Feeling stressed out? L-Tyrosine has the power to trigger positive results on your mood

(NaturalHealth365) The amino acid tyrosine is loaded with amazing benefits for your stress recovery, mood, brain, the list goes on and on.  Whether from supplements or diet, increasing your tyrosine intake will take your brain function to a higher level because this amino acid is a precursor to many neurotransmitters found within your brain.

For example, adrenaline (for fight or flight responses), dopamine (for motivation and mood), and norepinephrine (for blood flow and muscle recovery) are the three main neurotransmitters formed from tyrosine.

Here’s the problem: Your neurotransmitter store starts drying up whenever you suffer mental or physical stress, but this is nothing to worry about if you have sufficient tyrosine in your system – as it will help in replenishing.  If you’ve been wondering how to treat stress, tyrosine could become your best (nutritional) friend to support healthy brain function.

Tyrosine helps to reduce environmental stress, research reveals

With the demanding 21st century lifestyle, stress becomes rather inevitable and this can worsen conditions such as depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and schizophrenia in extreme cases.

Tyrosine prevents the depletion of neurotransmitters that can cause behavioral change in animals. A study was done to determine whether tyrosine can helps humans withstand several hours of exposure to hypoxia (oxygen deficiency) and cold.

You’ll be happy to learn that tyrosine prevented adverse effects that are associated with such kind of harsh exposure. With this kind of result, tyrosine is exactly what we need to keep going even when in a stressful environment.

But, tyrosine is not all about eliminating the threat of stress.  Here are some additional benefits.

• Keeps you ‘happy as a clam on high tide’

As mentioned earlier, tyrosine gets converted to dopamine, a motivation and pleasure neurotransmitter.

Dopamine has great influence on serotonin, and these are the two compounds that regulate your mood.  In fact, studies have shown how tyrosine has mood lifting benefits in animals and could be all you need – whenever you’re feeling a little down.

• Phenylketonuria becomes a thing of the past

Tyrosine is used to treat the hereditary disorder PKU (phenylketonuria) – a condition where the body is unable to process phenylalanine.  Keep in mind, phenylalanine is the primary ingredient used in tyrosine manufacture and consequently people with PKU cannot produce tyrosine.

In addition, tyrosine supplements go a long way in helping people with PKU enjoy all the benefits that come with this remarkable amino acid.

Tyrosine also helps in the manufacture of levothyroxine – a thyroid hormone whose supply is low in persons with thyroiditis or hypothyroidism.  Clinical trials have shown that tyrosine restocks thyroid hormone levels in stressed rodents.

This clearly suggests the importance of thyroid health – as it relates to tyrosine and mood disorders.

Where can you get tyrosine?

Cheese, fish, turkey, chicken are some of the foods that contain tyrosine, but you will be better off with a supplement if you desire its cognitive advantages.  Fortunately, major side effects while using tyrosine supplements even at high doses haven’t been reported.

So, speak to a trusted, healthcare provider about tyrosine and see if it can improve your emotional well-being.  There are so many ways to reduce stress.  Just find what works best for you and consistently take care of yourself.

Sources for this article include:

ScienceDirect.com
NIH.gov
WebMD.com
NIH.gov