Nutritional Neuroscience, Volume 6 Number 5 (October 2003), pp.
269–275
Effects of An Oral Mixture Containing Glycine, Glutamine
and Niacin on Memory, GH and IGF-I Secretion in
Middle-aged and Elderly Subjects
L.I. ARWERT a, J.B. DEIJEN b,* and M.L. DRENT a
a
Department of Endocrinology, VU University Medical Center, de Boelelaan 1117, 1081 HVAmsterdam, The Netherlands;
b
Department of Clinical Neuropsychology, Free University, van der Boechorststraat 1, 1081 BT Amsterdam, The Netherlands
(Received 26 March 2003; Revised 9 May 2003; In final form 22 July 2003)
Aging is associated with declining activity of the growth
hormone-insulin-like growth factor-I (GH-IGF-I) axis and
with a decrease in cognitive function. The stimulatory
effect of an orally administered nutritional supplement,
mainly containing glycine, glutamine and niacin on the
GH-IGF-I axis and on mood and cognition was investi-
gated. Forty-two healthy subjects (14 men and 28 women,
aged 40 – 76 years) were enrolled in a randomised, double
blind, placebo-controlled trial. They received 5 g of a
nutritional supplement or placebo, twice daily orally for a
period of 3 weeks. At baseline and after 3 weeks, blood
was collected for measurement of serum GH and IGF-I
levels and mood and cognitive function were tested. The
nutritional supplement ingestion for 3 weeks was found
to increase serum GH levels with 70% relatively to
placebo, whereas circulating IGF-I levels did not change.
Mean GH (6 SD) increased in this group from 3.23 (64.78)
to 4.67 mU/l (6 5.27) ( p 5 0.03). GH increase was not
associated with improvement in mood or memory.
Correlation analyses, however, revealed that individual
increases in IGF-I, but not GH, were associated with
improved memory and vigour. It is concluded that an oral
mixture of glycine, glutamine and niacin can enhance GH
secretion in healthy middle-aged and elderly subjects.
Keywords: Cognition; Glutamine; Glycine; Growth hormone;
Insulin-like growth factor-I; Niacin
INTRODUCTION
It is well known that aging is associated with both a
decrease in cognitive function and declining activity
of the growth hormone-insulin-like growth factor I
(GH-IGF-I) axis. From age 40 to 80 the amount of
growth hormone in men progressively decreases.
*Corresponding author. Tel.: þ 31-20-4448756. Fax: þ 31-20-4448971. E-mail: jb.deijen@psy.vu.nl
ISSN 1028-415X print/ISSN 1476-8305 online q 2003 Taylor & Francis Ltd
DOI: 10.1080/10284150310001612195
In addition, progressive large age-associated cogni-
tive impairments have been found after the age of 40,
as compared to subjects aged between 20 and 30
years (Woodruff-Pak, 1997). Several studies have
shown associations between GH, IGF-I and cognitive
function. Besides having somatic effects, growth
hormone (GH) also affects (neuro)psychological
functioning. Adults with growth hormone deficiency
(GHD), a state characterized by low GH and low
IGF-I levels, feel less energetic, are emotionally more
labile, and experience disturbances in sex life and
feelings of social isolation at a significantly higher
frequency than controls. They are also found to have
significant cognitive deficits. Adult men, with child-
hood-onset GH deficiency had lower memory
function compared to controls, which improved to
normal scores within 1 year of GH replacement
therapy (Deijen et al., 1996; 1998). Moreover, the
changes in memory performance are positively
correlated to the GH-induced changes in serum
IGF-I concentration. Effects on memory can be
explained by the presence of a high concentration
of GH receptors in the hippocampus, which plays a
major role in memory processes (Nyberg, 2000).
It has also been observed that GH treatment affects
quality of life (QoL) in patients with GHD (Burman
et al., 1995). A further support for a relationship
between GHD and impaired cognitive functioning is
given by studies on IGF-I plasma level and
intellectual functioning. For instance, serum IGF-I
concentration in GH-deficient males correlated
positively with IQ score and education level.
