Dr. Taz MD’s Weekly Q&A, January 27th, 2014

Q:I have a diminished body condition due to advanced neuropathy and atrophy. Now my body is not producing enough acetylcholine to provide a normal sleep cycle. Even with taking melatonin, I get less than four hours of sleep. Is there any available replacement therapies or meds to recover acetylcholine levels?

A: Altered sleep cycles are often difficult to recover. I would suggest getting sleep neurotransmitter testing and determining specifically what the defect is. You can try supplements like GABA or the amino acid tryptophan, but the most effective strategy is to identify the missing neurotransmitters.