GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is your brain’s natural Valium. Actually, Valium is one of many tranquilizers designed to mimic or amplify GABA’s naturally calming effects. If you’re high in GABA – you’re relaxed and stress-free. If there’s a gap in your GABA – you’ll be wired, stressed, and overwhelmed. GABA can have a relaxing effect on your entire body because it can instantly neutralize the surge of stress chemicals. It is the body’s most important inhibitory neurotransmitter, which means it lowers the activity of neural cells in the brain and central nervous system, having the effect of moving the brain and the body into lower gear.
GABA is unique in that it is both an amino acid (a building block of protein) and a potent mood enhancer. Too much stress can deplete our GABA supplies.
In PMS, especially as women get closer to menopause (any time after age 35), progesterone levels tend to drop too low and every day as menopause draws nearer. An interesting and vital role of the sex hormone progesterone is that it controls the release of the most relaxing chemical in the brain: the neurotransmitter GABA. If you feel unusually stressed as part of PMS, chances are your progesterone and GABA levels are low.
Taken as a supplement, GABA can help us not only turn off stress reactions after an upset, it can even help prevent a stressful response when taken prior to an expected ordeal.
Studies have shown GABA to be effective in lowering anxiety and boosting relaxation. One small study of 13 adults showed GABA to be effective as a relaxant and anxiety reliever, with slowed brain waves seen within an hour of taking the supplement.
Another larger study investigated the effects of 100 milligrams of GABA among a group of people who’d recently undertaken a stressful mental task. Scientists measured a slowing down of brain waves in people who’d taken GABA, pointing to an alleviation of mental stress. Another study tested the effects of GABA in people who were about to take a stressful math test. Those who ate chocolate infused with GABA rebounded more quickly from test-related stress, including stress-lowering changes to heart-rate variability.
GABA is found naturally in varieties of green, black, and oolong tea, as well as in fermented foods including kefir, yogurt, and tempeh. Other foods contain GABA or may boost its production in the body, including whole grains, fava beans, soy, lentils, and other beans; nuts including walnuts, almonds, and sunflower seeds; fish including shrimp and halibut; citrus, tomatoes, berries, spinach, broccoli, potatoes, and cocoa.
Always consult your doctor before you begin taking a supplement or make any changes to your existing medication and supplement routine.
