Study finds that Alanine Amino Acid reduces Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

Alanine is found in all of human muscle and can also be located in many protein rich foods consumed in the human diet. It is important to note that although muscle may be its primary "resting ground," alanine is not limited to just muscular tissue. This important amino is also present in intestinal bacteria and prostate fluid. Research indicates that prostate health may be one of the most important conditions affected by the proper dietary supplementation of this alanine.

Alanine has been used in clinical applications to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia, or hypertrophy of the prostate gland. This condition is characterized by the two growth periods of the prostate in male maturity. The second growth phase of the prostate occurs at the median age of 25 and because of this rapid growth, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is often reported years later. BPH is unlikely to cause symptoms before the age of 40, but it is estimated that more than 60% of men in their sixties and seventies suffer from the discomfort associated with this condition.

A recent independent study involved 45 men with BPH and concluded that 780mg of supplemented alanine per day, followed by two months of 390 mg, effectively reduced the symptoms and complications of benign prostatic hyperplasia. [2] *Glycine and glutamic acid were also included in this study. [3]* This may be of critical importance to men, seeming as some 4.5 million American males sought physician assistance for this condition in 2000 alone.

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Gary Moller comments:

Now in my 50's it is more or less mandatory to have a prostate exam consisting of a gloved finger inserted up the rectum and rotated about a little. This is a new experience for many men and, if you ask for a second opinion on the results, chances are you will receive the other finger!

Jokes aside: I noticed a steady decline in the pee rate from about 50 years and wondered if this really was old age creeping in. Drip, drip.

Interestingly, this process of gradual constriction and getting up in the night to do little in the way of a pee has all but disappeared. The flow is back and I have been trying to figure out what has made the difference. A dramatic difference. The mystery of the shrinking prostate gland.

I have put it down to a few things; but can not zero in on just one. This is the problem with natural therapies which are so slow to take effect (months, years) that the cause-effect link can never be fully established.

I think that what may be doing the job is changes to my diet to now include foods that are rich in the fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K) and avoiding the "99% fat-free" foods which I now consider to be death foods. I have also been actively boosting my vitamin D levels through sensible exposure of the body to sun (My D levels were low according to a blood test). I have also experimented with Balance Beta Alanine which has definitely improved my running and cycling, indicating that I had a chronic deficiency. It is only today that the link with prostate swelling has come to my attention. The other measure I have been working on is balancing my body tissue salts with the Active Elements programme. I am sure that this has been beneficial.

Talk to Gary Moller (First 5 minutes are free):

Nutritional strategies for beating chronic pain and fatigue

The most common health complaints I come across are a group of related conditions including chronic fatigue, cold limbs, aching muscles and joints. Underactive thyroid function is widespread and it has recently been reported that around 40% of New Zealand women report low sex drive (men are probably no better off, going by Viagra sales!). With an ageing population, this is a growth area!

While there is much that can be done to fire a body up and to relieve pain with physical exercise and massage, these are wasted efforts if the body chemistry is unhealthy. Exercise is the baking of the cake. Baking without first gathering all the ingredients (Top quality - of course!) will result in an unpalatable product. A malnourished body is weak and tired and anything more than gentle exercise will only make matters worse.

The most exciting and challenging area is trying to detect the nutritional metabolic switches that need to be thrown to fire up a person's internal furnaces and to help bake a strong body and lively mind. We are talking about firing up tiny cellular furnaces that may be currently running on little more than the pilot light. These switches vary from one person to another and may be a group of amino acids, enzymes, minerals or a particular vitamin or two.

What I first studied and learned in exercise physiology in the early 1970's still applies to today. The physiology of the human body has not changed in a thousand years and won't in another thousand. However; what has happened since 1970 is the physiologists have burrowed deeper and deeper into the chemistry of life. For example; we have known for ages that we break down muscle protein during intense or exhausting exercise. What we now know much more about is which amino acids in those proteins are most damaged during exercise and most needed for muscle repair.

While this research has been mostly focussed on the physiology of athletic performance, I am excited about applying this burgeoning knowledge to my ordinary every day clients, who are simply tired, aching and who simply crave for the good old days when physical and mental energies were so much higher. There are four nutritional products that show promise for restoring energy and vitality and let me talk about these: Kordel's Coenzyme Q10, Balance Carnitine, Balance Beta-Alanine and Alpha Linoleic Acid and other Omega 3 fatty acids found in products like Waihi Bush Flax Oil.

Coenzyme Q10 is required by mitochondria (the power plants of the cells) to produce ATP (the cellular energy molecule). Every muscle, nerve, heart, immune and brain cell requires coenzyme Q10 to survive and maintain the health of the body. Levels of Q10 tend to drop with age and low levels at any age may cause excess fatigue. In a study published earlier this month, seventeen healthy volunteers were randomised to receive coenzyme Q10 at 100 mg or 300 mg daily or placebo for eight days. The participants were then asked to engage in certain physical tasks. It was found that the group receiving 300 mg of coenzyme Q10 daily performed better and, in addition, had subjectively less fatigue compared to the placebo group.