In healthy subjects, IGF-I plasma levels of elderly
270 L.I. ARWERT et al.
men and women were found to be positively
associated with Mini Mental State Examination
(MMSE) scores (Rollero et al., 1998). Similarly, IGF-I
levels in elderly healthy men were found to be
associated with better performance in tests sensitive
to the effects of aging, especially speed of infor-
mation processing (Aleman et al., 1999). In addition,
higher serum total IGF-I levels in healthy elderly
subjects (above 55 years) have been found to be
associated with less cognitive decline over the
following 2 years (Kalmijn et al., 2000). Thus, the
GH-IGF-I axis may play a role in the level of, in
particular, cognitive functioning in GHD patients
and healthy persons. As the activity of the GH-IGF-I
axis and cognitive function both decline with age, it
may well be possible to maintain or improve
cognitive function by increasing the activity of this
axis.
A number of studies have been performed
concerning the interactions between nutrients and
the GH-IGF-I axis. Proteins and vitamins appear to
control GH-stimulated IGF-I expression. The level
of protein and calorie intake regulates plasma IGF-
I and insulin-like growth factor binding proteins
(IGFBPs) levels. Glycine plays an important role in
the control of hypothalamic-pituitary function.
When glycine (250 ml, 0.3 M) was administered
into the duodenum in non-obese subjects, there
was a significant increase in serum GH value
(Kasai et al., 1978). In healthy subjects doses of 4, 8
or 12 g glycine intravenous resulted in a dose-
dependent GH release (Kasai et al., 1980). This
demonstrated that glycine is one of the stimulatory
agents inducing the pituitary to secrete GH.
Arginine is also known to stimulate the GH
release and is used in GH stimulation tests. In a
study in sheep, glutamine intravenously (0.25 M
glutamine solution at a rate of 3 mmol/kg during
30 min) was one of the amino acids that increased
GH secretion (Kuhara et al., 1991). Niacin
(40 mg/kg body weight) infused 2 h prior to
growth hormone releasing factor (GRF) injection
has been found to enhance GRF-induced GH
release in sheep (Sartin et al., 1988) and a dose
between 100 and 200 mg acipimox, a nicotinic acid
analog, stimulated GH secretion in pre-pubertal
children (Lanes et al., 2000). However, the
mechanisms underlying the amino acid/vitamin-
induced GH release are not fully known yet.
In addition, there are no studies available on the
association between nutrition, GH-IGF-I and
cognition. Concerning the possibility of enhancing
GH status of healthy subjects by means of a
nutritional supplement one study has been carried
out before with a natural food supplement
composed of amino acids and vitamins (Vitalinw,
10 g daily). In 12 volunteers (6 men and 6 women,
aged 40 – 75 years), a mean increase of 367% blood
GH levels was found after 3 weeks of ingestion
this food supplement (personal communication
of Dr Rimon, American Medical Laboratories,
Herzylia, Israel).
In the current study, the effect of the adminis-
tration of an oral nutritional supplement mainly
containing glycine, glutamine and niacin on GH and
IGF-I levels, mood and cognitive function in healthy
subjects above 40 years was studied. As mental
function and GH release declines after the age of 40,
we hypothesized that this nutritional supplement
could increase GH and IGF-I release, thereby
improving cognitive function in these middle-aged
and elderly subjects.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Subjects
The effect of a nutritional food supplement on GH
and IGF-I plasma levels and cognitive function was
examined in 42 healthy non-obese volunteers, which
were recruited by advertisements in daily papers.
