If you deal with daily stress or trouble sleeping, you&#;ve probably turned to a hot cup of tea to settle your nerves. Indeed, there&#;s good reason tea has a reputation for being so comforting. Research shows that tea can help with everything from lowering cholesterol to improving gut health.
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So, it&#;s natural to think about the ingredients in tea that make it so beneficial. Enter L-theanine &#; an amino acid that&#;s present in tea leaves. It&#;s also used as a supplement, as it may help with anxiety and sleep conditions.
Dietitian Julia Zumpano, RD, LD, talks about what l-theanine is and what you should know before you consider taking it.
What is L-theanine?
L-theanine is an amino acid found in tea leaves, particularly green tea and loose-leaf tea, that has several potential health benefits. But first, let&#;s go over what amino acids are and why they&#;re important.
&#;Amino acids are proteins and they&#;re really the building blocks of our life,&#; explains Zumpano. &#;Amino acids are molecules used by all living things to make proteins. In total, we as humans need 20 different amino acids to function properly. But there are those 11 essential amino acids that our body really needs to get through food.&#;
While L-theanine isn&#;t essential for our survival, its presence in plants and fungi has been studied for its possible impact on our brain function.
L-theanine can be taken by drinking certain teas like green teas, white teas or matcha. It can also be taken as a tablet or pill form.
Benefits of L-theanine
But if you&#;ve looked up the benefits of L-theanine, you may have started to scratch your head. Some proponents claim it can help you feel more alert, while others say that it can help with insomnia. So, which is it? As Zumpano points out, the best way to get the most use out of L-theanine has a lot to do with when you&#;re taking it and what you&#;re pairing it with.
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It&#;s also important to know that these effects may vary from person to person and that there&#;s still limited research on the benefits of taking L-theanine to help with mental and cognitive issues.
Here are some of the explored benefits of L-theanine:
Improving sleep quality
You may have heard that taking L-theanine before bed can help if you experience disruptive sleep or have trouble falling asleep. A study explored the benefits of an L-theanine and GABA supplement combination on sleep quality and length. GABA, short for gamma-aminobutyric acid, is a naturally occurring chemical messenger in your brain that&#;s been linked to creating a calming effect. It&#;s also available as a dietary supplement. The study showed that this combination could potentially increase sleep duration and REM sleep.
According to Zumpano, if you&#;re looking to try L-theanine in tea or supplement form, it&#;s a good idea to take it in the evening before going to bed and not pair it with any coffee or caffeinated beverage. If you&#;re experiencing more serious sleep issues like insomnia or sleep apnea, L-theanine likely won&#;t do the trick.
Also, you should ask your healthcare provider before pairing any prescription medications with L-theanine before bed. L-theanine can be safely taken with melatonin, however.
Reducing stress and anxiety
Remember how a cup of tea can calm you down after a hectic day? Research shows that L-theanine supplements can elevate your levels of GABA, dopamine and serotonin, which promotes relaxation and reduces anxiety levels.
A randomized trial from found that healthy adults who took L-theanine over the course of four weeks had a decrease in stress-related symptoms. While these results are promising, it&#;s important to remember that stress reduction will look different for everyone, depending on what stress response you&#;re having and when you&#;re experiencing it.
Boosting mental clarity
If you&#;re feeling brain fog or a general blah feeling, L-theanine may be able to help give you a boost of mental clarity and enhance your ability to focus. According to the same study, L-theanine helped healthy adults with verbal fluency and the ability to stay focused. The benefits are heightened when taken with caffeine.
&#;If you&#;re going to take L-theanine to gain more alertness and mental clarity, you should take it during the day,&#; advises Zumpano. &#;It does seem to do better with coffee or a caffeinated beverage.&#;
Side effects and risks
L-theanine is generally considered safe and well-tolerated when taken at appropriate doses. In general, it&#;s recommended that you don&#;t exceed 500 milligrams (mg) a day. Most healthy adults can take between 200 mg and 500 mg a day.
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But like any supplement, it may cause side effects, particularly at high doses. You can also simply try upping your tea intake to help get a good dose of L-theanine.
