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My Regimen to Improve Mood

Written by Joe Cohen, BS | Last updated:

How to Read My Regimen

To save space, I won’t detail exactly what it is doing, but I just bring down the general area that it improves. So if you see “mood”, it means that said substance or approach is improving my mood.

I recommend this post: ​​My Regimen of 100 Supplements

What I Take To Improve Mood

Lifestyle

  1. Sunlight
  2. Sleep
  3. Water (3.5L/day – a bit less than 1 gallon) (Mood, cognition, Lowers: hsCRP, WBC, Glucose, Sodium, Potassium, Calcium, Phosphorus, Hb, Hct, RBC, Urea, Uric acid, IgG+)
  4. Exercise: Walking, Pushups & Yoga

Supplements

5HTP

Why I take it: 

  1. Mood stability (Serotonin)
  2. Sleep (REM)
  3. T3?

Thiamine

Why I take it:

  • Mood (GABA, ATP/energy, Serotonin, Dopamine, Acetylcholine, Antioxidant) – Hippocampus
  • Immunity
  • Cardiovascular (Cholesterol)
  • Mitochondria
  • Gut
  • Cognitive function (Myelin)
  • Glucose
  • Ergogenic
  • Kidney (Urea [1])

Resistant Starch (Butyrate)

Why I take it:

  1. Food tolerance
  2. Mood (HDACi, GSK3bi, Serotonin, BDNF, CREB, GDNF, NGF, GABA, Dopamine, Norepinephrine, Endorphins, Antiinflammatory, Antioxidant) – Cerebral Cortex, Hippocampus, Prefrontal Cortex
  3. Cognitive function
  4. Wakefulness
  5. Energy (Mitochondria)
  6. Kidney2, GPR109a, HDACi, Urea [3], Indoxyl Sulfate, p-cresol)
  7. Cancer (HDACi)
  8. Gut (HCA2)
  9. Inflammation
  10. Cardiovascular health (LDL, APOB, TMAO)
  11. Fat loss
  12. Glucose control
  13. Longevity
  14. Muscle

Rhodiola 

Why I take it:

  • Mood (Serotonin, Norepinephrine, NPY, Endorphins, DRD1, DRD2, MAOAi, MAOBi, 5HT1A, Acetylcholine, BDNF, NGF, ATP/energy, NO pathway inhibition, Antiinflammatory, Antioxidant) – HPA axis, Hippocampus, Prefrontal Cortex
  • Wakefuless
  • Immunity
  • Longevity
  • Reaction time [R]
  • Kidney

Lithium

Why I take it:

  • Mood (BDNF, CREB, GDNF, Serotonin, GSK3bi, NMDA antagonism, AMPA/Kainate activation, Antioxidant)
  • Longevity
  • Sleep
  • Cognitive function (Myelin)
  • Kidney (low doses)
  • Bone

Methylfolate 

Why I take it:

Green Tea Extract/EGCG

Why I take it:

  • Mood (Serotonin, BDNF, Dopamine, MAOBi)
  • Cognitive function (Attention, Memory, Working Memory)
  • Cardiovascular (APOB, LDL, HRV)
  • Longevity
  • Sleep
  • Flu prevention
  • Bladder health
  • Hair (DHT(-))
  • Skin health
  • Diuretic
  • Muscle
  • Inflammation (STAT3(-))
  • Cancer
  • Kidney health (Urate)

Curcumin

Why I take it:

  • Mood (GSK3bi, BDNF, MAOBi, Serotonin, Dopamine, 5HT1A, 5HT2C, NMDA antagonism, Cannabinoid receptor 1, Antiinflammatory, Antioxidant)
  • Inflammation (STAT3i)
  • Cardiovascular health (LDL, APOB, LPa)
  • Cognitive function (Working Memory)
  • Antimicrobial, Antifungal
  • Cancer
  • Hair (DHTi)
  • Gut health
  • Kidney (p-cresol,)

