A Cure for Gambling Addiction?

If you know someone who suffers from gambling addiction, there may be help on the way. Researchers at the University of Minnesota have found that a common amino acid found in most health food stores may help to curb gambling addiction in some people.

A MIRACLE CURE?

Known as N-acetyl cysteine, the amino acid is often associated with a feeling of reward by the human brain. During the study, it was administered for eight-weeks to a group of 27 test subjects.

60 percent of the participants reported experiencing fewer urges to gamble. 13 subjects were then asked to take part in a double-blind study for an extra six weeks. During this stage, some were given the amino acid and others were given a placebo.

Of those who received the supplement, 83 percent reported less of an urge to gamble. Those who received the placebo were less successful.

According to Dr. Jon Grant, the leader of the study, “Only 29 percent of those on placebo were able to maintain any of their improvement that they had gotten previously. So this told us that there was some type of effect going on from this amino acid.”

Researchers believe that the amino acid helps to boost a neurochemical that is often out of whack in the brains of people with addictions. The neurochemical is known as glutamate.

THE LONG-TERM IMPACT

So what does this mean for problem gamblers? Well, the research is still in the early stages, and Grant is trying to get funding to conduct a much larger study to verify his results.

His is not the only research taking place, however. There has been some success treating problem gamblers with opiate antagonists, which are the same drugs used to treat alcoholism. Anti-depressents have also been found to be effective in some cases.

If Grant can prove that amino acids are an effective treatment for gambling addiction, it would provide a much cheaper alternative to prescription medications. However, he does caution people to not experiment with health food supplements on their own, as the regulations governing these products are very few.

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A Cure for Gambling Addiction?