Amino Acids: Why All the Fuss?

Amino acids have been neglected for years when compared to vitamins and minerals. This was a mistake. It is now becoming clear that they can be helpful for some and sometimes harmful when there are errors of amino acid metabolism.

Protein

Your body and brain are largely made up of protein, water, and some fat.

"Good plant sources of protein are beans, peas, nuts, bread, and cereals." orthomolecular.org

For a starving person, protein is good. For a growing, healthy person, protein is good. However, there are many special cases in which people are either allergic to protein or allergic to certain amino acids. These cases include kidney disease, liver disease, PKU, celiac disease, etc. My own theory is that the various forms of mental illness involve errors in amino acid metabolism. In my view Alzheimer's disease and Huntington's chorea are included here as well as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, etc.

Hyperargininemia

This tongue twister is medical jargon for a disease in which the amino acid arginine is too high in the blood. This is caused by an inborn error in metabolism. Arginine is in the following foods:

Beans, brewer's yeast, brown rice bran, carob, caseinate, chocolate, dairy products, eggs, fish, lactalbumin, legumes, meat, nuts, oatmeal, popcorn, raisins, seafood, seeds, sesame seeds, soy, sunflower seeds, whey, whole grains.

These foods are somewhat typical of high protein foods. Milk contains all the essential amino acids.

Unfortunately there are many different inborn errors of metabolism. Another is called PKU.

PKU

In this disease psychiatric symptoms are seen. The patient can scream and throw things. Mental retardation can occur. There is an error in the metabolism of phenylalanine, an essential amino acid. Because it is essential, it cannot be completely eliminated. It makes tyrosine, so tyrosine can be given in supplement form or in a special formula.

Phenylalanine is in the following foods:

Almonds, avocado, bananas, beans, brewer's yeast, brown rice bran, caseinate, cheese, corn, cottage cheese, dairy products, eggs, fish, lactalbumin, legumes, lima beans, meat, nuts, ovalbumin, peanuts, pickled herring, pumpkin seeds, seafood, seeds, sesame seeds, soy, whey, whole grains.

Again this list contains high protein foods. Note that animal products tend to have more protein than plant products, although certain plant products (fruits, berries) are low in protein. Fruits tend to be around 90% water.

The foods on the phenylalanine list must be avoided. Otherwise brain damage can result.

Schizophrenia: Mitochondrial Dysfunction?

There is a very strong theory that schizophrenia is caused by mitochondrial dysfunction, but what causes the mitochondrial dysfunction? My theory is that the amino acid tryptophan is flooding the brain cells. Ref. 1 reports elevated levels of tryptophan metabolites in the cerebrospinal fluid of schizophrenics. This report strongly supports my theory.

Tryptophan is found in the following foods:

Bananas, beans, brewer's yeast, brown rice bran, caseinate, cottage cheese, dairy products, dates, eggs, fish, lactalbumin, legumes, meat, milk, nuts, peanuts, protein (hydrolysis), seafood, seeds, soy, turkey, whey, whole grains.

According to my theory, which is a very good one, these foods should be avoided in schizophrenia. But what about bipolar disorder? My theory is that bipolar disorder is similar. Ref. 4 supports a mitochondrial dysfunction theory for both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Both diseases have excess lactate in the cerebrospinal fluid. This excess lactate may come from excess tryptophan in the brain.

Conclusions

Amino acids are tremendously important in nutrition. My articles published previously discuss this. The references give some of my articles published on Associated Content.

References

1. Nilsson-Todd, Linda K., Conny Nordin, Erik G. Jonsson, Elisabeth Skogh, and Sophie Erhardt. "Cerebrospinal fluid kynurenic acid in male patients with schizophrenia - correlation with monoamine metabolites.(Author abstract)." Acta Neuropsychiatrica 19.1 (Feb 2007): 45(8). Health Reference Center Academic. Gale. Needham Free Public Library. 4 Feb. 2009.

2. Atlas, Ann, Magnus Gisslen, Conny Nordin, Leif Lindstrom, and Lilly Schwieler. "Acute psychotic symptoms in HIV-1 infected patients are associated with increased levels of kynurenic acid in cerebrospinal fluid.(Author abstract)." Brain Behavior and Immunity 21.1 (Jan 2007): 86(6). Health Reference Center Academic. Gale. Needham Free Public Library. 4 Feb. 2009

http://find.galegroup.com/itx/start.do?prodId=HRCA.

3. Prabakaran S, Swatton JE, Ryan MM, Huffaker SJ, Huang JT, et al. (2004). (2004) Mitochondrial dysfunction in schizophrenia: Evidence for compromised brain metabolism and oxidative stress. Mol Psychiatry 9: 684-697, 643.

4.Elevated Cerebrospinal Fluid Lactate Concentrations in Patients with Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia: Implications for the Mitochondrial Dysfunction Hypothesis.

Regenold WT, Phatak P, Marano CM, Sassan A, Conley RR, Kling MA.

Biol Psychiatry. 2008 Dec 20. [Epub ahead of print]

5. www.associatedcontent.com/article/1424647/advances_in_world_psychiatry.html

6. www.associatedcontent.com/article/1414107/basic_research_on_schizophrenia.html

7. www.associatedcontent.com/article/1395958/relationship_between_bipolar_disorder.html

8. www.associatedcontent.com/article/1393575/the_healthiest_foods.html