Taurine 750 mg x 100 capsules

Overview

Taurine: It’s not just ‘bull’: both cats and humans decline when their diets contain too little taurine.

Taurine is a sulfur-containing amino acid that is not utilized to make proteins but is involved in a variety of different physiological processes.

The body synthesizes too little taurine to consistently meet the body’s needs for it — therefore, a dietary source is required in order to avoid deficiency diseases.

Taurine deficiencies occur in various mammals, including humans and cats. During pregnancy, taurine deficiency in the mother leads to retarded growth of the offspring, and to impaired development of the central nervous system and of the pancreatic insulin-producing structures. The adult offspring of taurine-deficient mothers have impaired glucose tolerance, impaired neurological function, and vascular dysfunction; they may develop gestational diabetes and transmit these defects to the next generation.

In adult humans, taurine has been used to treat:

• cardiovascular diseases
• high cholesterol levels
• epilepsy and other seizure disorders
• macular degeneration
• Alzheimer’s disease
• liver disorders
• alcoholism
• cystic fibrosis.
• In cats, taurine is used mainly for preventing deficiency diseases:
•  retinal degeneration
• cardiomyopathy
• impaired immune function
• abnormal growth and development.

For human supplementation, 3-4 grams per day in divided doses should maximize one’s chances of obtaining a positive effect without encountering side effects.

For fortifying cat food, the amount usually recommended is 1200-2500 mg taurine for each kilogram of food (about 550-1150 mg per pound of food, or 33-70 mg per ounce).

Read Taurine Monograph

Taurine is a sulfur-containing amino acid that is not utilized in protein synthesis, but rather is normally found in the body as simple free molecules. It is a ‘conditionally-essential’ amino acid inasmuch as the body synthesizes too little of it to consistently meet the body’s needs for it — therefore, a dietary source is required in order to avoid deficiency diseases.

Taurine is involved in a variety of different physiological processes, including:^1b

• the conversion of metabolic wastes into water-soluble salts
• regulation of calcium ion flux across membranes
• membrane stabilization
• detoxification of pro-oxidants such as hypochlorous acid and chloro-carbons
• normal development of fetal tissues

Taurine deficiencies occur in various mammals, including humans and cats.^1a,1b,2,3,4 During pregnancy, taurine deficiency in the mother leads to retarded growth of the offspring, and to impaired development of the central nervous system and of the pancreatic insulin-producing structures. The adult offspring of taurine-deficient mothers have impaired glucose tolerance, impaired neurological function, and vascular dysfunction; they may develop gestational diabetes and transmit these defects to the next generation.¹⁸

In adult humans, taurine has been used with varying degrees of success to treat a wide variety of conditions, including: cardiovascular diseases, hypercholesterolemia, epilepsy and other seizure disorders, macular degeneration, Alzheimer’s disease, hepatic disorders, alcoholism, and cystic fibrosis.^1b

In cats, taurine is used mainly for preventing deficiency diseases: retinal degeneration, cardiomyopathy, altered white-cell function, and abnormal growth and development.²

Cardiovascular effects

Oral taurine treatment has been studied extensively as an agent for lowering high blood pressure. Its beneficial effects have been demonstrated both in rats and in humans. In human subjects suffering essential hypertension, taurine supplementation at 6 g/day for as little as 7 days resulted in measurable decreases in blood pressure.⁷

It has been known for more than 20 years that taurine supplementation improves the function of the heart in people with congestive heart failure (a weakness of the heart muscle).^8,9 The medical world, however, has shown very little interest in this treatment, preferring instead to treat with expensive prescription drugs. Veterinarians, on the other hand, continue to use taurine to treat similar conditions in cats and sometimes in dogs.¹⁰

A clinical trial in which overweight and obese men were given taurine at 3 g/day caused significant reductions in serum fatty acid levels, and reduced the subjects’ bodyweights.¹⁷

The seriousness of damage to arteries from atherosclerosis (‘hardening of the arteries’) is often measured by the amount of calcium in the fatty deposits in the arterial walls. Less calcium means less disease progression. Research published in 2002 demonstrated that calcification of vascular smooth muscle cells could be alleviated by taurine. Taurine treatment appeared to be more beneficial when the treatment was started earlier.⁶

In a 2004 study of rabbits genetically predisposed to cardiovascular disease, a 24-week treatment (0.3% taurine in drinking water) decreased atherosclerotic deposits in the aortas by 31%.⁵

Considering the promising results obtained in cell culture and animal studies, one might assume that studies in humans would have proceeded forthwith. But one would be wrong — not a single clinical study in humans has been reported in the medical literature. Meanwhile, millions of humans die each year from the effects of atherosclerosis. Billions of dollars are spent on statin drugs, surgical procedures, special diets, and exercise programs, while the concept of taurine supplementation is left unexplored.

However, there is nothing stopping us (in the USA, at least) from buying a taurine supplement and trying it for ourselves. Studies of taurine used for other purposes have consistently shown it to be safe and without side effects.¹¹

Epilepsy

The use of taurine supplementation to treat epilepsy and other seizure disorders has been studied since the 1970s.^13,14 Although substantial improvements were reported, critics have called these studies into question for methodological reasons.¹² Nevertheless, as stated above, patients have easy access to this supplement and can choose for themselves whether or not to use it.

Diabetes

Experimental data suggest strongly that taurine could have beneficial effects in diabetic patients.¹⁶ Taurine was especially useful for preventing diabetic damage to retina, eye lenses and nerves.¹⁵ The bulk of experimental data suggests that taurine administration could be useful in the treatment of type 1 (childhood-onset) diabetes and in the prevention of insulin resistance, but not in type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes.¹⁶

Taurine in cats

Wild cat species are carnivores and presumably obtain adequate amounts of taurine in the uncooked meat they consume. Domestic cats, on the other hand, depend largely on food prepared for them by humans, often from vegetable sources which are low in taurine. Pet cats are therefore especially prone to suffer taurine deficiencies. The effects are what one would expect: developmental abnormalities, heart defects, cardiovascular disease, retinal failure, altered white-cell function, and diabetic symptoms.²

Most commercial cat food is now fortified with taurine. But taurine is lost or destroyed when food is cooked, especially if cooked in water.¹⁹ This is how some taurine deficiences occur. When taurine is added to low-taurine food, an adequate amount is thought to be in the range of 1200-2500 mg taurine for each kilogram of food (about 550-1150 mg per pound of food, or 33-70 mg per ounce).⁴

Supplementation in adult humans

Supplement companies tend to take a conservative approach in suggesting dosages of taurine — 500 mg three times per day is typical. Clinical trials often use more — up to 6 g per day in one trial mentioned above. Doses of around 5 grams a day sometimes cause loose stools, according to DrLam.com.²⁰ It follows, therefore, that regimen of about 4 grams per day in divided doses should maximize one’s chances of obtaining a positive effect without encountering side effects.