Zinc

Why I take it:

  • Mood (BDNF, GSK3Bi, Reducing glutamate, NMDA antagonism)
  • Immunity & Infections, Common Cold
  • Cardiovascular (LDL)
  • Cognitive function (attention, reasoning)
  • Glucose balance
  • Skin health
  • Inflammation (STAT3)
  • Gut health
  • Energy/Physical performance
  • Testosterone
  • Thyroid (T3 (+))
  • Vision
  • Bone health
  • Hair
  • Kidney health
  • Tinnitus
  • Oral health/Gums
  • Sleep quality and duration

TMG/Betaine

Why I take it:

  • Mood (Dopamine, Serotonin)
  • Homocysteine & Methylation, Methionine
  • Cognitive (Myelin)
  • HRV
  • Kidney health (Uric acid, Urea)
  • Glucose
  • Muscle & Exercise Performance

Vitamin B12

Why I take it:

Ashwagandha

Why I take it:

Myoinositol

Why I take it:

B6: Pyridoxine 

Why I take it:

Vitamin C

Why I take it:

  • Mood (BH4, Dopamine, BDNF, Norepinephrine, GABAA receptor, NMDA antagonism, GSK3bi, Na+/P+ channels, NO pathway inhibition, Antioxidant)
  • Cognitive function (Reaction time, Myelin
  • Cardiovascular (APOB, LDL?)
  • Sleep quality
  • Kidney Health (Urate, Phosphorous
  • Antifungal, Mitochondria, 
  • Skin (Collagen)
  • Bone
  • Immunity
  • Inflammation (hsCRP)
  • Thyroid (Thyroid hormones animals)

Bacopa

Why I take it:

  • Mood (Serotonin, CREB, cAMP, BDNF, Acetylcholine, Norepinephrine, Dopamine production/transport, MAOAi, 5HT1A, 5HT2C, IP3, Antioxidant)
  • Cognition (Reaction time, Processing speed, Memory, Attention, Working Memory
  • Hair
  • Longevity
  • Kidney health
  • Thyroid (T4+T3 – mice)

L-theanine

Why I take it:

Zembrin

Why I take it:

  • Mood (Serotonin, GABAA Receptor activation, PDE4i, VMAT2 increase, BDNF, cAMP, CREB, Acetylcholine, Cannabinoid receptor 1, light inhibition of opioid receptors)
  • Cognitive function (Working memory, Long term memory, Wakefulness, Attention)
  • Kidneys
  • Inflammation

Saffron

Why I take it:

  • Mood (Serotonin, BDNF, CREB, GABAA Receptor activation, Acetylcholine, NMDA antagonism, Beta2 adrenergic activation, light inhibition of opioid receptors)
  • Cardiovascular (LDL, Blood pressure)
  • Cognitive function (Reaction time)
  • Vision/Eye health
  • Libido
  • Immunity (increases WBCs)
  • Physical performance

About the Author

Joe Cohen, BS

Joe Cohen, BS

Joe Cohen flipped the script on conventional and alternative medicine…and it worked. Growing up, he suffered from inflammation, brain fog, fatigue, digestive problems, insomnia, anxiety, and other issues that were poorly understood in traditional healthcare. Frustrated by the lack of good information and tools, Joe decided to embark on a learning journey to decode his DNA and track his biomarkers in search of better health. Through this personalized approach, he discovered his genetic weaknesses and was able to optimize his health 10X better than he ever thought was possible. Based on his own health success, he went on to found SelfDecode, the world’s first direct-to-consumer DNA analyzer & precision health tool that utilizes AI-driven polygenic risk scoring to produce accurate insights and health recommendations. Today, SelfDecode has helped over 100,000 people understand how to get healthier using their DNA and labs.
Joe is a thriving entrepreneur, with a mission of empowering people to take advantage of the precision health revolution and uncover insights from their DNA and biomarkers so that we can all feel great all of the time.

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