Display Settings:

Format

Send to:

Choose Destination

    Biol Psychol. 2007 Jan;74(1):39-45. Epub 2006 Aug 22.

    L-Theanine reduces psychological and physiological stress responses.

    Kimura K, Ozeki M, Juneja LR, Ohira H.

    Nagoya University Department of Psychology, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464-8601, Japan. s050308d@mbox.nagoya-u.ac.jp

    L-Theanine is an amino acid contained in green tea leaves which is known to block the binding of L-glutamic acid to glutamate receptors in the brain. Because the characteristics of L-Theanine suggest that it may influence psychological and physiological states under stress, the present study examined these possible effects in a laboratory setting using a mental arithmetic task as an acute stressor. Twelve participants underwent four separate trials: one in which they took L-Theanine at the start of an experimental procedure, one in which they took L-Theanine midway, and two control trials in which they either took a placebo or nothing. The experimental sessions were performed by double-blind, and the order of them was counterbalanced. The results showed that L-Theanine intake resulted in a reduction in the heart rate (HR) and salivary immunoglobulin A (s-IgA) responses to an acute stress task relative to the placebo control condition. Moreover, analyses of heart rate variability indicated that the reductions in HR and s-IgA were likely attributable to an attenuation of sympathetic nervous activation. Thus, it was suggested that the oral intake of L-Theanine could cause anti-stress effects via the inhibition of cortical neuron excitation.

    PMID: 16930802 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

    Supplemental Content

    Click here to read Click here to read

    Recent activity

    Your browsing activity is temporarily unavailable.

    Your browsing activity is empty.

    Activity recording is turned off.

    Turn recording back on

    » See more...