The number of males was 14 and of females 28, they
were aged between 40 and 76 years. None of the
subjects had any history of serious psychiatric
disease or were taking any medication at the time of
the experiment. Exclusion criteria were professional
sports participants, alcohol consumption . 3 uni-
ts/day, vegetarians, dieting, use of drugs, hypnotics,
antidepressants, the presence of sensory or motor
handicaps and the use of nutritional supplements
within 1 month prior to start of the study. The level
of education was assessed by a scale comprising five
education levels. These levels are defined in
conformity with the levels of education specified
by the European Economic Community (Schuhfried,
1992). The study was conducted according to the
Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the
Ethics Committee of the VU University Medical
Center. All subjects gave their written informed
consent before inclusion in the study.
Procedure
Subjects received a powder of amino acids and
vitamins for 3 weeks or placebo treatment, which
was also administrated as a powder. Pairs of subjects
were formed, each pair matched for age, sex and
education. Subsequently, each one of the two was
randomly assigned to the placebo or treatment
group, according to a double blind procedure. All the
volunteers were asked to ingest 5 g of powder with
water twice a day on an empty stomach. Intake was
in the morning and before bedtime, with the last
meal or calorie containing food or drink consump-
tion at least 3 h before. No food was allowed to be
 ORAL SUPPLEMENTS AND MEMORY
consumed for at least 45 min after taking the powder.
This regime was maintained for 6 days followed by
1 day of rest. This day off was included to make it
easier for the subjects to comply with the protocol.
Five grams of the nutritional supplement was
composed of a proprietary mixture of glycine and
glutamine (4.92 g), niacin (20 mg) with added
vitamin A (1000 IU), vitamin C (10 mg), vitamin E
(5 IU), selenium (15 mcg), green tea leaf powder
(7 mg), bilberry fruit powder (7 mg), quercitin (5 mg),
alpha-lipoic acid (5 mg) and coQ 10 (10 mg) (Vitalinw,
Revita Health Corp., USA). In the present study,
niacin was administered in two separate doses of
20 mg, each dose being equivalent to the rec-
ommended daily allowances (RDA). This is a safe
dose that was expected not to induce side effects and
being high enough (two times the RDA) to stimulate
GH secretion. The dose of the mixture of glycine and
glutamine is comparable to doses found in earlier
studies to enhance GH secretion (Kasai et al., 1980).
The mixture of these three GH stimulating agents
can be expected to stimulate GH secretion substan-
tially. The placebo powder preparation was a
commercially available sweetener with low caloric
value (25 kcal/5 g). Five grams was composed of
3.23 g maltodextrine, 0.1 g aspartame, 0.83 g cane
sugar and 0.83 g soft brown sugar. This preparation
was chosen because of the identical appearance and
caloric value to Vitalinw powder, calculated to be
19 kcal/5 g. As oral doses of aspartame (0.534 g) have
shown to have no effect on serum growth hormone
levels (Carlson and Shah, 1989), this sweetener is not
likely to affect GH secretion or cognitive functioning.
Subjects were examined individually in a quiet
room. The sequence of the tests was the same for all
subjects and the test procedure as a whole took about
45 min. Two testing assistants, who were not aware
which treatment the subjects received, administered
the tests. On the day before starting the consumption
of the food supplement a 5-cc venous blood sample
was drawn after an overnight fast for determination
of serum GH and IGF-I levels. Second blood samples
and cognitive tests were performed after 3 weeks of
ingestion the powder, 1– 1.5 h after taking the last
powder on an empty stomach. The blood samples
were centrifuged (10 min, 3500 rpm at 48C) and
serum was stored at 2 208C until analysis.
Psychological Tests
The following tests were selected from the Neuro-
behavioral Education System (NES) (Letz, 1993) and
were administered by means of a PC.
Mood
The Profile of Mood States (POMS) is a self-
administered questionnaire in which the subjects
271
rate themselves with respect to their feelings over
the previous 3 days. The shortened Dutch version of
32 items was used, which consists of five sub-scales:
Depression, Anger, Fatigue, Vigour and Tension.
Responses were made by choosing from five
response alternatives. Score: The rating (1 –5) on
each item and the scale to which each item
contributes is recorded.
