Cortisol high level how to lower, how to reduce... - Thyroid UK

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Cortisol high level how to lower, how to reduce, risks and danger by Ray Sahelian, M.D.

cc120 profile image
5 Replies

Can someone decipher what this means please:

'Cortisol and 5-HTP

L-5-hydroxytryptophan induced increase in salivary cortisol in panic disorder patients and healthy volunteers.

Psychopharmacology 2002.

The results show that L-5-hydroxytryptophan stimulated salivary cortisol is a useful probe of serotonin function in healthy volunteers as well as panic disorder patients, and provide some evidence against a serotonin receptor hypersensitivity in panic disorder.'

raysahelian.com/cortisol.html

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cc120
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humanbean profile image
humanbean

I think it is saying that 5-HTP raises cortisol in people who are healthy and also in people with panic disorder.

And if someone takes 5-HTP and it raises cortisol then it proves something, but I'm really not sure what!

cc120,

L-5-hydroxtryptophan also known as 5-HTP works in the brain and central nervous system by increasing the production of the chemical serotonin. Serotonin can affect sleep, appetite, temperature, sexual behavior, and pain sensation.

Cortisol can be accurately measured by saliva testing.

It may have been thought that people with a panic disorder had trouble producing serotonin. However, through saliva testing, 5-HTP was used to produce an increase in cortisol levels, in both healthy volunteers and people prone to panic attacks.

This identified that both sets of people could make and utilise seratonin. In other words 5-HTP should work whether you are prone to panic attacks or not.

5-HTP is available in supplement firm but as a mood enhancer should be used with caution.

If you type 5-HTP into the search box at top right of page, you will get loads of members experiences of using it.

flower007

greygoose profile image
greygoose

Would have helped if he'd used some punctuation in there!

'Cortisol and 5-HTP

L-5-hydroxytryptophan-induced increase in salivary cortisol in panic-disorder patients, and healthy volunteers.

Psychopharmacology 2002.

The results show that L-5-hydroxytryptophan-stimulated salivary cortisol is a useful probe of serotonin function in healthy volunteers, as well as panic-disorder patients, and provide some evidence against a serotonin-receptor hypersensitivity in panic disorder.'

Well, maybe that's just me.

Very interesting. Here's the original abstract ref: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/120...

I didn't realised 5HTP increased cortisol. Tryptophan is found in all kinds of foods, like milk, the body turns it into 5HTP and then into serotonin, a mood-enhancing brain chemical, and melatonin, which makes us feels sleepy in the evening.

I wonder whether, if 5HTP has this effect, it should be taken in the morning - whether it would help with morning wakefulness, the get up and go feeling?

I've always thought of it as something to take at night.... looks like I was utterly wrong.

da2santos profile image
da2santos

Tryptophan can replace 5htp

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