By Robert Schinetsky

Regular readers (and consumers of AML Supplements) are well aware of our fascination with dopamine and all the benefits it provides -- increased mood, motivation, decision-making, focus, and motor control. This is why our pre workout supplements and productivity aids/nootropics are centered around nutrients that support the body’s ability to produce the “reward molecule.”

One of the most important building blocks used by the body to produce dopamine is the amino acid L-Tyrosine. It is converted to L-DOPA by the rate-limiting enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase and then catalyzed into dopamine. Afterwards, another enzyme, (β-hydroxylase) transforms dopamine to noradrenaline.

Newly published research, appearing in PLOS Computational Biology, unveils additional benefits of L-Tyrosine supplementation. 30 healthy men participated in the ​​double-blind within-subject placebo-controlled study and were randomized to receive either 2,000mg L-Tyrosine (the same dose included in AML PreWorkout, PreWorkout Xtreme and DopaRush Cocktail) or placebo on two non-consecutive testing days.[1]

Each testing day started with a 5-minute physiological baseline assessment, including spontaneous eye blink rate, heart rate, and pupil dilation. Afterwards, participants received either Tyrosine or placebo, which was then followed by a 60-minute break during which they could either read a newspaper or rest.

At the end of the hour-long break, individuals underwent another 5-minute physiological monitoring for exploratory analysis of possible tyrosine-related effects on physiological arousal. Then, (t=75 minutes following tyrosine or placebo intake) participants performed the sequential reinforcement learning task, followed by the temporal discounting task with a short resting break in between. Researchers mentioned that the time to complete both tasks was 45 minutes, with the sequential reinforcement learning task being more challenging and time-consuming.

FYI, “temporal discounting” describes how individuals can devalue rewards offered in the future compared to those offered sooner. It can affect our thinking and decision-making in a variety of ways as well as lead to impulsive decisions.

At the conclusion of the trial, researchers documented that tyrosine consistently reduced participants’ response time without deteriorating task-performance. Individuals receiving 2,000mg L-Tyrosine also demonstrated reductions in heart rate and physiological arousal (an indicator of stress).[1] Essentially, tyrosine supplementation helped individuals maintain greater cognitive performance in light of a stressful environment.

The team also remarked that these results provided the first evidence that tyrosine supplementation might impact psychophysiological parameters. Specifically regarding improvement in temporal discounting, researchers posit that tyrosine supplementation may “allocate cognitive effort to focus on long-term (therapeutic) goals via enhancement of striatal dopamine synthesis capacity.”[1]

These findings lend further support to previous research into L-Tyrosine benefits, which has documented improvements in mental and physical performance, especially during stressful endeavors, as well as memory.[2,3,4] The amino acid has also been linked to hypotensive (blood pressure reducing) effects in stressful scenarios[5] -- this benefit of L-Tyrosine supplementation is particularly noteworthy for individuals who are more sensitive to caffeine.

As mentioned above, the 2g dose of tyrosine used in the study is the same amount in AML PreWorkout, PreWorkout Xtreme and DopaRush Cocktail.

To further support dopamine, AML supplements include additional synergistic ingredients, including:

• Mucuna pruriens
• Folic acid
• Caffeine
• TeaCrine
• Garcitrin

Takeaway

Dopamine supplements are critical to optimal performance, both mentally and physically. Tyrosine supplementation is known to support dopamine synthesis and offer numerous other benefits. In line with our commitment to formulate products rooted in scientific research, AML PreWorkout, PreWorkout Xtreme and DopaRush include a full, research-supported 2,000mg L-Tyrosine in every serving to optimize performance, focus, and function!

©Published by Advanced Research Media, Inc. 2023
©Reprinted with permission from Advanced Research Media, Inc.

References

1. Mathar D, Erfanian Abdoust M, Marrenbach T, Tuzsus D, Peters J. The catecholamine precursor Tyrosine reduces autonomic arousal and decreases decision thresholds in reinforcement learning and temporal discounting. PLoS Comput Biol. 2022 Dec 22;18(12):e1010785. doi: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010785. PMID: 36548401; PMCID: PMC9822114.
2. Selasi Attipoe, Stacey A. Zeno, Courtney Lee, Cindy Crawford, Raheleh Khorsan, Avi R. Walter, Patricia A. Deuster, Tyrosine for Mitigating Stress and Enhancing Performance in Healthy Adult Humans, a Rapid Evidence Assessment of the Literature, Military Medicine, Volume 180, Issue 7, July 2015, Pages 754–765, https://doi.org/10.7205/MILMED-D-14-00594
3. Steenbergen, L., Sellaro, R., Hommel, B., & Colzato, L. S. (2015). Tyrosine promotes cognitive flexibility: evidence from proactive vs. reactive control during task switching performance. Neuropsychologia, 69, 50–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2015.01.022
4. Jongkees, B. J., Hommel, B., Kuhn, S., & Colzato, L. S. (2015). Effect of tyrosine supplementation on clinical and healthy populations under stress or cognitive demands--A review. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 70, 50–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2015.08.014
5. Deijen JB, Wientjes CJE, Vullinghs HFM, Cloin PA, Langefeld JJ. Tyrosine improves cognitive performance and reduces blood pressure in cadets after one week of a combat training course. Brain Research Bulletin. 1999;48: 203–209. doi: 10.1016/s0361-9230(98)00163-4