Taurine: Essential for nervous system and heart health.

• Supports healthy blood sugar balance
• Supports healthy blood pressure
• Supports healthy liver function
• Considered a neurotransmitter, and may support a healthy mood
• Supports healthy cardiovascular function
• Acts as an antioxidant
• Helps support a healthy nervous system
• Helps maintain cell membranes

What is Taurine?

Taurine is a semi-essential amino acid that's not as well known as some other aminos like glutamine; however, taurine plays an important role and is found in the heart muscle, white blood cells, central nervous system, and skeletal muscle. Taurine is a building block of all other amino acids. It functions in the brain and heart to help stabilise cell membranes. It comprises of over 50% of the total free amino acid pool of the heart. It plays an important role in metabolism, and is essential for new borns, since they cannot make it. Adults bodies can make taurine, however, when not enough is made, the deficiency can be corrected by supplementation.

Taurine is high in eggs, dairy products, meats and fish proteins. If you're a vegetarian, you may be deficient in taurine. The benefits of Taurine are wide ranging and can be a productive part of a total supplement program.

Why should you take Taurine?

• Muscle Function: Taurine is earning more and more respect from bodybuilders and protein scientists. Taurine has several critical functions and can act similarly to creatine in that it expands your cells by helping the muscle cell itself hold more water, increasing cell volume. For a lifter or bodybuilder, this is significant because expanded muscle cells can boost hydration resulting in a higher rate of protein synthesis and bodybuilders will appreciate the increased appearance of muscle fullness.

• Cholesterol: Taurine is a key component in the production of bile, which is needed for the digestion of fats, the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, and the support of healthy cholesterol levels.

• Diabetes: Taurine participates in many metabolic processes and is involved in glucose uptake. As such, it helps maintain a healthy weight. It is also vital to the regulation of sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium.

• Heart Health: Taurine is the most abundant amino acid in the heart and helps to regulate contraction and pumping action of the heart muscle. It has also been shown to play a particular role in sparing of potassium from the heart muscle, thereby promoting a healthy heart.

• Brain Health: Health Taurine provides support for neurotransmitters and has a protective effect on the brain. As a neurotransmitter, it may therefore support a healthy mood.

Taurine has also been used to treat conditions such as cardiovascular diseases and epilipsy. A deficiency may impair vision and problems with fat metabolism may appear.

what scientific studies give evidence to support this?

• A double blind, placebo controlled crossover study involving 14 participants found that taurine is effective to treat heart failure with no adverse effects. Participants received 6g each day for four weeks. Each person was assigned a heart failure score based on signs of right heart failure, pulmonary sounds, and chest abnormalities. At the end of the study, the heart failure scores feel from 5.8 to 3.7 for the taurine group, and the score did not change for the placebo group.

• In a study done on 16 week old rats separated into 2 groups of taurine and placebo group, oral glucose tolerance test was performed at ages of 23 and 25 weeks. This study found insulin resistance and abdominal fat accumulation were significantly lower in the taurine supplemented group. Concentrations of cholesterol were also significantly lower in the taurine supplemented group. This led to the conclusion that taurine effectively improves metabolism in the rats by decreasing serum cholesterol due to decreased production of cholesterol from the increased nitric oxide production.

• In a study done by the medical college of Georgia, the effects of taurine depletion on vascularity was studied in rats. The researchers found that taurine depletion increases contractility but decreases the relaxation of vascular smooth muscle. Their finding also noted that depletion of taurine leads to impaired endothelium (a thin layer of flat cells that lines blood vessels) dependent responses which is associated with reduced nitric oxide production contributing to decrease in vasorelaxant responses. In understandable english, it simply means that depletion of taurine leads to reduced nitric oxide production leading to more tension in the walls of the blood vessels, or "decrease in vasorelaxant responses".

How much should be taken? Are there any side effects?

• Typical daily dosage ranges from 500-1500 mgs per day.
• If you are pregnant or lactating consult your health care practitioner prior to taking Taurine.