&#;If you&#;re trying to get your L-theanine in the form of black tea or green tea, then you&#;re going to have similar side effects like having too much caffeine,&#; notes Zumpano.
Some of the reported side effects of L-theanine include:
- Headaches.
- Dizziness.
- Nausea.
- Jitteriness.
- Irritability.
- Diarrhea.
Is it safe?
It&#;s important to add that these L-theanine side effects are relatively uncommon and tend to be mild. L-theanine is generally considered safe for most people, but it&#;s always a good idea to talk to your healthcare provider before taking any new supplement, especially if you have any underlying health conditions or are taking medications. In addition, pregnant or breastfeeding (chestfeeding) people should also exercise caution when taking L-theanine, as there&#;s limited research on its safety in these populations.
&#;As of right now, the FDA has classified L-theanine as generally safe, but we don&#;t have specific guidelines on how to take it, just what the studies have shown,&#; adds Zumpano.
It&#;s also important to know that, like all supplements, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn&#;t review or regulate L-theanine products. This means no one checks what&#;s sold to ensure it&#;s safe and effective. If you&#;re planning to try L-theanine in supplement form, you should look for a high-quality version with no added fillers.
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Theanine is widely regarded as an effective and reliable anxiolytic. This means people generally regard it as a great supplement to take to reduce anxiety and lower stress levels.
It is for this reason that L-Theanine is a stapel ingredient in all of the top nootropics, stress supplements, and sleep aids on the market today. Thank to Theanine&#;s synergistic relationship with caffeine, the amino acid is often used in energy supplements and caffeine pills too!
However, that does not mean that L-Theanine is always effective for reducing anxiety. There have been some reports from people who find that L-Theanine supplements actually increase their anxiety levels. In rare cases, people may find that consuming large doses of Theanine through tea seemingly spikes their anxiety levels, and may even precipitate a panic attack!
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Is this true?
Does L-Theanine cause anxiety?
Let&#;s take a closer look at what Theanine is and how it works to answer this question once and for all.
Does Theanine Increase Anxiety?
Theanine does not typically increase anxiety, but rather decreases it. Theanine reduces levels of chemicals in the brain that &#;excite&#; the CNS, making stress and anxiety work. At the same time, Theanine promotes levels of chemicals in the brain which improve mood and relax the body.
As mentioned above, L-Theanine is a popular ingedient in a wide range of supplements, from caffeine pills to nootropics for anxiety to sleep aids. The reason it is used in such a wide variety of supplements is that theanine has broadly beneficial effects; in most cases, L-Theanine reduces stress and anxiety, promotes relaxation, and enhances focus.
Theanine works primarily by suppressing CNS activity. It does this by promoting the release of several different neurotransmitters in the brain, such as GABA, serotonin, and dopamine. Of these, it is GABA that sees the largest spike after Theanine consumption. GABA inhibits nerve activity in the CNS. In other words, it makes your brain activity less frantic, eases muscle tension, and reduces both mental and physical stress as a result. This is why Theanine is such an effective nootropic for depression and anxiety.
However, as we have already aluded to, some people seemingly find that taking L-Theanine increases their anxiety levels.
If Theanine lowers CNS activity and promotes the release of soothing neurotransmitters, how can this be?
There are a few reasons why some people might feel their anxiety worsening after taking L-Theanine.
One common reason why Theanine might increase anxety is that it is most commonly consumed alongside caffeine. L-Theanine typically assuages the worst side effects of caffeine. However, if the dose of caffeine is large, the dose of theanine too small, or if you are particularly sensitive to caffeine&#;s side effects, you may still experience a significant rise in anxiety after taking a caffeine and theanine stack.
Another reasons why people may occassionally find theanine supplements making their anxiety worse is that they are experiencing a disturbance in how their brain releases GABA, serotonin, or dopamine. It is also possible that theanine&#;s effects on blood pressure may make certain people feel dizzy or light-headed (normally those with already very low blood pressure); this experience may cause acute anxiety, and even a panic attack.
