5-Htp + Sam e possible dangers

[Big)Sky]

Okay so my aunt has been taking 5-htp for about a month now. She takes 1 at night every other night. She has also been taking Sam-e. She has slight depression and has a very busy life-style.

Lately she has been having serious memory problems. When shes talking she cant think of the word to say. Kind of like after you roll, your slightly e-tarded. She said her memory had been terrible sence she has been taking the 5-Htp.

Could this be slight serotonin syndrome due to taking Sam-e along with the 5-Htp?

 

[wetwolves]

prolly was the sam-e , from experience I took about 1000mg daily of 5htp for about a year straight daily, and didnt have any problems.

 

[rickolasnice]

Damage to 5-ht neurons may result in difficulty with word recall..

Maybe she should stop taking the 5-HTP?

 

[clay404]

I may be wrong but 5-htp just increases the amount of serotonin and Sam-E does too (but not as much as it does dopamine and nonepinephrine). Neither release serotonin en masse in the way that MDMA does. MDMA just dumps all the serotonin out at once. I don't really see how either of these substances is similar to MDMA in the sense that they would be causing neurotoxicity. She may just be over-stimulated.

It'd be nice if someone with more knowledge would chime in because I don't think there is any evidence to 5-htp and Sam-E creating a neurotoxic situation. Also, MDMA may cause neurotoxicity through oxidative stress/dopamine being uptaken into the serotonin transporter (I think) and neither Sam-E nor 5-htp act in this manner that I am aware of.

 

[rickolasnice]

Yeah sorry when i said damage i meant it could also simply be downregulation of 5-ht receptors.. not actual neurotoxicity..

But then, it could be something else completely.

 

[clay404]

^ even so, I wouldnt think the two would cause enough of a serotonin rise in the brain to cause downregulation unless she took massive amounts of them - I would think of the two as a faucet of serotonin turned on whereas mdma would be a waterfall. I may be wrong though.

 

[rickolasnice]

I don't see why you keep refferring to MDMA..

I mean yes MDMA is alot more likely to cause such damage but neither the OP or me have mentioned it once..

All I'm saying is a link has been found between difficulty with word recall and serotonin depletion (/ damage / downrgulation?) And seeing as the 2 chemicals mentioned have effect on serotonin i deemed it relevant.. that's not to say that's whats causing it as nobody knows..