Why GABA Is Important for Well-Being

How the brain chemical works and why it’s important for your health.

MAY 6, 2024 / NATHALIE BOUTROS, Ph.D. AND TCHIKI DAVIS, M.A., Ph.D.

Why GABA Is Important for Well-Being
The brain is an almost inconceivably complex system of billions of neurons interlinked via trillions of connections that work to coordinate everything you do, think, and feel (Zimmer, 2011). This system works via the chemical regulation of electrical activity. Chemicals called neurotransmitters are created in one brain cell and released into the tiny space between brain cells, called the synaptic cleft. When the neurotransmitter binds to the neuron on the other side of the synaptic cleft, that post-synaptic neuron may change in some way.
Neuroscientists are continuing to discover just how brain cells communicate with one another. Over 40 known chemicals act as neurotransmitters. These different chemicals have different effects on brain cells and are present in different concentrations in different parts of the brain. For example, glutamate is the brain’s primary excitatory neurotransmitter; it has the effect of making individual neurons more likely to generate electrical impulses. In contrast, Gamma-aminobutyric Acid, or GABA, is an inhibitory neurotransmitter; it has the effect of making individual neurons less likely to generate electrical impulses.

What Is GABA?

Since Glutamate stimulates GABA and is the precursor of GABA, it is vital to balance both of these neurotransmitters, as GABA can be turned back into glutamate as needed by the body.

If GABA levels are elevated, it is likely due to excessive use of Benzodiazepines or excessive consumption of alcohol. Therefore reducing the intake of these contributors may help lower and balance GABA levels.

The Benefits of GABA

Impaired GABA functioning may be partially reversed by pharmacological or dietary interventions that increase GABA (Ngo & Vo., 2019). Some of the specific beneficial effects of increasing GABA may include:
  • Improved sleep quality and decreased insomnia
  • IAntidepressant effects
  • IRelaxation and decreased anxiety
  • IImproved long-term memory
  • IImproved cognitive functioning
In addition to the beneficial effects of GABA within the brain, GABA may also have beneficial effects throughout the body:
  • GABA may reduce hypertension and lower blood pressure.
  • GABA and GABA-enriched foods may lower glucose, decrease insulin resistance, stimulate insulin release, and prevent pancreatic damage.
  • GABA may slow or even suppress tumor growth.
  • GABA may inhibit inflammation.
  • GABA may limit the effects of histamines.
  • GABA may have protective ffects on the kidneys and intestines.
It may seem counterintuitive that a chemical that slows down brain activity can be so important to a healthy and well-functioning neural system. Without the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA to prevent excessive neural activity, brain cells would fire excessively, leading to tremors, convulsions, seizures, and eventual cell death. Although less dramatic, excessive electrical activity in the brain may also result in insomnia, anxiety, depression, hypersensitivity, hyperactivity, and impaired cognitive functioning. The presence of GABA within the brain works to counteract some of these distressing effects of excessive neural excitability. A balance between excitation and inhibition of electrical impulses is key to a healthy neural system and GABA is one of the keys to this balance.
Article by: Nathalie Boutros, Ph.D. and Tchiki Davis, M.A., Ph.D.
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Sources:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/click-here-for-happiness/202312/why-gaba-is-important-for-well-being

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