You
may have heard of the weight loss supplement 5 HTP but do you know what it is??
Lets go back to basics and explain what 5-HTP is and what it can do.
Foods like
meat, peanuts and sesame seeds all contain an amino acid called Tryptophan
which our brains use to convert into 5-HTP (5-Hydroxytryptophan). Our brains then use the 5-HTP and turn it into serotonin, which is one of the 'happy' chemicals that helps control
our appetite, mood and sleep patterns.
Many of us
suffer from low serotonin levels, especially those that live in stress-filled
day to day lives. Having a low serotonin level can result in many being
overweight, crave sugar and leave them also wanting more carbohydrates than
normal. They also experience periods of depression, get frequent headaches and
have vague muscle aches and pains. Low levels of serotonin are also believed to
be responsible for mood swings and depression, and even overeating.
As you can
imagine this is any dieter’s worst nightmare, but unfortunately more of us than
you may think suffer from having low levels of serotonin.
All of
these conditions are fixable by raising our brains serotonin levels and a good
way to do this is through a good quality 5-HTP supplement. While anti-depressants work by keeping the serotonin
our body’s produce "free" in our brains, 5-HTP helps our body’s
produce more serotonin and in theory help keep our “happy” "free"
levels higher.
Low serotonin (or poor metabolism of
serotonin) leaves us craving more sugar (especially women during PMS) When we
have food cravings it is generally our body’s way of telling us that we need a
serotonin ‘hit’. Eating simple carbs like white bread or chocolate can
actually boost our brain’s serotonin levels (that’s why it feels so good).
Unfortunately getting relief this way
is only temporary and leads to the spiteful cycle of blood sugar levels going
up and down like a yo-yo, which in the long run can leave you feeling worse! By
keeping a steady balance of your serotonin levels using 5HTP you can control
appetite and beat food cravings.
In summary, taking a 5-HTP supplement
can help us control our appetites and lose weight. Our brain can absorb Tryptophan easier when
there is carbohydrate present. When we are feeling depressed we generally tend
to crave starchy foods, which without knowing it, is our body’s way of trying
to absorb more tryptophan, which in turn boosts our serotonin levels.
Taking 5-HTP as a
supplement can boost our serotonin levels naturally which avoids our food
cravings and hopefully avoids us putting on weight.
ليست هناك تعليقات:
إرسال تعليق