Your mind can't work properly without a variety of chemical substances present. Special chemicals called neurotransmitters influence your mood, mental clarity and sleep patterns. GABA, or gamma-Aminobutyric acid, and serotonin are two such neurotransmitters. The amino acid 5-Hydroxytryptophan or 5-HTP is converted into serotonin. Your body gets GABA from supplements or by conversion from the amino acid glutamate. Two supplements or medicines taken together may interact in a harmful way. Consult your physician before you combine GABA and 5-HTP dietary supplements to treat a medical condition.
Pharmacological Overlap
5-HTP and GABA affect the body in different ways. 5-HTP can cross the brain-body barrier, while supplemental GABA can not. GABA precursor supplements such as glutamate can cross the barrier, however, and be converted to GABA. Once in the brain, GABA and 5-HTP often overlap in their activity. For example, a 2003 study published in the journal "Neuropharmacology" showed that while GABA enhanced the pain-killing effects of morphine, 5-HTP effectively blocked them.
Documented Interactions
There are no documented harmful drug interactions between GABA and 5-HTP dietary supplements. There are no documented drug interactions between 5-HTP and drugs that mimic the action of GABA such as the the seizure drug gabapentin. There is no known interference by GABA or GABA-like drugs on the enzyme systems responsible for eliminating 5-HTP or serotonin from the body. Likewise, there is no known interference by 5-HTP on the elimination of GABA or GABA-like drugs from the body.
Mental Impairment Risks
Both GABA and 5-HTP supplements may relax, calm and perhaps make you drowsy. By different routes, each directly or indirectly depresses the central nervous system. The two supplements taken together may intensify each other's sedative side effects. This can be dangerous -- especially if you must engage in activities that require full mental and physical alertness. Older adults may be affected even more by additive impairment of their physical and mental alertness, reflexes and reaction time.
Beneficial interactions
Some herbal dietary supplements combine GABA or GABA precursors with 5-HTP derived from Griffonia simplicifolia. Provided these supplements can actually raise brain GABA levels in the brain, the combinations may be beneficial. This is especially so when you have a combination of symptoms such as tenseness, agitation, anxiety, depression, sleepless nights and fatigue. When the manufacturer's dosing instructions and your physician's advice are followed, the synergistic actions of serotonin and GABA combinations can be safe and effective.
References
- "Psychosomatic Medicine"; Dietary Supplements and Natural Products as Psychotherapeutic Agents; Adriane Fugh-Berman, et al.; 1999
- "Medical Science Monitor"; Formulations of dietary supplements and herbal extracts for relaxation and anxiolytic action: Relarian; Benjamin S. Weeks; November 2009
- "Pharmacogenetics"; Modulation of CYP1A2 enzyme activity by indoleamines: inhibition by serotonin and tryptamine; Agúndez JA, et al.; 1998
- "Pharmacogenetics"; Inhibition of cytochrome P450 2C9 activity in vitro by 5-hydroxytryptamine and adrenaline; Gervasini, G., et al.; February 2001
- "Neuropharmacology"; Serotonin-GABA interactions in the modulation of mu- and kappa-opioid analgesia; Nemmani KV, et al.; March 2003
- "American Journal of Therapeutics"; A randomized, placebo-controlled trial of an amino acid preparation on timing and quality of sleep; Shell W, et al.; March-April 2010
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