Prozac

Did you know that millions of Americans were naturally elevating their serotonin levels using tryptophan? Oddly enough, this is the same neurotransmitter that Prozac plays with.

Out of dumb luck, and only dumb luck have I learned a great deal about neurochemistry.

Serotonin is the neurotransmitter most closely associated with the feeling of happiness.

Tryptophan was made illegal as a supplement within 1 week of Prozac making the cover of time magazine as the drug of the future.

Part of the job of the FDA: "The Task Force considered various issues in its deliberations, including... what steps are necessary to ensure that the existence of dietary supplements on the market does not act as a disincentive for drug development."

I could write much more on the subject, including the fact that tryptophan is still added to baby food in the United States. I could even state how it is legal in almost every country. I could even tell you about how 5HTP works, or that Europe rarely uses our synthetic anti depressants.

I could sum it all up with a single sentence though.

"To allow the FDA ban of L-Tryptophan to continue unreviewed and uninvestigated condemns millions of Americans to unnecessary financial expenditures and needless suffering" -r Dean Manders, PhD