NOW Foods Supplements, SAMe (S-Adenosyl-L-Methionine) 400 mg, Nervous System Support*, 60 Tablets

I started taking these after I was told that these are better than most pharmaceutical drugs. I would much rather take herbal remedies than any other pharmaceutical drugs any day. I put some information on here for others to see just how great SAMe is for you.New Human Study Confirms Potent Antidepressant Effects of SAMeDecember 2010By David HoffnungLife Extension® introduced SAMe (S-adenosylmethinone) in 1997. Back then it was enormously popular in Europe, but unknown in the United States.The National Institute of Mental Health decided to fund a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that would evaluate SAMe as an additive therapy in those suffering major depression who were resistant to FDA-approved drugs.Researchers at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital gave patients 800 mg of SAMe twice daily along with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibiting drug (SSRI).Relative to placebo, patients who received the SAMe showed a 105% higher response rate and a 121% higher remission rate.1 Said differently, add-on therapy with SAMe in patients with drug-resistant depression produced double the response rate AND remission rate compared with placebo within a 6-week period.This study was published in the August 2010 issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.1 It was a follow-up to a 2004 pilot study that showed greater benefits when antidepressant drugs were combined with SAMe than when the same drugs were taken alone.2For the past 13 years, SAMe has been on Life Extension’s TOP TEN list of the most important steps to take to ensure optimal longevity. SAMe has been recommended to aging individuals not to just feel better, but also to protect the brain, liver, joints, and other tissues of the body like no other substance.This article reviews and updates the many studies documenting the anti-aging properties of SAMe.A listing of all the drugs the FDA has approved to treat depression would fill several pages of this magazine. A major problem with these antidepressant drugs is that they fail a significant number of patients—up to 30%, by some accounts.3 In many cases, the drugs make depressed individuals feel worse, and FDA-mandated labeling now requires a warning that use of some antidepressants increases suicide risk—which is an incredible contradiction considering that suicide is a leading cause of death amongst depressives.An equally disconcerting issue is the many side effects associated with antidepressant medications such as weight gain, constipation, dry mouth, and other symptoms that cause many depressives to stop using them.There is thus an urgent need for a new approach to treating those who fail to respond to currently available antidepressant medications. Encouraging news from a recent study shows that the addition of S-adenosylmethinone (SAMe) to a serotonin reuptake inhibitor drug markedly improves the percentage of severe depressives who are relieved of their disorder.Unlike synthetic prescription drugs that induce unintended side effects, SAMe is a naturally-occurring agent in the body that performs a multitude of beneficial functions, such as boosting glutathione levels in the brain and liver. The anti-aging properties of SAMe are so profound that non-depressives take it each day (in lower doses) just like they do their other dietary supplements.4,5Antidepressants Don’t WorkAs a team of Harvard researchers noted in a remarkable 2010 study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry,6 “The majority of depressed patients will not experience remission when treated with a first-line antidepressant.”In other words, antidepressants don’t really work for most patients. More is needed to help depression’s victims.This is where SAMe comes in.In modern high-tech imaging studies of healthy human brains, SAMe produces effects typical of several classes of antidepressant drugs7—but unlike those drugs, SAMe has remarkably few side effects and is well-tolerated even in elderly subjects.8People with depression may exhibit a variety of biochemical imbalances, but the most common and best-known has to do with neurotransmitters like serotonin (involved in mood, sleep, appetite, and learning) and norepinephrine (involved in heart rate, blood pressure, and the fight-or-flight response). These chemical messengers belong to a class of molecules known as monoamines, and their synthesis in brain cells is largely controlled by the presence of folic acid, vitamin B12—and SAMe.9-12 When released into the space between brain cells (the synapse), monoamines exert stimulating or inhibiting effects on postsynaptic neurons.With too little serotonin or norepinephrine available, the brain cannot sustain a positive mood—and depression results. Virtually all antidepressant drugs work to boost levels of these neurotransmitters within the synapse. And therein lie many of their limitations—and the causes of many of their side effects.13SAMe operates through a completely different mechanism than these drugs. A molecule derived from the sulfur-containing amino acid methionine, SAMe is found in every living cell and plays a central role in cellular function.14,15 In addition to being required for monoamine synthesis, it also affects cell membrane fluidity, which may in turn influence how well a neuron transmits an electrical signal.16 Recent studies have shown that SAMe is also involved in the so-called “epigenetic” control of cellular function—the ability of cells to activate or suppress specific genes based on environmental influences—by its effects on proteins associated with chromosomes.17These multi-targeted effects, coupled with an extraordinary safety profile, make SAMe a compelling treatment for a wide variety of brain disorders, from depression and cognitive decline to congenital metabolic dysfunction.18,19 SAMe crosses the blood-brain barrier, making it readily available to the brain and nervous system.10 This is vital: SAMe levels in the spinal fluid of depressed individuals have been shown to be significantly lower than those of healthy people.11Animal models of depression shed additional light on how SAMe works in the brain. More than two decades ago Japanese scientists demonstrated a reduction in aggression in rats treated with SAMe as a result of its action in the central nervous system.20 By the turn of this century, researchers in Italy and Spain showed that SAMe reverses experimentally-induced depression in rats, at a rate faster than that of the prescription antidepressant imipramine, the first tricyclic antidepressant developed, and without apparent side effects.21,22 And in a remarkably detailed study, the Italian group showed that SAMe restored diminished brain levels of “polyamines,” essential brain molecules that are reduced in depressed patients.23In 2007 a team of scientists at the University of Massachusetts launched a study using a combination of SAMe with N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) and acetyl-L-carnitine.24 Their subjects were aging mice with neurodegeneration similar to Alzheimer’s disease, in which depression is often a major manifestation. The combination rapidly enhanced cognitive function and prevented or reduced aggression in the animals, an effect that was rapidly reversed when the combination was withdrawn. The combination also prevented a decline in levels of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, while contributing important antioxidant effects as well.WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: SAME• A landmark study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health revealed that the addition of S-adenosylmethionine or SAMe produces compelling results in people taking SSRIs, the majority of whom do not experience relief when taking the drug alone.• SAMe is a naturally occurring molecule found in all living cells; it supports a host of chemical functions necessary for normal brain activity.• SAMe acts by several distinct and independent mechanisms to target multiple sites of action in brain cells that are involved in producing depression.• In clinical trials, SAMe has been shown to be at least as effective as prescription antidepressants, but with far fewer side effects.• Because of its strong safety record, SAMe should be part of any regimen for brain health, particularly when depressive symptoms are present—and when prescription drugs alone don’t work.• SAMe has also been shown to confer enormous benefits to the brain, liver, and joints, halting and even reversing various degenerative conditions, from osteoarthritis and neurodegeneration to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.http://www.lifeextension.com/magazine/2010/12/new-human-study-confirms-potent-antidepressant-effects-of-same/page-01

