Does glycine help you sleep

Introduction

Glycine, a non-essential amino acid, has been studied for its potential benefits in improving sleep quality. Research has explored its effects on sleep latency, sleep architecture, and daytime performance, as well as its underlying mechanisms.

Key Insights

Improvement in Subjective Sleep Quality:
- Glycine ingestion before bedtime significantly improves subjective sleep quality in individuals with sleep complaints .
Reduction in Sleep Latency:
- Glycine shortens the latency to sleep onset and to slow-wave sleep, enhancing overall sleep efficiency without altering sleep architecture .
Daytime Performance and Fatigue:
- Glycine reduces daytime sleepiness and fatigue, and improves cognitive performance and psychomotor vigilance in sleep-restricted individuals .
Core Body Temperature and Sleep:
- Glycine induces a decrease in core body temperature, which is associated with the onset of sleep and may contribute to its sleep-promoting effects .
Mechanisms of Action:
- Glycine promotes sleep through peripheral vasodilatation and activation of NMDA receptors in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN).
- It also inhibits orexin neurons, which are involved in wakefulness, thereby promoting sleep .
Neurochemical Effects:
- Glycine increases extracellular serotonin levels in the prefrontal cortex, which may play a role in its sleep-promoting effects.

Conclusion

Glycine appears to be effective in improving sleep quality by reducing sleep latency, enhancing subjective sleep experiences, and improving daytime performance. Its mechanisms involve lowering core body temperature, modulating neuropeptides in the SCN, and inhibiting orexin neurons. These findings suggest that glycine could be a beneficial supplement for individuals experiencing sleep difficulties.

Does glycine help you sleep

Summary

Consensus Meter

Introduction

Key Insights

Conclusion

Sources and full results

The Effects of Glycine on Subjective Daytime Performance in Partially Sleep-Restricted Healthy Volunteers

Glycine improves daytime sleepiness and fatigue in sleep-restricted healthy subjects by modulating neuropeptides in the suprachiasmatic nucleus.

The Sleep-Promoting and Hypothermic Effects of Glycine are Mediated by NMDA Receptors in the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus

Glycine promotes sleep and reduces core temperature by activating NMDA receptors in the suprachiasmatic nucleus, resulting in peripheral vasodilatation and heat loss.

New therapeutic strategy for amino acid medicine: glycine improves the quality of sleep.

Glycine ingestion before bedtime improves sleep quality in individuals with insomniac tendencies, potentially due to a decrease in core body temperature and increased cutaneous blood flow.

Orexin Neurons Receive Glycinergic Innervations

Glycine injections may affect orexin neuron activity, potentially playing a role in physiological sleep regulation.

Oral administration of glycine increases extracellular serotonin but not dopamine in the prefrontal cortex of rats

Oral glycine administration increases extracellular serotonin in the prefrontal cortex of rats, but not dopamine, suggesting potential benefits for reducing negative symptoms of schizophrenia and improving sleep quality in humans.

Subjective effects of glycine ingestion before bedtime on sleep quality

Glycine ingestion before bedtime significantly improves sleep quality and subjective feelings of fatigue, liveliness, and clear-headedness in the morning.

Interaction of glycine with ethanol.

Glycine and ethanol's minimal interaction in mice prolongs sleep onset and duration, but does not alter ethanol metabolism or GABA levels in the brain.

Dietary glycine improves urine storage symptoms in urology outpatients

Glycine may improve urine storage symptoms, cardiovascular function, pain, and sleep in urological outpatients with overactive bladder symptoms.

Glycine ingestion improves subjective sleep quality in human volunteers, correlating with polysomnographic changes

Glycine ingestion before bedtime improves subjective sleep quality, sleep efficacy, and reduces daytime sleepiness without altering sleep architecture.

Direct and indirect control of orexin/hypocretin neurons by glycine receptors

Glycine receptors can control orexin/hypocretin neurons, influencing their activity and potentially improving therapeutic strategies for disorders like insomnia.

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