Zylkene - anyone used it?

[auburnalia]

Has anyone ever used Zylkene for their dog or cat? Did it work, what did you think?

Tia is very easily stressed over pretty much everything, she doesnt have much confidence so pretends most of the time!! Obviously I am working on the actual issues and probably always will be and that's fine but I wonder if Zylkene will assist me?!

Oh and there's supposed to be an accent on the e but all I can do is this one é and its the other one, going the other way!!!

Thanks!

[anastasia55555]

havent used it myself, but found out a bit about it. Zylkene is the 'trade' name, it is medically known as alpha-casozepine.

Cats -
The putative effects of a tryptic bovine αs1-casein hydrolysate on anxious disorders in cats was investigated. This product is known as alpha-casozepine and patented under the name of Zylkene (Ingredia, Arras, France). Within veterinary practices, 34 cats were recruited by certified behaviorist surgeons. This 56-day trial against placebo showed the statistically positive effect of this product in the management of anxious disorders such as social phobias in cats. Global score, as well as different items (fear of strangers, contact with familiars, general fears, fear-related aggressions, autonomic disorders), were all significantly improved by the use of this natural decapeptide.
www.journalvetbehavior.com/article/S1558-7878(07)00039-1/abstract


Humans -
In an experiment performed on rats, alpha-casozepine was administered at three different doses and compared against placebo and Diazepam (a benzodiazepine) in tests of anxious behavior. Not only was alpha-casozepine more effective than the placebo but also it was similar in activity to the drug in reducing Global Anxiety Score. Alpha-casozepine acted in a dose dependent manner. In other words, higher doses of alpha-casozepine were more effective at reducing anxiety than were lower doses.

Does alpha-casozepine offer any advantage compared to benzodiazepines? Animal studies have examined the safety of alpha-casozepine and have determined that it does not produce the side effects associated with benzodiazepines. Importantly, unlike benzodiazepines, alpha-casozepine doesn't impair memory, is not addictive, and does not produce tolerance (lose its effect over time).

Alpha-casozepine is found in nature in milk. Observing that warm milk has a calming affect on babies, researchers endeavored to isolate the active component. The first isolate was a milk protein hydrolysate (an enzymatically cleaved protein fraction). It was later discovered that alpha-casozepine was the peptide responsible for the anxiety-reducing affects of this milk protein fraction. Some research has used alpha-casozepine. Other research has used the milk protein hydrolysate (called Prodiet F 200) that contains it.

One animal study compared Prodiet F 200, St. John's Wort, Kava-Kava, Diazepam and saline solution as a control, for their ability to reduce anxiety. Global Anxiety Scores for the rats treated with Diazepam and Prodiet F 200 were significantly lower compared to the saline group. The rats given St. John's Wort and Kava-Kava did no better than the saline group. Prodiet F 200 reduced anxiety but these two popular herbs did not.
There have been two studies performed on humans using Prodiet F 200. Both human studies have found Prodiet F 200 to reduce measures of stress and anxiety.

In one experiment, Prodiet F 200 was studied in 42 men. They were divided into two groups of 21 each. One group received a skim milk placebo. The other group was given Prodiet F 200. The study was double-blind, meaning neither the test subjects nor the experimenters knew who was receiving which treatment. The day before the test, the test subjects took their assigned product with breakfast and with dinner. On the test day, they took it with a standard breakfast then underwent evaluation. Two different standard tests were done to assess the production of a stress response. One test was psychological in nature, the other more physical. The Stroop test is a challenging mental exercise that results in stress and anxiety. The cold pressor test stresses the nervous system by immersing the hand in cold (2° C) water. Stress response to these tests were assessed using measures of heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, as well as blood levels of the stress hormones ACTH and cortisol. Results of this study revealed that subjects taking Prodiet F 200 experienced less stress in response to both the Stroop test and the cold pressor test. Across the board, Prodiet F 200 was associated with lower heart rate, lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure, as well as lower levels of ACTH and cortisol. This study demonstrated the rapid onset of action of Prodiet F 200.
www.socialanxietysupport.com/forum/f30/alpha-casozepine-a-natural-benzodiazepine-71147/

[auburnalia]

Ahh thanks for that!

That's really helpful, it seems that the reports are quite positive so that's good. I wanted to use this one out of them all as its herbal - I dont take any sort of medication, for headaches or anything, long story, so dont want my dog to either!!

[anastasia55555]

not sure if u have tried DAP, or if you would, but that too works well
Its based on the pheromones the mother relesases. im afraid i dont know if its synthetic or not tho

[auburnalia]

I havent tried the portable collar one but the one in the home yes, I couldnt tell that it made much difference, but then its outside the home that she's at her worst, I might look into getting one for her collar - thanks for the reminder!

[Karon]

I keep meaning to get some for Gomez, as he's a wuss, but keep forgetting I must try it for him, as it does sound as if it works well.

[julz]

I had it for Kendra (cat)... tried it for three months, but didnt make a difference im afraid... Wasnt too expensive though, so worth a try!