It is vital that you talk to your doctor if you experience any increase in anxiety following the use of L-Theanine. You must also carefully look at the label of any supplement to ensure you are not consuming too much caffeine alongside your L-Theanine. Theanine does not generally cause anxiety but in rare cirucmstances it may make anxiety worse.
Can L-Theanine Make You Jittery?
Theanine typically makes people feel less jittery after taking stimulants such as caffeine or ADHD medication. Theanine reduces jitters following stimulant use by slowing down the central nervous system (CNS).
If you are someone who regularly experiences jitters after drinking too much caffeine, after taking caffeine pills, or just aftr a stressful day at work, then L-Theanine might be the perfect supplement for you to try.
L-Theanine is frequently taken alongside caffeine because of its observed effects on caffeine side effects, particularly jitters, anxiety and insomnia. Theanine increases the release of various neurotransmitters, most notably GABA. For those of you who haven&#;t read the sections above, GABA is the primary inhibitory transmitter in your CNS.
In simple terms, GABA&#;s job is to reduce nerve activity, slowing down brain activity, easing muscle tension, and relaxing the body as a whole.
By increasing the release of GABA in the brain, Theanine helps reduce jitters by directly reducing the kind of excessive nerve activity which causes jitters.
This is not just theory. Clinical trials have repeatedly shown that supplementing with L-Theanine can quickly and reliably reduce the main side effects of caffeine, including jitters. The same mechanism which allows theanine to stop caffeine jitters will work for jitters caused by any stimulants or anxiety.
Does L-Theanine Help With Anxiety Attacks?
Studies show that increasing intake of theanine can help with the symptoms of anxiety attacks, such as a racing heartbeat, shortness of breath, and increased secretion of immunoglobulin A in saliva. Its effects are somewhat similar to those of a sedative, but L-theanine does not have any sedative effects.
Theanine&#;s effects on GABA levels in the brain make it a fantastic supplement for helping treat, prevent, and reduce the severity of anxiety attacks. By promoting GABA, serotonin and dopamine release in the brain, L-Theanine quickly reduces feelings of stress and anxiety, improves mood, and soothes the physical symptoms of anxiety attacks like shaking, jitters, sweating, shortness of breath, and dizziness.
Theanine, or L-Theanine, can help with anxiety attacks. It has proven to be beneficial for many people suffering from generalized anxiety disorders and/or day-to-day anxiety, and is a generally well-tolerated supplement. While one of the side effects of L-Theanine is sometimes said to be increased anxiety, this is very rare and usually the result of other drug interactions.
When Should I Take L-Theanine For Anxiety?
For best results you should take L-Theanine twice per day for chronic anxiety; once in the morning and once at night. Moderately severe anxiety symptoms may respond to L-theanine taken at a dose of 200 mg twice daily. More severe anxiety may need up to 600mg per day divided into 150mg increments every 3 to 4 hours.
Taken in this way, Theanine tends to work very fast. A calming effect is usually noted within 30 to 40 minutes of taking L-theanine (at doses of 50 to 200mg), and typically lasts 8 to 10 hours. Moderate anxiety symptoms usually improve with a regimen of 200mg once or twice daily aftr just a few days.
As is often the way with natural nootropics, it is best to take Theanine every day, at roughly the same time if possible. Taking Theanine on a consistent, daily basis is the best way to keep on top of anxiety, reducing symptoms as they happen, and preventing any caffeine you consume for sparking an anxiety or panic attack. Taking Theanine every day is also the best approach if you want to avoid side effects; it gives you time to get accustomed to the dose, and it is not thought possible to develop a Theanine tolerance.
We recommend adding L-Theanine to your regular, daily nootropic stack. It has an excellent side effect and safety profile, is most effective when taken consistently, and has broad nootropic benefits. If you want to improve focus, learning capacity and energy levels, then a great stack is Theanine and Tyrosine with either Citicoline or Alpha-GPC. You can then add in caffeine for an extra energy kick if needed.
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Brian Johnson is current Editor of Vagarights.com and a long-time writer for VAGA. A former psychologist, Brian is passionate about improving mental health and finding ways to stave off cognitive decline. He is an expert on nootropics, cognitive enhancement and biohacking more broadly. You can see his work on Google scholar.
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