Note: The file you are viewing is a single HTML file from who knows where in cyberspace. That means that links and images within the file are not included with the single file and will not likely work. If the original site is still in esistence and can be found, this paricluar file will ultimately be replaced with a link back to its origin. In the meantime, the file is here for its text value only.

DMAE

Newsgroups: alt.psychoactives,alt.drugs,sci.med From: ladasky@netcom.com (John J. Ladasky II) Subject: Re: DMAE Message-ID: <5b1m3va.ladasky@netcom.com> Date: Sun, 09 Aug 92 05:22:25 GMT

mtymp15@epx.cis.umn.edu (David Hutton) writes: >This weekend, my parents discovered a foil packed that had fallen out of my >pocket containing 6 (six) 350mg tablets of Dimethylaminoethanol Bitartrate. >>After explaining to them that "NO... it was legal and not* acid" they calmed >down a little (meaning that the sound level is below 100 Db now). They told >me that if I am going to continue to experiment with these newfangled "smart >drugs/nutrients" that I have to prove to them that they are good.

Well, first of all, why don't you carry them around in the bottle that they came in? The bottle probably has a nice, typed label that will lend legitimacy to your use of DMAE.

A good reference for DMAE, and for many other interesting (and legal) compounds in Dean and Morgenthaler's book, "Smart Drugs and Nutrients." It is from this book that I obtained the basics of the following explanation of the mechanism of action of DMAE (the rest is from a conversation with an informed friend):

As any high-school biology student knows, the compound acetylcholine is an important neurotransmitter. High-school biology students are probably less familiar with the blood-brain barrier, which (as you might gather from the name) prevents certain compounds from entering the brain from the blood. Acetylcholine is unable to cross the blood-brain barrier. This makes sense: if you consumed a meal with a high quantity of acetylcholine, you might involuntarily stimulate your own nervous system. Choline is the usual pre- cursor of acetylcholine, but it does not cross the blood-brain barrier very well. The body makes acetylcholine from choline as it is needed.

DMAE is basically a choline molecule with one methyl group missing from the nitrogen. DMAE is more able to cross the blood-brain barrier than choline. Once inside the brain, an enzyme performs a methylation that converts DMAE into choline. So, taking DMAE increases the brain's potential to make neurotransmitters.

Dean and Morgenthaler's book reports the following effects for DMAE: mood elevation, improvement of memory and learning, intelligence increases, and increases in the life span of laboratory animals.

DMAE is a naturally-occuring compound that is present in signficant amounts in fish. Is this why some people consider fish to be "brain food?"

And now, for my personal experiences:

I have used DMAE for about six months now. The first time I took it, I was awake almost all night - this was before my roommate told me what its effect was. He merely told me that it was a "smart drug" that he had bought at the local health food store. The dose was 350 mg.

The second time I took DMAE, I was on my way to work. I had a very productive morning, and I felt - well - lucid. This is especially significant for me, as I am not a morning person. I felt that my ability to handle mul- tiple tasks simultaneously was improved. As for weird effects, I felt that my vision was somewhat enhanced - and when I had the realization that "Gee, I'm having a great morning!" I got a quick, involuntary smirk across my face. That's all, though.

When the DMAE ran out, my roommate and I discovered Source Natural's Mental Edge vitamin, which contains 160 mg DMAE, but also a host of other smart nutrients. I'm taking about one of these vitamins per day - the recom- mended dose is 4/day. The vitamin is best taken on an empty stomach, so I was putting one on top of my alarm clock to take in the morning. I have this nasty habit of setting my alarm 30 minutes ahead after it goes off, and going back to sleep. (My typical weeknight sleep schedule is about 6 1/2 hours.) Well, the first few times I took the Mental Edge, I would roll over about 15 minutes after the first alarm - awake and ready to go as if I had slept for nine hours! The mornings that followed were generally productive ones.

Over the course of these six months, the short-term stimulant effect of DMAE/Mental Edge has worn off. In other words, I'm no longer getting the instant pick-me-up that I used to get. However, I have noted that I'm generally more alert. Of course, I'm only averaging about 200 mg/day of DMAE. Dean and Morganthaler's books recommend "a gradual buildup to 500- 1000 mg per day."

About three months ago, my roommate and I found DMAE in liquid form. A solution containing 100 mg/ml of DMAE and 150 mg/ml of PABA is available from Twinlabs. The rationale for the PABA/DMAE combination is probably similar to that for another product, xanthinol nicotinate (again reference Dean and Morgenthaler): the presence of PABA allows the formation of a PABA/DMAE complex that crosses some barrier (a cell membrane, or the blood-brain barrier) more readily than DMAE alone. Mix some of this stuff into your orange juice in the morning and you're ready to go.

I have only had one negative experience with DMAE. I was running an organic juice bar at a reggae party about six weeks ago. We were selling drinks with or without smart drugs, as people desired. I had three glasses of fresh-squeezed carrot juice, all containing about 300 mg of DMAE. I had a fun day - I ran around at the concert, and did sound for the band - but I had a pretty good headache the next day. The headache symptom is documented in Dean and Morgenthaler.

BTW, I do not use caffeine-containing beverages. Well, maybe once or twice a month I'll have a Coke or a cup of tea at dinner. My point is that I do not use any stimulants to stay awake. So, I can't personally compare the effect of DMAE to coffee. However, my roommate says that the DMAE stim- ulant effect is "cleaner" than coffee. He also says that there is also a day or two of "crash" if you stop taking it after taking it a lot.

>>If anyone* has info on DMAE on file - or has personal accounts of it's power - >could you post them or e-mail them to mtymp15@epx.cis.umn.edu ? >>My whole parental support system is in the balance. If I cannot persuade them >to let me continue to experiment, they will take away stuff from me if they >ever find out. =)

Well, don't act too smart, and they'll never know! ;^)

>>|=->The Muffster<-=| >mtymp15@epx.cis.umn.edu >muffman@tfsquad.mn.org >

-- ============================================================================= John J. Ladasky II ("ii") (ladasky@netcom.COM)

"Great composers do not borrow - they steal." - Igor Stravinsky

(Actually, Picasso said it first, in reference to painting - but Stravinsky has claimed it as his own! :^)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Disclaimer: The file contained in the box above or displayed in a separate window from a link in the box above is NOT owned nor implied to be owned by BeYoND THe iLLuSioN. Most files at BeYoND THe iLLuSioN are originally from public Bulletin Board Systems (BBS) which were popular in the days before the Internet or from gopher, web, and FTP sites from the early days of the Internet which no longer exist today. Essentially, all files were acquired from the public domain in one for or another.

However, there have been occasions when copyright protected material has appeared on BeYoND THe iLLuSIoN without permission of the copyright holder. In these instances, we have and will continue to remove the copyright protected file as soon as it is brought to our attention. This can now be done using our Report Copyright Material form. Fill out the form, and the webmaster will be notified of the situation.

There are also times when files found on BeYoND THe iLLuSioN have a real home somewhere else on the Internet. In these instances, we will gladly replace the file with a link to its true home whenever it is brought to our attention. If you know of the true home of any of these files, you can use our Report Original URL form to bring it yo our attention.