Memory
Short-term memory: Associative learning task. Nine
word pairs consisting of a name and an occupation
were displayed on a computer screen at a constant
rate of one pair per 3 s. After these pairs were
presented, the subject was asked to choose one of
the nine occupation alternatives. After each answer
the results were given in the following manner:
“Yes, John is a grocer”, or “No, Susan is a teacher”.
Three trials were given in which the subject has to
learn as many paired names and occupations as
possible. By means of this recognition procedure
short-term verbal learning is measured. Score: The
number of correct associations on each trial
(maximum score: 9).
Visual digit span task. This test for the assessment of
short-term memory, concentration and attention has
two parts. A sequence of digits was presented one at
the time to the subject. After the whole sequence was
presented, the subject was required to enter the
sequence on the computer keyboard. Increasingly
longer spans of digits were presented, until the
subject made two errors at a span length. In the
second testing condition, the subject was asked to
respond with the order of digits reversed (back-
ward). Score: The lengths of the longest span
answered correctly forward and backward were
recorded.
Symbol-digit substitution. This test was used to
measure the coding-speed. Nine symbols and nine
digits were paired (in a “key”) at the top of the
screen. The subject was required to press the digits
on the keyboard corresponding to a test set of the
nine symbols presented in scrambled order. Six sets
of nine symbol-digits pairs were presented. Score:
the response latency for each of the nine items in
each trial and the number of digits incorrectly
matched with the test symbols was recorded.
Intermediate memory: Associative learning delayed
recognition task. To assess intermediate recall a single
recognition trial of the nine names to be matched
with one of the nine occupations used in the
associate learning test was administered at the end
of the testing session. The approximate 30 min delay
between this final testing and the associate learning
task comprises a retention task for intermediate
memory. Score: The number of correct responses
(maximum score: 9).
272 L.I. ARWERT et al.

TABLE I Characteristics of the study subjects one-tailed, based on the hypothesis that the
nutritional supplement would enhance GH status,
No. of Education mood and memory. Data are presented as mean ^
No. of female/ Age level
subjects male ðmean ^ SDÞ ðmean ^ SDÞ standard deviation (SD), unless specified otherwise.
Treatment 22 13/9 60.3 ^ 9.0 3.3 ^ 0.9
Placebo 19 14/5 61.5 ^ 6.8 3.4 ^ 0.7
Total 41 27/14 60.9 ^ 8.0 3.3 ^ 0.8 RESULTS

There were no dropouts during the study. One

Hormone Assays
Serum GH and IGF-I levels were measured using
commercially available assays (GH, immunometric
assay, Sorin Biomedica, Saluggia Italy; IGF-I,
Chemoluminiscentic, Nichols Institute Diagnostics,
San Juan Capristrano, USA). The detection limits for
GH and IGF-I are 1.0 mU/l (0.5 mg/l) and
6.0 nmol/l, respectively. The intra-assay coefficient
of variation (CV) for GH is 4% at serum GH of
4 mU/l. The interassay CV for GH is 9% at serum
GH of 2.5 mU/l and 8% at serum GH of 8.6 mU/l.
For IGF-I the intra-assay CV is 3% at serum IGF-I of
20 nmol/l and the inter assay CV is 6% at serum
IGF-I of 33 nmol/l and 8% at serum IGF-I of
7 nmol/l. Normal values for IGF-I differ with age
and sex as shown in Table II.
Statistical Analysis
All calculations were performed with the Statistical
Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). As the data
were not normally distributed differences between
conditions were determined by means of the
Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test. The Spearman
correlation coefficient was calculated to assess
possible relationships between serum hormone
levels and scores on cognitive and mood scales.
