In Search of a Safe Natural Sleep Aid

Journal of the American College of Nutrition
Theertham P RaoLekh R Juneja

Abstract

Sleep deprivation is associated with an elevated risk of various diseases and leads to a poor quality of life and negative socioeconomic consequences. Sleep inducers such as drugs and herbal medicines may often lead to dependence and other side effects. L-Theanine (γ-glutamylethylamide), an amino acid naturally found abundant in tea leaves, has anxiolytic effects via the induction of α brain waves without additive and other side effects associated with conventional sleep inducers. Anxiolysis is required for the initiation of high-quality sleep. In this study, we review the mechanism(s), safety, and efficacy of L-theanine. Collectively, sleep studies based on an actigraph, the obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) sleep inventory questionnaire, wakeup after sleep onset (WASO) and automatic nervous system (ANS) assessment, sympathetic and parasympathetic nerve activities, and a pediatric sleep questionnaire (PSQ) suggest that the administration of 200 mg of L-theanine before bed may support improved sleep quality not by sedation but through anxiolysis. Because L-theanine does not induce daytime drowsiness, it may be useful at any time of the day. The no observable adverse effect level (NOAEL) for the oral administration of L-theanine was...Continue Reading

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Citations

Feb 2, 2019·Pharmaceutical Biology·Suhyeon KimHyung Joo Suh
Jan 19, 2020·Molecules : a Journal of Synthetic Chemistry and Natural Product Chemistry·Yukio YonedaNobuyuki Kuramoto
Aug 15, 2019·Pharmacological Research : the Official Journal of the Italian Pharmacological Society·Filipe Lopes SakamotoHeitor Oliveira Santos
Aug 28, 2021·Molecules : a Journal of Synthetic Chemistry and Natural Product Chemistry·Keiko Unno, Yoriyuki Nakamura

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Methods Mentioned

BETA
sedation

Software Mentioned

MA
OSA

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