Is L-Glutamine safe when taken in low dosages?

[battleknight24]

???

[candy]

1. What is it and why do you feel you need it?

[NNadir]

2. L-Glutamine is an amino acid. You get some almost everytime you eat

protein. You are as likely to overdose on L-Glutamine as you as you are likely overdose on protein.

Caveat: The extraction process used by unregulated "health" food stores to obtain "purified" L-Glutamine can be toxic.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

3. Are you trying to raise your growth hormone levels?

One of the few studies with L-Glutamine and growth hormone levels is the one conducted by Thomas C. Welbourne at Lousiana State University in 1995. According to his findings, only 2 gms. of oral glutamine was able to raise hormone levels up to 4 times compared to placebo. Furthermore, his surprising study showed that it raised hormone levels for all age groups. But this study involved such a small number of individuals that it isn't generally given that much weight. I don't think I've noted any other major peer-reviewed studies of glutamine and its effect on hormone levels.

Injectible amino acids such as L-arginine and L-lysine can dramatically raise growth hormone levels in children. However, these studies involve massive amounts of approximately 30 grams injected at a time. Before actual hGH could be synthesized, parents (especially in Europe) would have their children take amino acid injections to stimulate taller growth by stimulating the pituitary gland to produce growth hormone. But this effect wears off in later years. Orally taken amino acids, which often include a stack containing l-glutamine, despite all the hype are not that effective in raising hGH levels, the effects don't work at all on older adults, and even on the young, the effects seem to wear off over time.

The only dangers I can see in over-stimulating the body to produce growth hormone (if that is your interest in taking L-glutamine) is the possibility of acromegaly (the opposite of dwarfism) where one becomes a giant. I think the actor who played Lurch suffered from this. There is also some supposed evidence that cancer can result from massive amounts of increased growth hormone. Neither of these possibilities seem likely from just taking reasonable doses of oral L-glutamine, especially if you are older than 18 years old.

[Elidor]

4. What about arginine & ornithine (& lysine) with DHEA?

Arginine and ornithine
go together to make me big and green

I used to sing that little ditty to the tune of 'Ebony & Ivory' as I worked out. (Yes, I'm weird.) I was buying arginine in bulk from LEF.org. They sell it by the pound, or did at the time.

[dolo amber]

5. You?? Weird??

" They substituted two local dwarfs. That's pretty good on short notice. You don't just pull local dwarf comedians out of your hat on a Friday afternoon".--- Hardhead


Still the best thing ever written on DU. :D

[Elidor]

8. LOL!

I still think about that thread. What a riot. Literally! LOL.

[dolo amber]

9. I'll never understand

why no one but the very few who responded found that amusing, when it's clearly one of the funniest things EVER on DU.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=502065

Just for old time's sake. ;)

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

6. For a GH release?

There was a famous study done in Italy at the University of Rome by Dr. A. Isidori involving a combination of L-lysine and arginine pyroglutamate. It showed a definite GH release, but nothing compared to taking injectible synthetic growth hormone. I used to buy a lysine-arginine combo from Beyond-A-Century and tested my hormone levels. They went up consistently through repeated testing, but not dramatically. It didn't compare in any way to the dramatic levels I have seen from using injectible synthetic growth hormone I have bought in Mexico.

I believe the theory is that arginine doesn't really stimulate the pituitary to release growth hormone. It supresses somatostatin which is a growth hormone inhibitor.

If you are asking about danger, I think that large doses could perhaps interfere with sleep and possibly cause gastric disturbance, although most people tolerate it well. I don't think there's too much danger of cancer or acromegaly, but I'm not a physician. As I previously mentioned, the most successful use of amino-acids to promote growth hormone levels have occurred with massive injected doses on the very young.

[jukes]

7. battleknight24

if you mix aminos w/ food, *do not* heat, it breaks them down. fine in cold shakes, but most come in caplets that can be swallowed whole.

also, use an enzyme supp, papain or bromelain, to aid absorption.