Balance L-Carnitine has an important role in fat burning and exercise performance and the metabolism of fat for energy depends on it absorption, converison to fatty acids and glycerols. By promoting the transport and metabolism of fatty acids through the inner mitochondrial membrane, where fat is converted to energy, L-Carnitine can assist aerobic performance, anaerobic capacity and may improve power output and stamina in athletes. So much for athletes; I am more interested in the possible benefits for people off the street!

In a study published this month, 96 elderly people between the ages of 71 to 88 were supplemented with carnitine. At the end of the testing, those given this carnitine had a significant decrease in physical fatigue and mental fatigue along with significant improvement in cognitive functioning compared to placebo.

Balance Beta Alanine is an Amino acid with exciting possibilities. It acts as an intracellular buffer to offset acid production in the muscle to help delay muscle fatigue and speed recovery. This is proving very effective with clients who suffer fatique associated with fluid and acid buildup within tissues, such as about the shoulders.

Finally, there are the delicious organic Waihi Bush flax oils which have numerous health benefits including improving eczema, reducing inflammation, thinning sticky blood and improving concentration. Athlete or not; in combination with modalities like exercise, massage and adjustments to diet, these four nutrients can bring about relief from pain and renewed vigour for life.

A warning:
Please do not be lulled into thinking that these substances are the panacea for all ills. Each individual is different and there may be many factors at play, such as low iron levels (very common in women). These nutritional supplements are just some of the growing list tools in the health toolbox available to natural health advisers.

References

1. Mizuno K, Tanaka M, Nozaki S, Mizuma H, Ataka S, Tahara T, Sugino T, Shirai T, Kajimoto Y, Kuratsune H, Kajimoto O, Watanabe Y, Antifatigue effects of coenzyme Q10 during physical fatigue, Nutrition, Published online ahead of print 13 February 2008, doi:10.1016/j.nut.2007.12.007/
2. Malaguarnera M, Gargante MP, Cristaldi E, Colonna V, Messano M, Koverech A, Neri S, Vacante M, Cammalleri L, Motta M, Acetyl l-carnitine (ALC) treatment in elderly patients with fatigue, Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, Volume 46, Issue 2, Pages 181-190, March 2008.

How to use Balance Beta-Alanine to naturally boost flagging sexual performance (sexual dysfunction)

Conversation during a consultation with a client: "Oh! and just one other thing; do you have any advice about how to get the Old Man working better?" You would be surprised at how often this question about male sexual dysfunction arises.

If the spam arriving every minute in my email is anything to go by, medications such as Viagra and Levitra for sexual dysfunction is big, big business. Stress, ageing, poor diet, over-prescribing of medicines, smoking, alcohol abuse and societal expectations see to it that this problem can only grow larger.

I have been looking for one nutrition product that may assist with reversing sexual dysfunction and I finally have stocks of it - Balance Beta Alanine. Beta Alanine is an amino acid that is essential for athletic strength, stamina and recovery. But; it has a wonderful side effect: it may improve the sexual performance of ageing men and women by increasing blood flow to the organs doing the hard work. Bedroom athletes.

When a person takes supplementary beta alanine he or she may experience intense vasodilatation/pumps from the very first dose. Because Beta-Alanine increases carnosine and carnosine is a powerful precursor in generating nitric oxide synthase (a group of enzymes necessary for making the powerful vasodilator nitric oxide), this is an added, immediate benefit of beta-alanine.

Nitric oxide is important for key physiological processes within the body. From a bodybuilder's perspective, nitric oxide supplementation via beta alanine may prove useful in increasing growth due to increases in blood flow to certain areas of the body. Further, men suffering from erectile dysfunction may also find supplementing with nitric oxide via a supplement such as Balance beta-alanine is helpful by increasing blood flow to the appropriate bits and pieces. Female sexual gratification may be similarly benefited.

While most of the research had been done on healthy young athletes, I am most interested in what might help the 40% or so of men and women who have low libido, poor sexual performance once underway and who are generally tired and have sore muscles and aching joints. It may also be beneficial for improving blood flow to the brain. People taking beta-alanine report that their thinking is clearer and they are less tired than usual during the day. I am excited about its possible benefits with the elderly.

Are you deficient in beta-alanine?
Signs of beta-alanine deficiency may include the inability to achieve and sustain erections, physical weakness, sore muscles, aching joints, feeling depressed, fuzzy thinking and extreme fatigue (Of course there may be other factors causing these symptoms as well).

For information about beta alanine including its use and safety, please go here.