Theanine is a green tea derived protein that has been known for several decades to possess significant health properties such as increasing brain relaxation without inducing drowsiness, strengthening the immune system and more. Until recently only a relatively inferior mix of so called D- and L-theanine was available. Now, however, a patented form of 100% pure L-theanine, the active form, Suntheanine®, is produced with much stronger results than even the most concentrated green tea. In the current True Botanica formulation the patented Suntheanine® is blended with our proprietary, rhythmically prepared and potentized Suntheanine® so that the effect on the mind is further enhanced.

A summary of the research literature shows the following benefits from taking  L- theanine;

• Increases α- brain waves that lead to enhanced relaxation 1
• Increases dopamine brain levels, a neurotransmitter that could be depleted in stress situations 2
• Increases GABA a neurotransmitter that induces a sense of well being and relaxation, improves memory and learning 3
• Increases the attentiveness ability of the brain function, increases the ability to ignore distractions4,5
• Lessens social and stress induced anxiety 6
• Protects nerve cells from ischemia associated damage 7
• Protects from alcoholic liver injury 8
• Potentially effective in stroke prevention9
• Decreased blood pressure in animal studies 10
• Delays peroxidation of low density lipid proteins (LDL) 11
• Enhances the effectiveness of  chemotherapeutic agents 12
• Has anti-obesity effects 13
• Decreases flu and colds symptoms 14

More details on significant findings about the beneficial effects of L-theanine:

                Since ancient times, it has been said that drinking green tea brings relaxation. The substance that is responsible for this sense of relaxation is theanine. Theanine is a unique amino acid found almost solely in tea plants and is the main component responsible for the exotic taste of 'green' tea. It was found that L-theanine administered intraperitoneally to rats reached the brain within 30 minutes without any metabolic change. Theanine also acts as a neurotransmitter in the brain and decreased blood pressure significantly in hypertensive rats. In general, animals always generate very weak electric pulses on the surface of the brain, called brain waves. Brain waves are classified into four types, namely α, β, λ and θ-waves, based on mental conditions. Generation of α-waves is considered to be an index of relaxation. In human volunteers, α-waves were generated on the occipital and parietal regions of the brain surface within 40 minutes after the oral administration of theanine (50-200 mg), signifying relaxation without causing drowsiness.10
                L-Theanine is known to control excitement caused by caffeine. L-Theanine has been confirmed to be safe in animal experiments. Oral intake of L-theanine caused a feeling of relaxation among the human volunteers examined. These observations led to experiments on the effects of administration of L-theanine on the brain’s electric waves. Eight female university students were selected as volunteers. Four of them were ranked to be Grade I (the highest anxiety) and the remaining four, Grade V (the lowest anxiety) in an investigation done by the manifest anxiety scale method. A dose of oral administration of 200 mg of L-theanine dissolved in 100 ml of water resulted in the generation of α-electric waves in the occipital and parietal regions of the brains of the subjects. The emission intensity of α-brain waves (integrated as a function of investigation times and area) was significantly greater in the group of Grade I than that of Grade V. These results indicated the possibility for L-theanine to be taken as food for its relaxation effect.1
                The effect of theanine, r-glutamylethylamide, on brain amino acids, monoamines and dopamine (DA) was investigated. Theanine was shown to be incorporated into the brain through the blood-brain barrier via a leucine-preferring transport system. Theanine administration caused significant increases in serotonin and/or DA concentrations in the brain, especially in the striatum, hypothalamus and hippocampus. Direct administration of theanine into brain striatum by microinjection caused a significant increase of DA release in a dose-dependent manner. 2
                Theanine was found to have neuroprotective effects. Neuronal death was suppressed with exposure to theanine. The death of hippocampal pyramidal neurons caused by transient forebrain ischemia in the gerbil was inhibited with the ventricular pre-administration of theanine. The neuronal death of the hippocampal region by kainate was also prevented by the administration of theanine. The results of the study suggested that the mechanism of the neuroprotective effect of theanine is related not only to the glutamate receptor but also to other mechanisms such as the glutamate transporter. 7
                One of the onset mechanisms for arteriosclerosis, a major factor in ischemic cerebrovascular disease, is probably the oxidative alteration of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) by active oxygen species. The oxidative alterations of LDL were shown to be prevented by theanine. 7
                To elucidate the anti-obesity effects of three major components of green tea, catechins, caffeine and theanine, female ICR mice were fed on diets containing 2% green tea powder and diets containing 0.3% catechins, 0.05% caffeine and 0.03% theanine, which correspond, respectively, to their concentrations in a 2% green tea powder diet, singly and in combination for 16 weeks. Body weight and food intake were determined monthly during this period; kidneys, adrenals, liver, spleen, brain, pituitary and intraperitoneal adipose tissues (IPAT) were weighed and lipid levels in the serum and liver were measured at the end of this period. The body weight increase and weight of IPAT were significantly reduced by the diets containing green tea, caffeine, theanine, caffeine + catechins, caffeine + theanine and caffeine + catechins + theanine. Noticeably, the IPAT weight decreased by 76.8% in the caffeine + catechins compared to the control group. Serum concentrations of triglycerides (TG) and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) were decreased by green tea, catechins and theanine. Moreover, caffeine + catechins, caffeine + theanine and caffeine + catechins + theanine also decreased NEFA in the serum. The TG level in the liver was significantly reduced by catechins and catechins + theanine in comparison with the control. These results indicated that at least caffeine and theanine were responsible for the suppressive effect of green tea powder (GTP) on body weight increase and fat accumulation. 13
                In another study it was shown that besides dopamine release theanine may inhibit excitatory neurotransmission and cause inhibitory neurotransmission via glycine receptors.15
                A recent study looked at the general stroke prevention ability of L- theanine containing green tea. Stroke is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in many countries. Green tea is a simple and inexpensive beverage that is showing promise in the prevention of several diseases, including stroke. However, epidemiological studies examining the preventive effects of tea on stroke have generated inconsistent results. The study reviewed the emerging evidence for green tea in stroke prevention. Two published epidemiological studies on green tea reported positive findings. A large number of studies have also proposed biological mechanisms by which tea or tea components may reduce the stroke risk.  The conclusion reached was that green tea consumption should be encouraged because it could potentially serve as a practical method for stroke prevention. 9
                Because the characteristics of l-Theanine suggest that it may influence psychological and physiological states under stress, a study examined these possible effects in a laboratory setting using a mental arithmetic task as an acute stressor. Twelve participants underwent four separate trials: one in which they took l-Theanine at the start of an experimental procedure, one in which they took l-Theanine midway, and two control trials in which they either took a placebo or nothing. The experimental sessions were performed in a double-blind manner, and the order of them was counterbalanced. The results showed that l-Theanine intake resulted in a reduction in the heart rate (HR) and salivary immunoglobulin A (s-IgA) responses to an acute stress task relative to the placebo control condition. Moreover, analyses of heart rate variability indicated that the reductions in HR and s-IgA were likely attributable to an attenuation of sympathetic nervous activation. Thus, it was suggested that the oral intake of l-Theanine could cause anti-stress effects via the inhibition of cortical neuron excitation.16
                L-theanine has a significant influence on the immune system.
                Human γδ T lymphocytes are a subset of T cells and are a first line of defense against microbes and tumors. These γδ T cells can be primed by nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates, and certain short-chain alkylamines. These primed γδ T cells have an enhanced capacity to proliferate and to secrete cytokines upon ex vivo exposure to a wide variety of microbes and tumor cells. The largest dietary source of alkylamines is L-theanine, an amino acid unique to tea beverages that is catabolized to ethylamine. Supplementation of subjects with capsules containing L-theanine and catechins has recently been shown to decrease the incidence of cold and flu symptoms, while enhancing γδ T cell function.14

