What Does the Amino Acid L Ornithine Do?
L-ornithine is a “non-protein,” non-essential amino acid. Amino acids are the building blocks that make up protein structures, such as animal muscle tissue. L-ornithine is considered non-essential because our bodies make it from the amino acid L-arginine. In fact, they are quite similar in structure. Ornithine is essential for making urea, which removes nitrogen and ammonia from the body, eliminating toxins. The body uses L-ornithine to synthesize arginine, proline and other amino acids. Natural sources include meat, fish, dairy and eggs. The typical Western diet includes approximately 5g of ornithine per day.