Difference-scores (D) were computed for GH/IGF-I
values and psychological scores ½ðscore session 2 2
score session 1Þ=score session 1: As these D
scores were normally distributed, we calculated
the Pearson correlation coefficient. Significance
level was set as p , 0:05: All statistical tests were
female in the food supplement group was excluded
from the analysis because of extreme and varying
values of serum growth hormone concentration (GH
session 1: 67 mU/l, GH session 2: 2.1 mU/l).
Characteristics of the remaining volunteers are
shown in Table I. Their serum IGF-I values inclusive
reference values for age and sex are shown in Table II.
Mean age and education level were similar for
people who had the nutritional supplement powder
and placebo.
Side Effects
After 3 weeks of the ingestion of the mixture there
were no subjects reporting any side effects. Thus,
also blushing and heat waves, known side effects of
niacin amongst very sensitive people, were not
reported.
Treatment Effects on GH, IGF-I and Cognitive
Functions
Regarding GH concentration, the Wilcoxon test
indicated that the post-treatment GH concentration
in the treatment group was significantly higher
than the pre-treatment values ðp ¼ 0:03Þ: Mean GH
increased in this group from 3.23 (^ 4.75) to 4.67
(^ 5.27) mU/l. In the placebo group mean GH did
not change (baseline, 3.92 (^ 7.24) mU/l; post-
treatment, 2.91 (^ 2.96) mU/l ðp ¼ 0:4Þ (Fig. 1).
The mean percentage of GH increase in the treatment
group relative to the placebo group is 70%.
The ranges of GH change for all the individual

TABLE II Mean IGF-I levels of males and females in the present study and normal IGF-I values

Normal values in Normal values in Females IGF-I (nmol/l) Males IGF-I (nmol/l)
female (nmol/l) male (nmol/l)
(P5–P95) (P5–P95) Baseline Post-treatment Baseline Post-treatment
40– # 51 years 8.7–30.3 8.7–30.1 Mean ^ SD 17.7 ^ 4.2 19.7 ^ 5.7 19.0 ^ 0.0 16.0 ^ 1.4
Range 13.0–21.0 15.0–26.0 19.0–19.0 15.0–17.0
Number 3 3 2 2
52– # 61 years 7.8–25.5 7.8–25.8 Mean ^ SD 19.1 ^ 7.2 18.3 ^ 4.1 19.7 ^ 0.6 18.3 ^ 3.2
Range 10.0–31.0 11.0– 23.0 19.0–20.0 16.0–22.0
Number 8 8 3 3
.61 years 10.3–19.0 10.3–19.0 Mean ^ SD 18.1 ^ 5.4 17.8 ^ 4.8 15.2 ^ 6.1 16.4 ^ 5.7
Range 10.0–30.0 12.0–28.0 9.5–29.0 7.3 –29.0
Number 16 16 19 19
 ORAL SUPPLEMENTS AND MEMORY
FIGURE 1 Mean GH concentration (^SEM) at sessions 1 and 2 for the treatment and placebo groups. (*p , 0:05).
subjects in the nutritional supplement group were
between 2 90 and 2100%. The ranges for males were
between 2 90 and 1200%, for females between 2 65
and 2100%. In the placebo group these ranges were
between 2 80% and 600%. The largest GH changes
were found in subjects with very low baseline GH
levels (, 1.0 mU/l).
With respect to the IGF-I concentration, no
significant differences between post-treatment and
pre-treatment were found. This indicates that the
IGF-I concentration did not change across sessions
and no difference is seen between the treatment and
placebo group. IGF-I in the treatment group did not
change (pre-treatment, 17.47 (^ 4.88) nmol/l; post-
treatment, 17.65 (^ 4.66) nmol/l). In the placebo
group IGF-I also did not change (pre-treatment, 18.11
(^ 6.28) nmol/l; post-treatment, 17.68 (^ 4.64)
nmol/l).
