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5-HTP

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Question: Is It OK To Give 5-HTP To My 5 Year Old Son?

I would like to give my 5.5 year old son 5-HTP. He is not on any medication and frequently wakes up at night but has no trouble falling asleep. He has symptoms of ADHD in terms of inability to attend to tasks. He also has a tremendous amount of anxiety and fears for a child of his age. He also is delayed in his speech and language by about 1.5 years. Are there any side effects, long or short term, if he takes 5-HTP and what dosages should he take? Evening or day? Please advise ASAP.


Answer #1

No one knows the long term effects for an adult let alone effects on children in any duration. It appears safe for adults, but why would you want to give this to a child? Your child's brain and nervous system are still developing. 5-HTP is converted into serotonin, which directly effects certain receptor sites. As a result, varying concentrations of serotonins near receptor sites may have effects on mood (i.e. depression) , blood pressure, gastric control (gastric reflux), sleep, appetite and vascular spasms of the brain. What's important is the overall balance of serotonins in the body. I believe there are two major points that you should consider in using 5HTP for a child.

First, 5-HTP is not found anywhere in the bloodstream. It appears harmless to fully developed vascular systems, but why risk the developing blood vessels of your child. For that matter, any organ fed by blood.

Second, why would you risk upsetting the serotonin balance in your child by adding this drug. Personally, I have been taking a selective serotonin uptake inhibitor for several years. (It works by inhibiting the ability of certain receptor sites to "capture" serotonin thus increasing relative serotonin concentrations) However, after more than two years, I developed a case of esophageal gastric reflux. Propulside, a serotonin receptor agonist, was prescribed. It did not work, so an acid blocker was then prescribed. Within a year, I began experiencing migraines that were treated with Imitrex, a serotonin receptor agonist. Since I was getting migraine episodes too often to use imitrex, prophylactic use of the beta blocker, Inderal, was initiated. Beta blockers also effect serotonins. The upshot of this is that although the medications appear to work at different receptor sites, a prolonged upsetting of my serotonin balance may have triggered other symptoms that are effected by serotonin concentrations at different receptor sites.

My basic fear for you is that altering the serotonin balance by adding a 5- HTP to your child's diet may have unwanted consequences especially for a child whose growth and development WILL be directly effected. Here is a listing of the IDENTIFIED serotonin receptor sites which illustrates in what areas 5-HTP could be a benefit or a detriment. Remember, medication may be very specific for a particular receptor, notwithstanding my personal anecdotal history.


Answer #2

You should definitely not give this relatively untested drug to your five year old child. Certainly it's understandable that you want to help your child, but he is not a guinea pig. There are safer ways to address your concerns. Please seek out additional information, preferably from a professional, before making a decision.




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