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Taurine

2-aminoethanesulfonic acid

Supplements. Modern nutrition.

Also called Amino sulfonic acid

Pinyin: niú huáng suān

Spanish: Taurina

Mild; may lower blood pressure

An amino-acid-like compound found in meat, fish and shellfish, sold as a supplement mostly for blood pressure and heart support.

Did you know? Taurine gets its name from the Latin word for bull, taurus, because it was first found in ox bile in 1827.

What it may help, and how strong the proof is

Blood pressure. A 2024 meta-analysis of 25 small trials (about 1,000 people) found a modest drop, about 4 points on the top number and about 1.5 points on the bottom. The effect is small, and results varied from trial to trial.See the research: 32 studies in people
Promising proof
Heart health. Small, short trials, mostly from Japan, found better heart pumping in people with heart failure. They did not track survival or hospital stays, and larger trials are lacking.See the research: 92 studies in people
Promising proof
Muscles & exercise. Taurine is common in energy drinks and sports products. Human trials on exercise are few and small, and the results are mixed.See the research: 64 studies in people
Traditional proof

Parts of the body

Heart & vessels, Muscles

Traditional use

Taurine has no old herbal history. It came out of 1800s chemistry, and today it is added to many infant formulas, since premature babies make little of their own.

How it is classified

Herbal actions: Nutritive, Antioxidant, Circulatory. Energy: neutral.

How people take it

Blood pressure and heart studies mostly used about 1.5 to 6 grams a day, often split into doses. A 2008 safety review, written by scientists from an industry group, set 3 grams a day as an observed safe level for healthy adults. Long-term human data at that amount are limited.

Capsule, powder and food.

Where to get it

Your body makes taurine from cysteine, another amino acid. Meat, fish, eggs and dairy contain it, and clams, mussels and scallops are among the richest sources. Supplements come as capsules and powders, and many energy drinks add it.

Be careful

Usually well tolerated. High doses can cause nausea, diarrhea, headache or dizziness. It may lower blood pressure a little, so people on blood pressure medicine or with low blood pressure should check with a doctor first. Avoid it in pregnancy and breastfeeding, since safety data are thin. Use caution with kidney disease, epilepsy and bipolar disorder.

Avoid if: pregnancy; breastfeeding; low blood pressure; kidney disease.

Mixing with other things

Works well together
Both are sold for heart and blood pressure support and often appear in heart blends. There is little research on the two together.
Use caution
Blood pressure medicine (lisinopril, amlodipine, losartan)
May lower blood pressure a little, so blood pressure medicines could push it too low.
Worth knowing
Lithium (for bipolar disorder)
Not well studied. Ask a doctor before combining them.

Adds up with others that may lower blood pressure: , , , , , , , , , , , , , and 16 more.

The honest take

Taurine is a food-like compound, and most people tolerate it well. The best human evidence is a modest drop in blood pressure. Heart failure studies are small and short, and claims about energy and athletic performance are mostly not proven in good human trials.

Sources

Each “See the research” link opens PubMed, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's index of medical studies, showing only trials and reviews done in people. The number tells you how much a use has been tested, not whether it worked. The proof rating tells you that.

Study counts checked October 2026.