L-arginine is an amino acid (a component of protein) that is naturally found in foods like beans and nuts. When combined with statin, supplements of L-arginine (500 milligrams twice a day) produced significant reduction of triglyceride levels. L-arginine by itself has no effect on triglyceride levels.
Arginine
Arginine is a semiessential amino acid. Supplements are sometimes needed as the body may not make enough at times. Arginine is needed to make nitric oxide which relaxes the blood vessels. It also assists in the production of creatine, a protein that builds muscle mass.
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1 AnswerA
Discovery Health answeredWhen the muscle bound man who makes Arnold look wimpy talks on the commercial about how an amino acid called L-arginine made him the way he is, he is right about one thing.
L-arginine, also called arginine, is an amino acid.
Sure, maybe it can make you healthier, but it sure won't turn you into Mr. America. It won't make your pecs enormous. It won't give you six-pack abs and it won't make your forearms look like Popeye's. But it may turn you into Mr. Sick if you take as much as the guy on the commercial.
Clearly, the body needs L-arginine - a naturally occurring substance akin to human growth hormone in its miraculous benefits. L-arginine assists waste removal and synthesizes proteins. Those who lack sufficient amounts, perhaps through burns, infection, malnutrition, dialysis and other reasons, may be constipated, suffer from a loss of hair known as alopecia and have skin troubles. They may take longer to heal and their livers may experience fat build up.
But before you take anything containing L-arginine, be cautious. Very cautious. Read about it and learn what it does, what it does not do and its effect on human growth.
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Stacy Wiegman, PharmD , Pharmacy, answeredPeople with certain health conditions should not use L-arginine, including those with allergies, asthma, recent heart attack, low blood pressure, herpes infection, liver disease, and sickle cell disease. Talk to your doctor before using L-arginine if you have any of these conditions.
No studies have proven the safety in using L-arginine while pregnant or nursing, so it is not recommended for pregnant or breastfeeding women.
Children younger than 18 years of age should not take L-arginine because of a lack of research to support its safety in this population.
Because L-arginine is a supplement, it is not as closely regulated by the Food and Drug Administration as medications are. -
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Stacy Wiegman, PharmD , Pharmacy, answeredIt is always a good idea to let your doctor know what medications and supplements you're taking, especially when your doctor is prescribing a new medication. Telling your doctor about taking L-arginine will help guard against drug interactions and the possibly unsafe results of them. You especially should notify your doctor if you have medical conditions like allergies, asthma, recent heart attack, low blood pressure, herpes infection, liver disease and sickle cell disease that may be affected by taking L-arginine.
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Dr. Michael T. Murray, ND , Naturopathic Medicine, answered
Arginine supplementation is proving to be beneficial in a number of cardiovascular diseases, including angina pectoris, congestive heart failure, high blood pressure, and peripheral vascular insufficiency (decreased blood flow to the legs or arms). Its beneficial effect in all of these disorders shares a common mechanism: increasing nitric oxide levels. Nitric oxide plays a central role in regulating blood flow. By increasing nitric oxide levels, arginine supplementation improves blood flow, reduces blood clot formation, and improves blood fluidity (the blood becomes less viscous and therefore flows through blood vessels more easily). The degree of improvement offered by arginine supplementation in angina and other cardiovascular diseases can be quite significant due to improved nitric oxide levels.
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Discovery Health answered
L-arginine's most famously touted benefit - a chiseled body with bulging muscles - may actually be its least important contribution.
One reason is because L-arginine really doesn't work as a miracle shortcut to a bodacious body, according to the Mayo Clinic. There is no shortcut.
But L-arginine may actually be very beneficial to human growth.
Scientists do know that L-arginine stimulates protein production, particularly creatine, which does help build muscle mass. But there is so much that researchers do not yet know about L-arginine that it is hard to say just how beneficial it really is to human growth.
When it comes to L-arginine and human growth, there are a lot of maybes involved.
L-arginine may boost human growth hormone. Estrogen may boost its activity. Progesterone may suppress it.
L-arginine may assist with human growth before birth, but not enough studies have been conducted. L-arginine may one day be given to pregnant women to boost fetal growth, particularly in cases of preeclampsia.
And L-arginine may help prevent wasting. Those suffering from HIV/AIDS and other chronic wasting diseases seem to have benefit from L-arginine's capacity to assist the body in holding onto its muscle mass. This is helpful in a couple of ways. Not only is the body more susceptible to other conditions when there is plummeting body weight, but individuals can lose independence if they loose muscle. So L-arginine may help boost quality of life. -
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Stacy Wiegman, PharmD , Pharmacy, answeredMost people do not need an L-arginine supplement, as the body usually produces enough L-arginine naturally.
However, the supplement has been shown in studies to be useful for testing growth hormone levels in people who may have hormone-related disorders and for treating urea synthesis disorders, coronary artery disease, angina, heart failure, critical illness, migraines, and claudication (cramping pain caused by poor circulation) from peripheral vascular diseases. Research is ongoing on the safety and effectiveness of these uses and others.
Talk to your doctor or pharmacist to help in deciding how helpful and safe L-arginine may be for you. -
1 AnswerA
Stacy Wiegman, PharmD , Pharmacy, answeredResearch is ongoing to test whether L-arginine works as claimed to help treat various health conditons. Studies support that L-arginine is effective in testing growth hormone levels and treating some urea synthesis disorders. Evidence also suggests that L-arginine can help in cases of coronary artery disease, angina, heart failure, critical illness, migraines, and claudication (cramping pain caused by poor circulation from peripheral vascular diseases). However, there is not enough research to support other proposed uses of L-arginine.
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Discovery Health answered
Usually, the human body produces enough of the amino acid L-arginine.
But not always. Sometimes, because of a traumatic injury or liver disease, the body cannot make enough.
But it needs L-arginine. So it is considered a semi-essential amino acid.
This is what L-arginine can do for you. It helps the body produce urea, the end result of when your body breaks down proteins and what you eliminate when you urinate. The body needs urea because it helps eliminate the excess nitrogen produced when proteins are broken down. L-arginine also assists in the body's production of creatine, which is a protein that helps build muscle mass. L-arginine also helps the body eliminate creatinine, which is the waste product of building muscle mass. These are the reasons, by the way, that the bodybuilding industry trumpets creatine and L-arginine supplements.
You can obtain additional L-arginine as a natural supplement, by inhaling it or injecting it.
As a medicine, L-arginine is considered a vasodilator, which means that it dilates blood vessels. That means more blood flows, which lowers blood pressure and can, in certain instances, help the bodyh cope with arterial blockages from conditions like atherosclerosis.
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Stacy Wiegman, PharmD , Pharmacy, answeredOther names for L-arginine include:
- Arg
- Arginine
- Arginine hydrochloride
- L-arg
- Ibuprofen-arginate
- NG-monometyl-L-arginine
- Dipeptide arginyl aspartate
- HeartBars
- 2-amino-5-guanidinopentanoic acid
- Sargenor
- Spedifen
Your doctor can clarify any confusion you might have about the various available L-arginine products.