Posted by fogmama on January 7, 2004, at 16:49:13
In reply to Re: 5-HTP while nursing a baby? » fogmama, posted by Larry Hoover on December 30, 2003, at 21:57:39
Hello,
I know Larry's checked out of here for a while, but I thought I'd put in a post regarding what I'm now taking, just in case anyone else pops by with similar questions -
2000mg fish oil
1000mg borage oil
500mg DLPA
500mg L-Tyrosine
50mg 5-htpAlso a prenatal vitamin, iron supplement (I was on them while 6-9 mo's pregnant, and they really helped with pregnancy related lack of energy), and an extra 400mcg zinc and 500mg vitamin C to boost my immune system. I'm leaving the longest possible time between taking all this and nursing the baby, by putting milk in storage prior to taking the supplements. I started with the fish oil & 5-htp first, then added the others. "Baby and mother are fine" as they say in the movies ... if anyone else has commentary please feel free to share it.
I'll follow up in a while with results ...
fogmama
> > > You can safely use 5-HTP while nursing. There is absolutely no risk to your child.
> > >
> > > Lar
> >
> > Hi Larry,
> >
> > Thank you! I'm pretty new here but I've read a good deal of your posts and I seem to recall you're a biochemist, correct?
>
> I'm an environmental toxicologist, which has a good dose of biochemist in it, but that's diluted by other things.
>
> > Can you tell me where I can find research/info that will explain why 5-HTP is safe while nursing? (I like details.)
>
> I am unable to give you that, I'm afraid. You mentioned a very low dose of 5-HTP (50 mg), and animal studies using much more than that (on a mg/kg body weight basis) found effects on the mother animal only, and only at doses very much higher than you are considering. High levels of 5-HTP affect pituitary hormone release, including ACTH (which stimulates the adrenal gland) and prolactin (which affects milk production). Those effects are not seen in humans at 50 mg and 100 mg doses.
>
> > I'd be sooo happy if I could take it again with confidence.
>
> If you're looking for absolute assurance, I can't offer you that. Any reference that I can find that directly mentions 5-HTP and nursing suggests that it is not advised because it has not been studied. To put that into context, mothers using SSRI meds, which are known to pass in milk, are permitted to breast feed their infants. A depressed mother is of proven adverse effect on an infant, while monitoring of infants breast-fed by mothers on antidepressants has not shown any evidence of any adverse developmental effect.
>
> I'm not pro-drug. I just want to say that overtly. I've studied the medical literature, and there is no evidence of adverse effect from antidepressants passing to infants in breast milk. That's not to say there is no risk, but there has been none yet found.
>
> > Actually while you're at it, do you know if DLPA and L-tyrosine are also safe?
> >
> > fm
>
> I can be quite certain in saying that DLPA and l-tyrosine are absolutely safe for you to take. There is a fundamental difference between taking pure amino acids and in taking 5-HTP. The latter is a chemical intermediate, and is not normally found in food. It is typically only found (and briefly at that) in the cells which are synthesizing it for their own use, as an intermediate in serotonin formation. There is a theoretical risk in taking 5-HTP, as it is not normally found in blood in any appreciable concentration. However, the dose, 50 mg, places a constraint on the theoretical risk, that in my opinion, makes the risk quite trivial to non-existent. Pure aminos are generally used at 10 to 60 times the dose of 5-HTP that you are considering taking. Because the structure of 5-HTP is so little changed from the precursor amino acid tryptophan, mass comparisons are valid simplifications. The dose makes the poison, and the dose here is very small.
>
> Lar
poster:fogmama
thread:292905
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20031218/msgs/297762.html