Benefitsof Acetyl Carnitine
Improved cognitive function
- Acetyl L
Carnitine (ALCAR) plays a strong role in the brain in many ways, and has
beneficial effects in many conditions including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
Studies in aged rodents show markedly improved memory and learning capacities, ,
while studies in younger rodents show a variety of promising effects as well.
Other rodent studies have shown that Acetyl L Carnitine (ALCAR) significantly
protects the brain against a variety of stresses, such as ischemia and
reperfusion and mitochondrial uncoupling. It also protects against peripheral
nerve trauma, "almost eliminating neuron loss, and in vitro neuronal apoptosis.
Acetyl L Carnitine (ALCAR) also increases levels of dopamine, amino acids, and
acetylcholine in the brain, as well as facilitating cholinergic activity.
Cardiovascular benefits
-
The carnitine have
considerable potential in the treatment of cardiovascular disease. Rodent
studies with L-carnitine have shown decreased triglyceride and cholesterol
levels and protection against arrhythmia and ischemia, and a study with Acetyl L
Carnitine (ALCAR) found a reversal of the age-related decline in mitochondrial
function in the heart.
Improved
hearing and visual function -
Two animal studies indicate a
significant reduction in noise-induced and age-induced hearing loss with Acetyl
L Carnitine (ALCAR). One measured outer hair cell (OHC) density after three
weeks of noise exposure, and found less than a 10% reduction with Acetyl L
Carnitine (ALCAR) as opposed to 60% with placebo, and noise induced threshold
shifts were less than 10 dB in the Acetyl L Carnitine (ALCAR) group as opposed
to 30-35 dB with placebo. A six-week study with aged rats found Acetyl L
Carnitine (ALCAR) to improve auditory thresholds by up regulating mitochondrial
function and reducing oxidative stress.
Reduced stress and depression
-
In rats, Acetyl L Carnitine
(ALCAR) protects against the decreases in dopamine and testosterone that
normally occur after exposure to both acute and chronic stress and decreases
other markers of stress, and no tolerance develops to this effect. Preliminary
human studies in the elderly and those undergoing treatment for certain
conditions indicate a reduction in depression and fatigue and an improvement in
quality of life.
Increasing Molecules
Needed for Memory -
Acetyl L Carnitine
(ALCAR) increases levels of nerve growth factor (NGF)--an important brain
healing compound. In the central nervous system, nerve growth factor (NGF)
protects cholinergic neurons. NGF helps increase levels of choline
acetyltransferase (ChAT), which makes the valuable neurotransmitter
acetylcholine. The aging process reduces both nerve growth factor levels and the
ability of neurons to bind to this valuable cellular messenger. Acetyl L
Carnitine (ALCAR) ameliorates these age-related deficits, therefore
demonstrating another way it naturally helps create more acetylcholine needed
for neuronal transmission, learning, and recall. Acetyl L Carnitine (ALCAR) has
been found to optimize the response of the NMDA receptors and lessen their
decline in number.
In summary, Acetyl
L Carnitine (ALCAR) has proven itself safe and effective in ameliorating the
symptoms of cognitive loss in older adults, relieving depression, speeding
stroke recovery, and slowing the progression of Alzheimer's disease. What are
now needed are prospective, randomized trials of Acetyl L Carnitine (ALCAR) in
subjects who take it from middle age onward to see if Acetyl L Carnitine (ALCAR)
can prevent the cognitive loss in healthy adults.
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