Re: these excitotoxins are going to be in our food no matter how many name changes are necessary...

What do you get for L-Theanine as being a good supplement for the brain Newport? I found where it's used for relaxation, insomnia, relieving stress and anxiety.

http://www.iherb.com/Search?kw=theanine


in the Jarrow's description:

Theanine exerts protective effects on the brain by antagonizing glutamate toxicity

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glutamic_acid


Glutamate transporters[5] are found in neuronal and glial membranes. They rapidly remove glutamate from the extracellular space. In brain injury or disease, they can work in reverse and excess glutamate can accumulate outside cells. This process causes calcium ions to enter cells via NMDA receptor channels, leading to neuronal damage and eventual cell death, and is called excitotoxicity. The mechanisms of cell death include

Damage to mitochondria from excessively high intracellular Ca2+[6]
Glu/Ca2+-mediated promotion of transcription factors for pro-apoptotic genes, or downregulation of transcription factors for anti-apoptotic genes.
Excitotoxicity due to glutamate occurs as part of the ischemic cascade and is associated with stroke and diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, lathyrism, autism, some forms of mental retardation and Alzheimer's disease[7].

Glutamic acid has been implicated in epileptic seizures
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