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Ingredients

Dimethylglycine

N,N-Dimethylglycine · DMG

Snapshot

IndicationsContraindications
  • Immune function1
  • Epilepsy1
  • Athletic performance1
  • Chronic fatigue1
  • Pregnancy2
  • Breastfeeding2

Dimethylglycine is a glycine derivative produced in cells during choline metabolism and found in beans, cereal grains, pumpkin seeds, and liver1. It is taken for proposed effects on cellular oxygen use and immune responses, and the uses that follow are immune support, autism, seizures, athletic performance, and fatigue1. Families of children with autism are the typical users, drawn to complementary options3.

Two small placebo-controlled trials in autism found no significant difference from placebo. A crossover trial in children with cytochrome oxidase deficiency found no substantial change in oxygen consumption4. Data on immune enhancement are conflicting1. In progressive multiple sclerosis, a 2021 pilot randomized trial found no improvement in fatigue, cognition, gait, or disability1. Products come as capsules, tablets, powders, and liquids, with 282 products listing dimethylglycine; see Form comparison.

Those labels also ask for a practitioner's advice before use in epilepsy or autism2.

Last updated October 16, 2026. Read how we make monographs.

In the full monograph

20 sources, 17 studies

  • When to useThe situations practitioners use it for, each with the reason and the study behind it.
  • SafetyWho should avoid it, who needs extra care, and the side effects reported in studies.
  • InteractionsThe medicines and supplements it interacts with, the effect of each, and what labeling says to watch.
  • Protocol notesThe doses used in studies, how and when they were taken, and how the forms on the market compare.
  • How it worksWhat it is and how it works in the body, in plain terms.
  • Published studiesThe studies behind each use, popular claims checked against them, and trials still under way.
  • Word of mouthWhat patients and practitioners report online, kept separate from the clinical evidence.
  • Clinical perspectiveA closing read of where the evidence is solid, where it is thin, and what has not been studied.
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Sources

  1. 1MSKCCmskcc.orgMemorial Sloan Kettering — About Herbs, Botanicals & Other Products
  2. 2Health Canadahealth-products.canada.caLabel statements and adult daily amounts Health Canada authorized on licensed natural health products with this ingredient alone, from the Licensed Natural Health Products Database. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada
  3. 3Millennium Nutrient N,N-Dimethylglycine (DMG) and its Effectiveness in Autism Spectrum Disorders.pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govDhanjal, Bhardwaj, Chopra et al. · Current medicinal chemistry · 2022 · Pubmed
  4. 4The effect of short-term dimethylglycine treatment on oxygen consumption in cytochrome oxidase deficiency: a double-blind randomized crossover clinical trial.pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govLiet, Pelletier, Robinson et al. · The Journal of pediatrics · 2003 · Pubmed