effects similar to SSRI medications. The main side effect, however, is listed as stomach irritation which is not good news for people who already have gastrointestinal problems. 1000 mg of tryptophan = 100 mg of 5-HTP. Doses of 25-50 mg 5-HTP/day are recommended and maybe up to 100 mg. A little B6 may be needed and taken the same day because it is necessary for the conversion of 5-HTP to serotonin. Hopefully, adjustments in menu will help considerably as well. Be very careful about taking 5-HTP with any tricyclic antidepressant or SSRI (serotonin-reuptake inhibitor, such as Prozac, Zoloft, or Paxil). Some references say not to take them together at all. Both the SSRIs and tricyclic antidepressants function to increase serotonin by "reusing" any serotonin present. If you take one of the SSRIs with 5-HTP, you risk creating too much serotonin, and sometimes this can be a problem too. Remember how some people say their kids go bonkers on Zoloft? Same reason – too much serotonin. Recent federal information says SSRIs may cause suidical thought in some children. Any supplement or medication acting on serotonin or related neurotransmitters with children should be under the supervision of a qualified medical professional. The tryptophan or 5-HTP supplements usually won't produce these problems on their own because the brain self-regulates the natural precursors such as 5-HTP. Trytophan is also used to make vitamin B3 (niacin). There are other things the body can use 5-HTP for if it doesn't need any more serotonin. You have problems with the prescription medications because there is no way for the brain to self-regulate it, or divert and "extra". Also, prescription medications may be affecting other reactions besides just the serotonin in the brain, and cause some of the more unpleasant side-effects. SSRI medications, 5-HTP, and tryptophan work similarly on serotonin - to increase it. But the SSRIs increase it by 'forcing' the serotonin your body produces to stay in the nerve synapse longer, so your body sees more serotonin in the nerves than was originally produced. 5-HTP and tryptophan help your body produce more serotonin to begin with. The nerves then see and work with this higher amount. It could be that whatever is not functioning very well in some people is resolved by an SSRI medication and not affected by 5-HTP or tryptophan. In other people, 5-HTP or tryptophan might work as well as an SSRI or even better, depending on where the malfunction is. In one study I saw, the researchers specifically used casein as the factor to increase tryptophan/serotonin and promote calming - like drinking a glass of warm milk before bed to help you sleep. That's why it works. So when people go on the gluten-free (whole grain-free), casein-free diet, you eliminate peptides along with a major source of tryptophan. And usually lots of meats are added into the diet. This drift toward a high-protein diet further drives the effect of a decrease in tryptophan and net result of increased hyperness. Diets high in animal meats tend to create more toxins in the gut and some of those toxins are phenols. So the total phenolic load is increased. You are also removed a major source of magnesium which promotes calming. Thus, this correlates with the effect some people see of going on a GFCF diet and after awhile the person "becomes" reactive to phenols and "regresses". So you start removing phenols, probably more meats are introduced, and the cycle continues. By adding in enzymes and returning to a more balanced diet that includes whole-grains and possibly milk, you are correcting a magneisum deficiency, reducing the total phenolic load and favoring more serotonin production...all of these promote calming. My reading indicates that 5-HTP allows more serotonin to be made and available to the body for use (if your body is actually not producing enough). The SSRIs force that serotonin that you do have present to be used longer. There is no additional 'new' serotonin produced. So even though both have the final goal of getting more serotonin used in the body, it is by different mechanisms. Perhaps some people have a faulty glitch in one part of the total pathway and others have a glitch somewhere else in the pathway. In autism, the research seems to indicate that some people run serotonin low and some run serotonin high. If you are too high already, an SSRI or 5-htp wouldn't be helpful (you wouldn't need more). Some people have good results with the over-the-counter supplement melatonin to help with sleep. However, the following cautions are packaged with some products. If you have one of these conditions or a closely related condition, discuss this with a qualified healthy care practitioner. You can also contact the specific manufacturer on why they included these warning: In addition, there is a concern by some on unknown long term effects of taking something that impacts hormones, particularly if your child is in approaching or in puberty. Research on Tryptophan, Serotonin, and Autism Conditions: There is a TON of research on tryptophan in the body and as a supplement; how serotonin levels definitely affect mood, behavior and mental processing; and serotonin with autism, so this is a well inter- connected area. Should anyone be interested in seeing if this strategy of watching the tryptophan load makes a difference, I would appreciate hearing from you – even if it doesn't work! It may lead to better guidelines for the hyperness/stimming seen by some. Thank you. Karen D. L-Tryptophan - nature's answer to Prozac http://www.lightparty.com/Health/5-HTP.html http://www.selene.com/healthlink/dep.html Study on 5-HTP in comparison to tryptophan The Serotonin System in Autism More studies on tryptophan, serotonin and autism http://www1.burrelles.com/NewsAlert/B2253PR/20010711/20684.htm |
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