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Consumer Review: Tyramine Supplementation Can Help Increase The Effect Of Antidepressants Like Prozac Or Zoloft.
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Tyramine is an amino acid precursor to norepinephrine, a neurotransmitter associated with mood. Everybody's heard lots about serotonin and the SSRI antidepressant drugs Prozac, Paxil, Luvox, Celexa, and Zoloft. There are several competing theories about the etiology of depression, one a pathology involving the serotonin system, another involving a pathology in the norepinephrine system (the two are thought to be interrelated, both are screwed up, but one is causing problems in the other). There are a couple other theories, but they aren't relevant here.
Anyway, the SSRIs are god-sends for a lot of people. But for some, SSRIs don't work at all, or not enough. There are some other drugs that block the re-uptake of both serotonin and norepinephrine (or in some other way affect both systems). A few are Remeron, Effexor, Ludiomil, and all of the tricyclics. They tend to have more side effects, and are less used.
If you happen to be a person who responds better to antidepressants involving the norepinephrine system (like me), you can augment the effects of a SSRI drug or one of the others by taking a tyramine supplement. Some of this amino acid will end up being converted into norepinephrine in the brain, thereby increasing the antidepressant effect. I understand it's pretty safe to take up to 100mg per kilogram every day in divided doses - this would be about 5 to 7 grams for the average person. I'd start at a lower dose though.
If you are on a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) such as Marplan, Parnate, or Nardil, you must ABSOLUTELY NOT EVER EVER EVER TAKE ANY EXTRA TYROSINE. This is because when that tyrosine is converted, it ends up stimulating the sympathetic nervous system (norepinephrine related drugs tend to have more of a stimulating effect than others). Because the MAO has already RADICALLY increased the amount of ALL biogenic amine neurotransmitters, you are very likely to end up having a hypertensive crisis - a stroke, transient ischemic attack, or something else very very unpleasant.
Foods that have a lot of tyrosine that people on MAOIs should stay away from include any cheese other than cottage cheese, and any kind of aged or processed meats (particularly smoked meats or many types of sausage). Yogurt might not be a good idea either.
You should probably avoid tyrosine supplementation if you have any kind of kidney dysfunction, and probably liver problems as well. Seeing the reactions in people on MAOIs, it might also be a good idea to stay away from it if you have any kind of heart disease.
Other over-the-counter antidepressant augmentation strategies include supplementing phenylalanine, inositol, SAM-e, or St. John's Wort. Tryptophan supplements can't be sold in the US, but if you do come across it, don't take very much. It converts to serotonin in the brain (and might help with antidepressants), but will also end up creating extra quinolinic acid, which will zap brain cells.
I hope it is helpful.
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