Sarcosine (N-methylglycine) is an amino acid derivative that blocks the type 1 glycine transporter, which raises glycine signaling at brain NMDA receptors. It has been studied mainly as an add-on to antipsychotic medicine in schizophrenia.
Also known as: N-methylglycine, methylglycine.
A 6-week trial used 2 g a day alongside the antipsychotic risperidone (Lane 2005). These are study protocols, not a recommendation. Schizophrenia treatment should be managed by a prescriber.
The NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database lists sarcosine products labeled as dietary supplements, such as SuperSmart Sarcosine 3000 mg and Nootropics Depot Sarcosine Tablets 1,000 mg. Under the 1994 dietary supplement law (DSHEA), FDA does not approve dietary supplements before they are marketed, and the maker, not FDA, is responsible for safety and labeling. Drugs@FDA lists no approved sarcosine product.
What studies show: a 2020 meta-analysis of 7 double-blind trials (326 people with schizophrenia) found sarcosine added to antipsychotics improved overall symptoms more than comparators, but not when added to clozapine, and its effect on thinking skills was not statistically significant (Chang 2020). In a 6-week trial in 65 inpatients with acute schizophrenia taking risperidone, sarcosine 2 g a day reduced symptom scores more than placebo and more than D-serine (Lane 2005).
Safety: the abstracts we read do not report side effect rates. The sources here do not describe drug interactions.
We could not find a single published half-life or time to peak for sarcosine that applies to a supplement dose, so we do not list one.
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