The myth that depression is caused by a serotonin imbalance in the brain refuses to die… And doctors continue to hand out Prozac and other antidepressants like candy.
I’ll admit that early in my career I bought into the serotonin myth. I believed that increasing levels in the brain could keep you emotionally well-balanced.
But I’ve never recommended serotonin-boosting antidepressants.
For decades, I’ve recommended DMAE to my patients who are suffering from depression. But it also has another benefit for your skin that most people don’t realize.
You see, this natural brain hormone helps improve mood, ease anxiety, increase concentration and eliminate brain fog.
For depression, this hormone works by boosting production of acetylcholine in the brain. That’s the neurotransmitter that lets your brain cells talk to each other and keeps them active. Studies have shown that this all-natural brain booster improves mood better than Big Pharma’s dangerous prescription drugs.
In a French double-blind study, researchers gave a group of volunteers 1,200 mg of DMAE daily. Five days later, they showed significant improvement in alertness, increased memory and a dramatic decrease in anxiety levels.1
And in a German study, researchers gave 80 people DMAE or a placebo for three months. Those who got the DMAE showed greater attentiveness, were far more active and had a greater sense of well-being.2
DMAE stands for dimethylaminoethanol. You can find this nutrient in anchovies, sardines and salmon. But it’s not easy to eat enough fish to get the full benefits.
Studies have shown that levels up to 1,600 mg a day are safe with no report of side effects. I recommend that my patients take 300 mg twice a day with meals. You may feel mild stimulation with your first dose or it may take several weeks to see results.
For your skin, DMAE works as an anti-aging miracle. I recommend it to my patients who are looking for a “facelift in a bottle.”
Years ago, when scientists were studying this brain chemical and memory loss, they stumbled across something incredible… DMAE can reduce wrinkles, erase age spots and help firm and tighten skin.
Researchers in Belgium asked volunteers to test DMAE. In a double-blind study, 30 volunteers applied a gel with 3% DMAE to one side of their face. On the other side, they applied a placebo gel.
The results were clear. While the placebo had no effect, the side treated with DMAE showed firmer, tighter skin.3
DMAE works by increasing the water retention in your skin’s connective tissues. That additional water plumps up the surface of your skin and tightens it up.
The same action that boosts your brain’s memory power also lifts sagging skin. The acetylcholine in DMAE sends signals from your nerves to your muscles. Those signals send a message to your face muscles to tighten up and stop sagging.
And more muscle tone in your face naturally reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
DMAE also helps fade age spots. Those brown spots are an accumulation of waste called lipofuscin. It’s left over when fatty acids don’t completely metabolize in our cells.
But DMAE reduces the buildup of lipofuscin inside cells, flushing the waste out of skin cells.4
For sagging skin, wrinkles and age spots, I suggest using a gel, serum or cream containing at least 3% DMAE. Apply it directly to your clean face once or twice a day.
2 More Ways to “Lift Your Face”
DMAE isn’t the only all-natural way to eliminate face sagging and age spots. Here are two more anti-aging ingredients from Mother Nature’s pharmacy…
- Eliminate age spots with Alpine snow flower. The edelweiss plant lives 5,000 feet up in the Swiss Alps. Over generations, it has developed compounds that help it survive the harsh ultraviolet rays that beat down on it. Those same compounds protect your skin from wrinkles and age spots. In fact, one recent study proved that an extract from edelweiss protects human skin cells from UV sun damage.5
- Lift sagging skin with tropical Botox plant. I love looking out my office window and seeing the hibiscus bushes below. The bright pink flowers are as big as a dinner plate. But there’s more to the hibiscus than just its good looks…
This tropical flower contains powerful alpha-hydroxy-acids (AHAs) that help firm and strengthen skin as effectively as Big Pharma’s Botox.
In fact, a recent study found that the AHAs in hibiscus provide a 30% reduction in the appearance of wrinkles by inhibiting elastase and hyaluronidase breakdown of connective tissue.6
In beauty products, look for natural facial toners, serums and moisturizers containing hibiscus or an extract of hibiscus. But I like to get my benefits from the inside out by drinking iced hibiscus tea.
Hibiscus tea is easy to make. Look for any tea that lists hibiscus as the first ingredient. You might also see it called sour tea, red tea, flor de Jamaica, sorrel or roselle.
The hibiscus flowers outside my office window are not only beautiful, they provide potent skin protection.
Directions:
- Place four tea bags in 8 cups of water.
- Let it steep overnight in the refrigerator.
- Remove the bags in the morning and add the juice of one lemon.
- The brewed tea will have a tart taste, almost like cranberry. You may want to add some honey or stevia as a sweetener.
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD, CNS
1. Caille E.-J. “Study concerning the bisorcate demanol effects upon quantified EEG, cortical vigilance and mood. Comparative double-blind, cross-over balanced design versus pirisudanol.” Psychol Med. 1986;18:2069-2086.
2. Dimpfel W, et al. “Efficacy of dimethylaminoethanol (DMAE) containing vitamin-mineral drug combination on EEG patterns in the presence of different emotional states.” Eur J Med Res. 2003;8(5):183-191.
3. Uhoda I, et al. “Split face study on the cutaneous tensile effect of 2-dimethylaminoethanol (deanol) gel.” Skin Res Technol. 2002;8(3):164-167.
4. Riga S and Riga D. “Effects of centrophenoxine on the lipofuscin pigments in the nervous system of old rats.” Brain Res. 1974;72(2):265-275.
5. Daniela L, et al. “Anti-inflammatory effects of concentrated ethanol extracts of edelweiss (leontopodium alpinum cass.) callus cultures towards human keratinocytes and endothelial cells.” Mediators Inflamm. 2012:498373.
6. ”Hibiscus flower acid – are HFA’s the new AHA’s?” Pharmacy in Focus. June 7, 2018.