5-HTP: The Natural Way to Overcome Depression, Obesity, and Insomnia Paperback – June 1, 1999

As part of my continuing desire to learn more about natural medicine and wellness, I read Dr. Murray's book on 5-HTP. The basic premise of the book is that sarotonin levels regulate many of the body's moods and behavior patterns - such as sleep and appetite. With a sarotonin imbalance or deficiency, the individual is subject to depression, food cravings, insomnia and the like. 5-HTP is a compound that increases the production of serotonin in the body. The book discusses many uses of serotonin as it relates to many medical conditions, and also compares its effectiveness to many common drugs, like Prozac. It also discusses the foods you need to eat in order to boost 5-HTP intake without supplimentation.A decent book, and a reminder that a well balanced diet can do wonders for a body - and that there are alternative methods to traditional drugs in some cases. If you have an interest in naturopathy and natural wellness, this is a great read.

This is a very thorough and informative book on 5HTP. There's alot of info I wasn't aware of and because of it, I've begun to lose weight by following the advice in it. I'm surprised it is not touted as THE way to lose weight to give the bogus weight loss "systems" a run for their money. I like the fact that it lists studies, statistics, it's multiple uses and how it works. I didn't know it double dutied as a safe sleeping aid, for example and now use it as well for that purpose. It's too bad it gets swept under the rug for those that want to use a supplement as safe as 5HTP.

The book is very informational. I guess I was hoping for a miracle. It is a good book to read.

Informative and thoughtful book. 5-HTP has helped me in the past year. I was on antidepressant meds for many years. I was able to detox from them and also from benzodiazepines with the aid of 5-HTP. However, I found that after being on it for months, I was still unable to sleep and I found out thattryptophan would be far betterNOW Foods L-Tryptophan 500mg, 120 Vcaps See my review. This has taken almost a year and I am still adjusting. I do not recommend doing this without help. It is very hard to find a Doctor who works with the supplements. Therapy is essential while doing this. I also read The Mood Cure by Julia Ross. If you are considering medication for depression, 5-HTP is safer and does not have withdrawl symptoms like conventional medicine. I am considering attempting to write a book about my experiences. Does anyone out there find this informatio helpful. I am not really interested in making a lot of money, just in getting the word out.

Previously reviewers have mentioned some conflicting information which I did see, but this book has been invaluable for me because ithelped inspire me to continue to do research. I found that there are several more people that are researching and writing about subjectslike neurotransmitter replenishment with various amino acids. Someone in my family that has serious health issues is being helped greatly by this information. Thanks Doctor Murray.

I so appreciated his approach of explaining how this works and what other supplements can be taken safely with it. It can get technical in spots and for some this can be too much. Just skip over the technological spots and read on because there is plenty of helpful information for everyone. A great book you will want to keep.

I am absolutely delighted, the 5-HTP was very simply explained and made so much sense. I'm sure it will be an invaluable tool to use in my practice as a Naturopath. Thank you Michael Murray.

Material was interesting. 5-HTP didn't seem to work for me until I read a review about sublingual. That method worked.