Each capsule contains 50 mg of 5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan High doses of 5-HTP may cause nausea. If this occurs the dosage should be decreased to a level where nausea is reduced or eliminated. 5-HTP should not be taken with any drug, which increases serotonin levels (such as Prozac) or with MAO inhibitors. No adverse effects have been reported when 5-HTP is taken during pregnancy; however further studies are required. Appetite Suppressant Serotonin is a major naturalappetite suppressant. It causes a feeling of satiety and loss of interest in eating. Administration of 5-HTP presumably acting as a precursor to serotoninhas produced weight loss in controlled studies that were conducted in Italy inthe early 90’s. Massive doses (up to nearly 500 mg) were given daily in these studies and side effects such as nausea and vomiting were experienced. Similar results with fewer side effects can be obtained with much lower doses of 5-HTP(50 mg per day). 50 mg be taken 20 minutes before meals, will produce morepronounced appetite suppressant effects. Sleep 50 mg should be taken beforebedtime. 5-HTP increases melatonin concentration in the brain, which induces sleep. It appears that, if 5-HTP is taken, during the day, the melatonin isstored in the pineal gland, until nightfall, when the melatonin is released byaction of the biological clock. Thus, 5-HTP does not normally cause drowsiness during the day. Anti-Depressant and Anxiolytic The mode of action of manyanti-depressants is based on increasing serotonin levels in the brain.  The best known synthetic drug whose mode ofaction is based on serotonin increase is Prozac. Others are Paxil, Zoloft andEffexor.  The advantage of 5-HTP is thatis naturally occurring (produced by the human body) and does not appear tocause impotence, as occurs frequently with synthetic serotonin elevators. It appears that in addition to an increase of serotonin, 5-HTP also causes an increase in endorphins, which are also mood enhancers. Biochemistry 5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan (5-HTP) is a derived from L-tryptophan and is converted in the body into5-hydroxy-L-tryptamine (serotonin), which itself is a precursor of melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxy-L-tryptamine). 5-HTP thusis a precursor source both of serotonin and melatonin. Therefore administration of 5-HTP can be expected to produce effects of both serotonin and melatonin. Serotonin acts as an anti-depressant and anxiolytic, a sleep restorer, and appetite suppressant. It is also available commercially in its racemic mixture (50:50 mixture of the D and L forms), which has about ½ the activity of the natural L sterioisomer. High doses of 5-HTP maycause nausea. If this occurs the dosage should be decreased to a level wherenausea is reduced or eliminated. 5-HTP should not be taken with any drug, whichincreases serotonin levels (such as Prozac) or with MAO inhibitors. No adverseeffects have been reported when 5-HTP is taken during pregnancy, however further studies are required.