I'm pretty sensitive to most medications, so I just cut one of these in half. I took the first dose in the morning, and then another one after lunch. I believe on the second day I noticed an improvement. Mood improved, energy level really improved, and I was able to stay focused without anxiety overpowering my thoughts. I found it easier to work through problems without getting agitated.After about three or four days of just 400 mg total per day, I noticed I was having trouble sleeping at night. Had tons of energy at bedtime, and then started to notice some dizziness. I didn't attribute the dizziness to the Sam-E at 1st, but after I got off it for a day or two it cleared up so I have to attribute it to the Sam-E.I also found for me I'm better off taking it with food, and the results seem to be just fine with food, and no real stomach upset that way.It's hard to say how long this medication will work. If the body adapts to it, etc. but for the short time I've been on it it seems like a wonder drug. Just be very careful of the dosage. I think nature craft has a 150 mg version, and I may switch over to that as 400 mg a day for me is too much. I can't imagine how people are taking 1200mg +.And this is definitely not candy. Be very careful with your dosage. I would say start small and build up. If you suffer from anxiety and/or depression, well worth giving it a shot. Nature craft has a smaller $26 bottle as well, and it works you can always go to a larger bottle.I used the "Now" brand for a few different things now and it seems to be a pretty reputable brand. I like the nature craft as well.

My doctor recommended I start taking Sam-e once I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. It took a bit of trial and error to figure out my correct dosage (800 mg daily) , but now that I have I have been taking it consistently for about three years, it really has made a big difference in my life. I can tell when I haven't been taking it, especially if its a few days in a row, or even within the same week or two. It really helps my body to function, in a way that is easy to forget is attributed to this vitamin until I miss a few days.On days when I am taking in regularly it helps me to keep my thoughts together and focus a little more easily. It helps my body to feel like it has a little more energy and may even be able to recover from things a little better than it can without. This is not to say its a miracle vitamin, I still struggle with my issues daily, but it does offer a kind of understated support for my body that I am very thankful for. And for me, because it is not a gel cap, but one hard solid pill, it is easer to take.And I really like Now Foods (or Now Vitamins) as a company. I know that they test their products regularly, and use clean ingredients and that I can trust them. Its nice to not have to worry about buying a new supplement from them in that way because I know it will be safe. Especially if it is something I am going to be taking daily for probably the rest of my life, like this.One thing that is a little frustrating is that it is kind of expensive. But, it does come in a glass bottle, and I am taking kind of a high dose in comparison to what they offer (they offer a 200 mg vitamin as well which is much smaller both in size itself and in packaging.) And I do appreciate that they offer it as a subscribe and save option, which does make it more affordable in monthly increments.