References

1. Kobayashi K, Nagato Y, Aoi N, et al. Effects of L-theanine on the release of α-brain waves in human volunteers. Nippon Nogeikagaku Kaishi. 1998;72(2):153-157.
2. Yokogoshi H, Kobayashi M, Mochizuki M, Terashima T. Effect of theanine, r-glutamylethylamide, on brain monoamines and striatal dopamine release in conscious rats. Neurochemical Research. 1998;23(5):667-673.
3. Nathan PJ, Lu K, Gray M, Oliver C. The neuropharmacology of L-theanine(N-ethyl-L-glutamine): A possible neuroprotective and cognitive enhancing agent. Journal of Herbal Pharmacotherapy. 2006;6(2):21-30.
4. Gomez-Ramirez M, Higgins BA, Rycroft JA, et al. The deployment of intersensory selective attention: A high-density electrical mapping study of the effects of theanine. Clinical Neuropharmacology. 2007;30(1):25-38.
5. Shulman M. A soothing sip of focus. the latest on tea: It might quiet distracted minds. U.S. news & world report. 2007;143(12):58.
6. Yang Q-, Xu P-, Li Y-, Jiang S, Zhang X, Xue M. Effects of theanine and houpu extract in 7-day chick social separation-stress procedure. Zhongguo Zhongyao Zazhi. 2007;32(19):2040-2043.
7. Kakuda T. Neuroprotective effects of the green tea components theanine and catechins. Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin. 2002;25(12):1513-1518.
8. Sadzuka Y, Inoue C, Hirooka S, Sugiyama T, Umegaki K, Sonobe T. Effects of theanine on alcohol metabolism and hepatic toxicity. Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin. 2005;28(9):1702-1706.
9. Fraser ML, Mok GS, Lee AH. Green tea and stroke prevention: Emerging evidence. Complementary Therapies in Medicine. 2007;15(1):46-53.
10. Chu D-, Okubo T, Nagato Y, Yokogoshi H. L-theanine - A unique amino acid of green tea and its relaxation effect in humans. Trends in Food Science and Technology. 1999;10(6-7):199-204.
11. Yokozawa T, Dong E. Influence of green tea and its three major components upon low-density lipoprotein oxidation. Experimental and Toxicologic Pathology. 1997;49(5):329-335.
12. Sugiyama T, Sadzuka Y, Tanaka K, Sonobe T. Inhibition of glutamate transporter by theanine enhances the therapeutic efficacy of doxorubicin. Toxicology Letters. 2001;121(2):89-96.
13. Zheng G, Sayama K, Okubo T, Juneja LR, Oguni I. Anti-obesity effects of three major components of green tea, catechins, caffeine and theanine, in mice. In Vivo. 2004;18(1):55-62.
14. Bukowski JF, Percival SS. L-theanine intervention enhances human γδ T lymphocyte function. Nutrition Reviews. 2008;66(2):96-102.
15. Yamada T, Terashima T, Okubo T, Juneja LR, Yokogoshi H. Effects of theanine, r-glutamylethylamide, on neurotransmitter release and its relationship with glutamic acid neurotransmission. Nutritional Neuroscience. 2005;8(4):219-226.
16. Kimura K, Ozeki M, Juneja LR, Ohira H. l-theanine reduces psychological and physiological stress responses. Biological Psychology. 2007;74(1):39-45.

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 (The above comments are meant for educational purposes only. Do not take if breast feeding. Do not give to infants. Always seek the approval of a doctor before starting a medical treatment.)