posted
I was at the health food store today and the lady said some customers who used Vicodin for pain relief switched to using an amino acid called alphaene (? sorry, I'm not sure of the spelling or if the name is even correct) and it helped.
Has anyone even heard of this or used it successfully for pain? Can my teenage son take it? I think I read somewhere that children should not use amino acids, only adults.
Any advise will be appreciated as always. Thanks.
Posts: 9020 | From Illinois | Registered: May 2006
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treepatrol
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
Member # 4117
posted
Heres something I found?
D- or DL-PHENYLALANINE Unlike left-handed, essential L-Phenylalanine, the D- or "right-handed" form of this common amino acid is not actually a nutrient but an amino acid analgesic. It is non-prescription but is rather costly for an effective dose. Practitioners using DLPA (Dextro-Levro-Phenyl-Alanine) normally employ it for chronic pain that is unresponsive to other measures. Arthritis or lower back pain would be examples. While no substitute for medical or chiropractic care, DLPA may well be a most suitable companion.
The dose of DLPA needed may vary from person to person, and is generally determined by starting with perhaps 1,000 mg daily for two weeks and then gradually increasing to a level that provides relief. If 3,000 mg per day doesn't work after a month's time, it probably will not work at all. About two-thirds of those using it will report real improvement in this time. If they don't, then stop. There is no point in wasting money.
For this stuff is not cheap. Tablet potency is commonly around 300 to 500 mg, so a person might well need to take quite a few each day. I used to think that DLPA was way too pricey until I saw a few prescriptions where the pills cost several dollars apiece (and this was over a decade ago, long before the even more expensive "Viagara").
The good news is that persons reporting pain relief will generally be able to LOWER their dose gradually and will often be able to maintain pain-free status with less DLPA than before. It is a bit unusual for an analgesic substance to work BETTER over time and require LESS; the opposite is the rule. (Consider morphine, for instance.) DLPA has a long duration of action yet the body does not seem to build up a tolerance to it.
D-Phenylalanine (DPA) is an amino acid. Unlike L-Phenylalanine, DPA is not absorbed into the body. Instead, it acts as an inhibiting agent to the enzymes that are responsible for the breakdown of endorphins, which control our perception of pain. Patients suffering from chronic pain often have low levels of endorphins. Supplementation with DPA helps to increase these levels. The natural pain-relieving action of endorphins are short-lived because they are quickly broken down by specific enzymes. DPA prohibits these enzymes, so the body can continue to increase its own natural pain tolerance mechanism. In studies with patients suffering from chronic arthritis pain, the pain threshold has been enhanced and prolonged with the use of DPA.
-------------------- Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Remember Iam not a Doctor Just someone struggling like you with Tick Borne Diseases.
posted
Thanks Tree. I did read up on the D-Phenylalanine yesterday. I'll have to call the health food store and find out the correct name of the amino acid the lady was referring to.
Posts: 9020 | From Illinois | Registered: May 2006
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treepatrol
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
Member # 4117
posted
Up for hshbmom daughter.
-------------------- Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Remember Iam not a Doctor Just someone struggling like you with Tick Borne Diseases.
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Thanks Tree. I did read up on the D-Phenylalanine yesterday. I'll have to call the health food store and find out the correct name of the amino acid the lady was referring to.
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