The intra-subject correlation of pre- and post
treatment IGF-I concentration is high (r ¼ 0:84;
p , 0:0005). There was an association between pre-
treatment GH and pre-treatment IGF-I (r ¼ 0:39;
p ¼ 0:006). Also post-treatment GH and post-treat-
ment IGF-I concentrations were significantly related
(r ¼ 0:31; p ¼ 0:02). Pre-treatment GH did correlate
significantly with post-treatment IGF-I (r ¼ 0:44;
p ¼ 0:002).
Regarding cognitive functions, no significant
treatment effects were found.
Correlation’s of GH and IGF-I with Cognitive
Function
Scores on the cognitive tests were found to be related
to GH and IGF-I values. The pre-treatment and
post-treatment correlations were calculated for the
whole group of subjects ðn ¼ 41Þ:
Pre-treatment: No significant correlations of
cognitive parameters were found with GH and
IGF-I values. Post-treatment: Within the whole group
273
of subjects, IGF-I concentration correlated positively
with tension (r ¼ 0:35; p ¼ 0:01). That means that a
higher IGF-I concentration was associated with a
higher score on the tension scale of the POMS.
Difference-scores (D) were computed for GH/
IGF-I values and psychological scores [(score
session 2 2 score session 1)/score session 1]. Delta
IGF-I correlated positively with digit-span back-
wards (r ¼ 0:41; p ¼ 0:004). This means that a higher
increase in IGF-I across sessions is associated with a
larger increase in working memory. Regarding
mood, D IGF-I correlated positively with D vigour
(r ¼ 0:39; p ¼ 0:006), indicating that the more IGF-I
increases the more vigour improves. Thus, although
no significant increase in IGF-I was found in the
treatment group, these data indicate that on
individual level an increase in IGF-I is associated
with an improvement of memory and vigour.
Regarding GH, no relations were found between D
GH and D mood/cognition.
DISCUSSION
The results of the present study indicate that the use
of an oral mixture of amino acids and vitamins,
mainly containing glycine, glutamine and niacin,
during 3 weeks increased the mean level of GH
compared to placebo. Because GH is secreted in a
pulsatile fashion, with 2/3 of the daily secretion
taking place at night, a single determination of the
GH concentration is assumed not to be very reliable.
Therefore, the measurement of 24 h GH-profiles to
assess the GH status would have been more
informative. The intra-subject pre-and post-treat-
ment GH correlation however is quite high ðr ¼ 0:60Þ
and the pre-treatment GH concentration correlates
significantly with the pre- and post-treatment IGF-I
concentrations (r ¼ 0:39 and r ¼ 0:44; respectively).
Previous studies have shown that, because of
274 L.I. ARWERT et al.
homeostatic control mechanisms within the GH-IGF-
I axis, the day to day mean mass of GH secretion per
burst and the serial orderliness of the GH release is
strongly preserved in healthy men across a wide
span of ages and body-compositions (Friend et al.,
1996). In a study in which every 10 min blood
samples were drawn in healthy men (age range,
29 –77 years) for 48 h, it was found that the mean
mass of GH secretion per burst was highly conserved
across sessions and consecutive days within subjects
(r ¼ 0:93 and r ¼ 0:92; respectively). Thus, the
orderliness of GH release and the mean mass of
GH secreted per burst are highly conserved in
individual men on successive days. The above
findings make it probable that the GH samples in
our study are reliable and representative for the GH
status of the subjects.
The difference in ranges of GH levels between
males and females suggest that females respond
more to the nutritional supplement preparation than
males. The larger number of females within the
sample may explain this. It may also suggest that
females are more sensitive for GH stimulation than
males. Indeed it is known that there is a difference in
secretion and sensitivity for GH in men and women.
The GH production in healthy women is about thrice
that in men, whereas the IGF-I levels are similar
(Span et al., 2000). The mean serum GH concen-
trations over 24 h are higher in women than in men.
