Posted by Tomatheus on October 19, 2014, at 18:46:14
In reply to Re: PLEASE HELP: Is there some kind of dopamine issue?, posted by Joe Rogan on October 19, 2014, at 17:12:10
I follow your logic, Joe, and I think it's possible that the problems that you've described in your posts here might stem, at least in part, from problems with dopaminergic neurotransmission. Unfortunately, there is to my knowledge no valid, commercially available test that measures dopamine levels. Researchers sometimes measure the level of dopamine's metabolite, homovanillic acid (HVA), in the cerebrospinal fluid of humans in attempts to understand differences in the functioning of the dopamine system that might exist between patients with mental disorders and mentally healthy controls. Unfortunately, levels of HVA in spinal fluid may not reflect actual levels of dopamine in the brain. Although it's possible that an abnormally low HVA level might reflect reduced dopamine synthesis (which could be seen as "dopamine depletion"), it might also mean that dopamine is being broken down too slowly, which would cause dopamine levels to actually be too high. So basically, even some of the methods that are used in mental health research to try to measure dopamine levels in humans have their flaws, which means that it's highly unlikely (at least in my estimation) that a valid test that measures dopamine levels will become commercially available anytime soon.
Without a valid test to determine the level of dopamine in your brain, it's really just anybody's guess as to whether dopamine depletion might be a problem for you. Vitamin D seems to increase the activity of the tyrosine hydroxylase enzyme (at least in the adrenal medullary cells of mice -- Puchacz et al., 1996), which converts the amino acid tyrosine to dopamine, so measuring your vitamin D level might tell you whether one chemical that influences dopamine is outside of the normal range. However, the number of factors that might influence brain dopamine levels, be they biological or otherwise, seems to me that it would be very high, so even the result of a vitamin D level test would from my perspective tell you very little about how elevated or depleted dopamine might be in your brain.
And then there's Zyprexa. Among the pharmacological actions of the atypical antipsychotic that you're taking is the blockade of D2 (and D1, D3, D4, and D5) dopamine receptors. This action could account for at least some of the problems that you've described experiencing here. Furthermore, a relatively recent randomized double-blind study (Kluge et al., 2007) found that Zyprexa can induce food craving and binge eating. I know that you've stated that you're taking Zyprexa for schizoaffective disorder and that you might need some sort of dopamine-modulating antipsychotic to keep some of your symptoms under control. However, if your food cravings are becoming really problematic, I might advise talking to the professional who prescribes your medications about either trying a lower Zyprexa dose or switching to a different antipsychotic.
Well, this sums up my thoughts on what you've written for now, so I'm going to bring this message to a close. I wish you much luck on getting the problems that you've described in your posts under control, whether that involves taking a medication that boosts dopamine or something else. Take care.
Tomatheus
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REFERENCES
Kluge, M., Schuld, A., Himmerich, H., Dalal, M., Schacht, A., Wehmeier, P.M., et al. (2007). Clozapine and olanzapine are associated with food craving and binge eating: Results from a randomized double-blind study. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 27, 662-666. Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18004133
Puchacz, E., Stumpf, W.E., Stachowiak, E.K., & Stachowiak, M.K. (1996). Vitamin D increases expression of the tyrosine hydroxylase gene in adrenal medullary cells. Brain Research: Molecular Brain Research, 36, 193-196. Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9011759
Has a chronic affective psychosis
Taking Abilify, lithium orotate, & vitamins B3 & D3
poster:Tomatheus
thread:1072355
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20141017/msgs/1072517.html