anyone tried this GABA stuff?

Senny · 01-10-2007, 02:40 PM

Heya, i dont often post here, every once in a while. But a friend of mine told me about this product called GABA, or Gamma-aminobutyric acid,i guess its an inhibitory neurotransmitter... anyway my friend says it works wonders on his anxiety and helps him get to sleep at night.

Has anyone tried this specifically for tic symptoms? I can't find any info on the web about first hand stories, specifically for people with tics...

I'm eager to find something other than pharmaceuticals to use to help with my tics... its really expensive to get a script when you dont have any insurance... and this is pretty cheap and right in the vitamin section...

anyway, any insight as to personal experiences would be helpful.

thanks

Lara · 01-10-2007, 04:41 PM

G'day sen,
Long time no chat. I hope you're doing well there!

I remember reading about Clinical Trials with GABA and Tourette Syndrome. I think that the TSA-USA was involved. It was a few years back now.

There was another thread here regarding GABA. You may have seen that already. We've not used it here at home, but I know other people have. Hopefully you'll get some advice and maybe directions to other information soon.
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/showthread.php?t=5979

take care,
Lara

Senny · 01-10-2007, 05:02 PM

Hey thanks for the post... I did read the other thread (after you led me to it, i didn't realize it was there..) but unfortunately, it doesn't help me to much, it didn't seem like anyone had actually tried gaba, especially tried it alone. I dont take any other dietary supplements... And i dont take any over the counter meds.. the most i do is basil on my pasta, and english breakfast tea every once in a while... also, i'm thinking the supplements may have quite a different reaction on children v. adults, simply because most seem to be pre-pubescent, and all boys... i think my best bet will be to buy some and try it....

thanks for the link though!

Lara · 01-10-2007, 05:04 PM

Just as an aside, and I do know you're not asking about medication itself, but I found an interesting comment in a paper by Dr Samual Zinner regarding the GABA agonist, Baclofen.

http://www.tsa-usa.org/Medical/image...38-049T2R1.pdf
Tourette syndrome — much more than tics

GABA agonist/muscle relaxant
Adverse effects include constipation, nausea, stomach pains

Baclofen (Kemstro)a 20 mg tid May be effective, but may be acting on anxiety rather than tics

http://www.tourette.de/forschung/med...r_tsa_2004.pdf
Article quoted from that site is from TSA-USA Newsletter of 2004 - Retrospective summary of TS literature.

Quote:

Baclofen treatment in Tourette syndrome: a double-blind, placebo-controlled,crossover trial

Singer HS, Wendlandt J, Krieger M, Giuliano J: Neurology
2001; 56(5):599-604
Abstract: Methods: Subjects received, in a randomized
sequence, 4-week medication cycles of baclofen (20 mg three
times daily) and placebo with a 2-week intervening washout
period between the cycles. Outcome measures included the
Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale, and the Yale Global Tic
Severity Scale (YGTSS), the latter including subscales for total
tics and overall impairment. Measures were assessed at baseline
and on days 28, 42, and 70 of the study. Results: Ten children
(seven boys and three girls, aged 8 to 14) with TS participated.
Nine subjects completed the protocol; one dropped out for
psychosocial reasons. No major side effects were reported.
The mean change in CGI score (-0.9) after 4 weeks of baclofen
treatment as compared with placebo treatment showed a signiﬁ -
cant improvement (95% CI, -1.7 to -0.1; p = 0.04). All subjects
showed some amelioration in total YGTSS score during baclofen
treatment. The mean change in total YGTSS score (-14.7) approached
signiﬁ cance (95% CI, -30.3 to 0.9; p = 0.06). Examination
of differences between baclofen and placebo treatment
groups expressed as a percent change from baseline showed that
baclofen had a statistically signiﬁ cant effect on both outcome
measures. Subscales of the YGTSS showed that the reduction in
total tic scores was primarily due to a reduction in the impairment
score rather than a decrease in tics. Conclusions: Children
with TS may beneﬁ t from treatment with baclofen, although
improvements may be related to factors other than tics. Larger
studies directly comparing baclofen against other tic-suppressing
agents are recommended.

bold added by me.

Lara · 01-10-2007, 05:08 PM

No problem, sen.
This board is pretty quiet for TS, but you might find more info. on Latitudes if you google that with GABA.

Hope that if you do try it, that you find it helpful. Your tics acting up a bit at the moment? How's the study going???

I might look into it more. I have anxiety issues and was going to try Inositol months ago, but I'm so slack with my own health 'cause I get caught up doing things for everyone else at home here.

take care,
Lara

Lara · 01-10-2007, 05:19 PM

Hey, just found an interesting article referring to the clinical trials. It appears to be with adults. Not sure exactly and I have to dash away. Someone else needs the phone line.

Neurology Now: Volume 1(2) Summer 2005 pp 41,46
Unraveling the Mystery of Tourette Syndrome
[DEPARTMENTS: Clinical Trial Watch]

http://www.neurologynow.com/pt/re/ne...856144!8091!-1

Quote:

Dr. Hallett and Alicja Lerner, M.D., Ph.D., an NIH senior investigator, are currently seeking more volunteers like Reawood to participate in a series of imaging studies designed to learn more about GABA receptors in the brain. According to Dr. Hallett, previous research established that GABA receptors play a role in the tics that are the hallmark symptom of Tourette syndrome.

GABA is a neurotransmitter, or chemical messenger, whose natural function is to inhibit the activity of neurons, or nerve cells, to which it binds. Research suggests that GABA controls fear and anxiety that are experienced when neurons are overexcited. This may explain why anti-anxiety drugs such as Valium and Librium, which are benzodiazepines, bind to the same nerve cell receptors as GABA and enhance the calming effect of GABA. Drs. Hallet and Lerner are currently investigating the GABA benzodiazepine receptor. They hope to learn not only where GABA is in the brain but exactly what it is doing, Dr. Hallett says.

The two researchers are using two types of brain imaging studies - functional magnetic resonance imaging or fMRI and positron emission tomography commonly called PET. Functional MRI allows researchers to observe brain tissue and track brain activity when the subject responds to questions or images. Both MRI and PET imaging allow the researchers to record brain activity of tics while the volunteer is awake and PET studies can also be done while the volunteer is sleeping. These very high-tech brain-imaging techniques allow the researchers to determine the density of the GABA receptors and to learn ways in which GABA works to metabolize brain chemicals.

In the short term these studies help researchers and people with Tourette syndrome learn more about the physiology of the disorder. But the long-term goal - the brass ring in research - is development of a new therapy that could be tailored to target GABA receptors. We are looking for a specific abnormality in the receptors - or perhaps a loss of GABA receptors - that would explain tics, Dr. Hallett said.

Chemar · 01-11-2007, 01:00 PM

Hi Senny
we have only used GABA for anxiety and my son did benefit from it at the time

not sure if it had any effect on his tics as he was taking other supplements to help with those already
but it sure brought his anxiety levels down

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Cool stuff	Chris66	Multiple Sclerosis	6	12-01-2006 08:27 PM
stuff	paula_w	Parkinson's Disease	6	12-01-2006 07:13 PM
Help with anxiety! GABA?	Laurie	Tourette Syndrome	3	11-10-2006 09:06 AM
Funny Stuff	Condor	Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD and CRPS)	19	10-23-2006 09:37 PM
finding the good old stuff	annie	Epilepsy	11	09-02-2006 11:22 PM

Site Navigation

NeuroTalk Online Support Groups

anyone tried this GABA stuff?

NeuroTalk Forums