Risks and Benefits of Taurine Supplementation
Taurine supplementation has demonstrated potential benefits for certain physiological functions, but clinical guidelines only specifically recommend it for infants and children receiving parenteral nutrition, while evidence for other applications remains limited.
Benefits of Taurine Supplementation
Pediatric Applications
- Taurine is recommended as part of amino acid solutions for infants and children receiving parenteral nutrition to maintain plasma taurine concentrations within reference range 1
- Taurine deficiency in neonates may increase glyco-conjugates of bile acids and result in cholestasis, highlighting its importance in pediatric patients 1
- Supplementation (10.8 mg/kg/day) administered with parenteral nutrition for 10 days has been shown to increase taurine concentrations and decrease liver enzyme and ammonia concentrations in infants 1
Cardiovascular System
- Taurine supplementation has shown promise in improving functional capacity, myocardial oxygen consumption, and electrical activity in heart failure patients 2
- Studies have demonstrated that taurine can reduce hypertension in animal models, though human evidence is less conclusive 3
- Taurine has demonstrated protective effects on heart muscle and antagonistic effects against angiotensin II 4
Physiological Functions
- Taurine plays important roles in osmoregulation, immunomodulation, and bile salt formation 5
- It functions as a membrane stabilizer, detoxification agent, antioxidant, and helps maintain calcium homeostasis 6
- Taurine stimulates glycolysis and glycogenesis, potentially benefiting metabolic processes 6
Risks and Limitations of Taurine Supplementation
Limited Clinical Recommendations
- The American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines do not recommend taurine supplements for the treatment of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction 1
- The European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) does not suggest routine addition of individual amino acids including taurine in parenteral formulas for adults on home parenteral nutrition 1
Contextual Effectiveness
- Taurine supplementation may have both positive and negative effects on the cardiovascular system depending on when it is assessed 3
- In animal models, taurine improves hypertension on a low salt diet but fails to attenuate hypertension on a high salt diet 3
Dosing Uncertainties
- For parenteral nutrition in infants, taurine supplementation at 3 mg/g amino acid maintains plasma taurine concentrations within reference range in term infants 1
- No firm recommendations exist regarding advisable lower or upper limits of taurine supplementation for infants and children 1, 7
- Clinical guidelines state: "Taurine should be part of amino acid solutions for infants and children, although no firm recommendation can be made upon advisable lower or upper limits" 7
Special Considerations
Taurolidine Applications
- Taurolidine, a derivative of taurine, has shown effectiveness as an antiseptic agent for preventing catheter-related bloodstream infections 7
- Multiple studies have demonstrated that taurolidine line locks can significantly reduce infection rates compared to heparin or saline in patients with central venous catheters 7
- Taurolidine has been recommended as a strategy to prevent catheter-related bloodstream infections due to its favorable safety and cost profile 7
Research Gaps
- Long-term effects of taurine supplementation in various populations remain understudied 4
- The detailed mechanisms of taurine's action are still not fully understood, despite its multiple known physiological roles 4
- More thorough clinical trials are needed to establish taurine's therapeutic potential in conditions like cardiomyopathy, myotony, hypercholesterolemia, or diabetes 4