The Health Benefits of L-Arginine
What is arginine?
Arginine, or L-arginine, is one of 20 amino acids that your body needs to function properly. It’s typically considered a semi-essential amino acid, that means you can usually get enough of it from diet alone. Foods rich in L-arginine include plant and animal proteins, such as dairy products, meat, poultry, fish, and nuts.
L-arginine plays a role in building protein. The body can use the protein to help build muscle and rebuild tissue.L-arginine used to synthesize nitric oxide. Nitric oxide helps your blood vessels relax and expand. This is important for regulating your blood flow. L-arginine also helps rid the body of ammonia (a waste product) and stimulates the release of insulin.
Occasionally, a person's need for L-arginine may exceed the body's ability to produce or consume it naturally. This is often true for older adults or people with certain medical conditions. In these cases, people may be prescribed artificial L-arginine in the form of oral medication, injections, or creams. Several potential health conditions may benefit from an increased intake of L-arginine.
Health Benefits:
L-arginine has two effects: it turns into nitric oxide and helps the body build protein. L-arginine releases nitric oxide in the blood. Nitric oxide is a powerful neurotransmitter that helps blood vessels relax in the blood stream which may aid in certain circulatory conditions.
These effects give L-arginine an array of potential benefits that range from heart health and chest pain to helping to build muscles, repair wounds, and improve male fertility.
Researchers have investigated the effectiveness, benefits and uses of L-arginine in, reducing high blood pressure, treating heart disease, treating erectile dysfunction (ED), controlling blood sugar in people with diabetes, improve blood flow, heal wounds faster, treat burns and enhance exercise performance.
Some people use L-arginine to boost the immune system, improve athletic performance, shorten recovery time after surgery, and promote weight loss. L-arginine is also used for bodybuilding.
L-arginine; Good For the Heart:
Today, about 85.6 million Americans have some form of cardiovascular disease.
Some evidence shows that arginine acts as a vasodilator, opening (dilating) blood vessels, and may help improve blood flow in the arteries of the heart. That may improve symptoms of clogged arteries, chest pain or angina, and coronary artery disease.
L-arginine could protect the heart and benefit people with heart disease, as in cases of;
Angina. Studies suggest that L-arginine might decrease symptoms and improve quality of life in people with a mild to severe form of this type of chest pain.
High blood pressure (hypertension). Some research has shown that oral L-arginine can lower blood pressure in healthy people and people with a type of high blood pressure that affects the arteries in the lungs and the right side of the heart (pulmonary hypertension).
L-arginine; Good For the Infertility Health:
Research on the use of L-arginine for specific conditions shows:
Erectile dysfunction; Taking oral L-arginine might improve sexual function in men with erectile dysfunction due to a physical cause.
NO is important for erectile function because it helps blood vessels relax, so more oxygen-rich blood can circulate through your arteries. Healthy blood flow to the arteries of the penis is essential for normal erectile function.
L-arginine is thought to enhance nitric oxide and—in turn—relax the muscles surrounding blood vessels supplying the penis. As a result, blood vessels in the penis dilate, increasing blood flow, which may help maintain an erection.
Female Fertility; L-arginine has been proposed as possibly increasing blood flow to the uterus and ovaries. in poor responders to IVF treatment may improve ovarian response, endometrial receptivity and pregnancy rates. L-arginine allow for optimal egg production, creates a better environment to allow for the implantation of a fertilized egg and may improve the chances of conception.
- L-Arginine is used by the body to create Nitric Oxide (NO). Increased NO levels supports healthy inflammation levels which may help to prevent uterine fertility issues such as fibroids, endometriosis and PCOS.
- Increased blood flow to the reproductive organs can aid in the production of cervical mucus. Abnormal mucus production contributes to the challenges faced by around 1 in 20 women dealing with fertility issues. Some women do not produce enough cervical mucus, and others produce a mucus that is too thick for sperm to travel through. L-Arginine can encourage better production of cervical mucus through improved blood flow.
Male Fertility; L-arginine supports normal sperm production, research has found that taking a L-Arginine supplement daily can increase sperm production in men. L-Arginine may also improve the motility of sperm, thus increasing the chance of conception in couples suffering from low sperm motility. Where IVF is used, L-Arginine can be used to improve the quality of sperm, increasing the chance of achieving a fertilized egg.
References:
1- https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-l-arginine/art-20364681
2- https://www.webmd.com/heart/arginine-heart-benefits-and-side-effects#1
3- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/318174.php