Is 5-HTP safe to take as a mood supplement??
Ask the doctor
Q. Is 5-HTP safe? I've been reading a book that discusses how low levels of serotonin can affect mood. The book suggests trying 5-HTP. I'd like to know more about this from a medical perspective before I try it.
A. Mood researchers have been interested in 5-HTP (5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan) for more than 50 years.
5-HTP is converted to serotonin in the body. Serotonin, like other neurotransmitters, carries signals between nerve cells in the brain.
So-called serotonin circuits participate in regulating mood. Many well-known antidepressant medicines work by boosting the serotonin concentrations in the gaps between nerve cells.
So it's not surprising that people think of depression as a chemical imbalance, or that low serotonin concentrations cause depression. It's tempting to imagine topping off our serotonin to improve our mood, like putting oil in a car engine.
But the biological changes that can lead to depression involve more than improved serotonin signaling.
No one really knows how the brain produces mood. In fact, the more we learn about the brain, the more tangled (and interesting) the science becomes: numerous chemicals, cells, circuits, and even brain regions working together, reacting to the environment.
There is no solid evidence to recommend 5-HTP as a treatment for depression. In addition. unlike FDA-approved prescription medications, 5-HTP supplements do not undergo the same rigorous testing for effectiveness, purity, and safety.
Side effects of 5-HTP are nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, sleeplessness, and palpitations. Theoretically, any drug or supplement that affects serotonin can cause a "serotonin syndrome," a serious condition that includes fever, high blood pressure, dizziness, and disorientation.
Other standard treatments for depression (medications as well as psychotherapy) have been much more carefully studied. The specific benefits and risks for these are well known. The doses are well worked out and, for your safety, the treatments are carefully regulated. So if you are having problems with your mood, one of these better-known treatments may be a better bet.
Image: © Ekaterina Goncharova/Getty Images
About the Author
Howard E. LeWine, MD, Chief Medical Editor, Harvard Health Publishing; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing
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