Also women exhibit higher maximal serum GH
concentration peak values than men (van den Berg
et al., 1996). Higher maximal and incremental serum
GH peak amplitudes account for the higher GH
concentrations in women. IGF-I levels are similar
however, suggesting a lower sensitivity to GH in
women. Gender has a significant influence on the
human GH axis in the pre-menopausal age group. It
appears that estrogens regulate the physiological
output both quantitatively (a higher daily secretion
rate) and qualitatively (a less orderly pattern of GH
release) (Veldhuis, 1998). Our sample mainly
consisted of post-menopausal women, only two
women being pre-menopausal. The effect of the
mixture on GH was still significant ðp ¼ 0:04Þ after
removing these females from analysis.
Regarding IGF-I we found no significant increase
after the nutritional supplement use. It is known that
IGF-I levels rise more slowly than GH levels.
Increments in serum IGF-I occurred 4 – 6 h after
intravenous GH exposure in GH-deficient patients
(Jorgensen et al., 1991). In case of an oral nutritional
supplement a longer administration time could be
necessary to increase IGF-I levels. As our treatment
period was 3 weeks, this period may be too short to
result in a significant rise of IGF-I. As a consequence,
the use of the food supplement for a period longer
than 3 weeks possibly leads to an increase in IGF-I.
The significant positive correlations found between
GH and IGF-I at both pre- and post-treatment
indicating that higher GH is associated with a higher
IGF-I at both sessions, support this idea.
A second explanation for the absence of an
increase in IGF-I may that some subjects exceeded
the normal age-adjusted values before treatment.
The phenomenon of “regression towards the mean”
will increase the chance of having lower post
treatment values. Six out of seven subjects, who
had a pre-treatment IGF-I concentration that
exceeded the normal value for age and sex, had a
lower post-treatment IGF-I concentration. Thus, this
decrease in IGF-I concentration may be the con-
sequence of the high values before treatment.
Another explanation for our finding that GH levels
were higher after 3 weeks in the nutritional
supplement group without an effect seen in IGF-I
levels could be found in the study design. Subjects
had ingested the powder 1 –1.5 h before the blood
sample was drawn in the post-treatment situation.
Possibly we measured an acute effect of the powder
on serum GH levels, with no effect on IGF-I levels.
This is also seen in an animal study, in which the
intravenously administration of 17 amino acids on
the secretion of GH in six castrated male sheep was
investigated. The amino acids caused an increase in
GH secretion, while no changes in plasma IGF-I were
found (Kuhara et al., 1991).
The effects of GH on cognition are probably not
only mediated by IGF-I, but also by a direct effect of
GH itself on GH receptors in the brain. It is reported
that there is a negative correlation between the
density of GH-binding sites and increasing age in
various brain regions (Lai et al., 1993). The exact
mechanism how GH and IGF-I influence cognition
still has to be investigated. In this study, the amino
acids and vitamins preparation did not improve
cognitive and/or mood parameters. It may well be
true that the short treatment period of 3 weeks
induces only subtle changes not leading to measur-
able effects. Our data however, indicate that on an
individual level an increase in IGF-I was correlated
with an improvement of memory and vigour.
In contrast, we found no correlations between an
increase in GH and memory or mood.
The present study indicated that 3 weeks of
nutritional supplement ingestion increased GH
concentration, but not IGF-I, in healthy people
above 40 years. As the secretion of GH decreases
with age, starting in the third decade of life, the
increase of GH secretion in elderly persons may
possibly halt or reverse the age-related catabolic state
resulting in physical and cognitive changes. The
specific beneficial effects found in other studies are
an increase of lean body mass, aerobic capacity,
immune function, and possibly also cognitive
function (Khorram, 2001). Other effects are a
decrease in fat mass and possibly cholesterol.
 ORAL SUPPLEMENTS AND MEMORY
However, future studies are needed to determine
whether a nutritional supplement can cause a long-
term increase in GH secretion and whether normal-
ization of GH and IGF-I levels in healthy adults will
lead to improvements in their psychological func-
tional capacity and QoL.
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