You've
probably seen the television ads for the antidepressant drug Zoloft,
with the little egg-shaped bouncing face that transforms from sad to
happy, thanks to a Zoloft prescription, no doubt. And who doesn't want
to be like that amiable little face - turning a frowning life into a
smile?
Since Zoloft was introduced in 1992, well over 100
million prescriptions have been written. In 2000, Prozac, another
superstar antidepressant drug, recorded sales of $2.6 billion.
Obviously, there's a huge market for these drugs, as evidenced by an
estimate from the National Mental Health Association that as many as 340
million people suffer from depression worldwide.
These
are daunting numbers, especially because depression is both emotional
and biological, and often triggered by experiences that a depressed
person may have little or no control over. So in treating a complex
problem like depression, it's important to focus on what you can
control.
Balance
It is important to strive for a dietary balance of
omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. The optimum omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is
1:1 - a ratio that promotes the proper regulation of several key
cardiovascular functions. But because omega-6 is abundant in processed
foods, while the primary dietary source of omega-3 is fish, the omega
ratio of a typical diet is by some estimates more like 20:1. And that's
particularly important to today's e-Alert because I've come across two
studies that confirm the positive effects that omega-3 intake has on
depression.
Previous
studies have shown that people who are depressed often have low levels
of omega-3 fatty acids. Based on this information, researchers at the
Swallownest Court Hospital in Sheffield, England, studied 70 patients,
each diagnosed with persistent depression. These patients had not
responded successfully to typical pharmaceutical treatments such as
Zoloft and Prozac.
The subjects were divided into 4 groups. For 12 weeks,
3 of the groups received dosages of 1, 2, or 4 grams per day of ethyl-eicosapentaenoate
(EPA), one of the crucial omega-3 fatty acids. The fourth group received
a placebo. Before and after the testing period, the patients' levels of
depression were assessed using 3 different rating scales. The greatest
response was recorded in the group that received the 1-gram daily
dosage. Almost three quarters of the subjects in this group showed a 50%
reduction in depression, anxiety, and suicidal tendencies. The
researchers say that a larger study is called for to understand why this
positive trend did not increase as EPA dosage was increased.
Sending...Receiving
The second study, from Harvard Medical School, has so
many parallels to the English study that a complete rundown here of all
the details would be redundant. Suffice it to say that it was also a
small study, only a few weeks long, using subjects who had not responded
well to drug treatments for persistent depression. In this case the
dosage of EPA was lower - only 2,000 mg - but the results were similar,
with the benefits of omega-3 supplements described as "highly
significant" compared with placebo.
One of the authors of the study, psychiatrist Andrew
Stoll, M.D., gave "Prevention" magazine an insight into the
process at work here, saying, "All cell coatings are made of fats,
and when those fats are omega-3s, the serotonin receptors on the surface
of brain cells seem to function in a healthier way."
Serotonin is a natural hormone that transmits nerve
impulses. Simply put, when serotonin is functioning correctly in your
brain, you have a positive sense of well being. When serotonin is not
making the proper connection with brain cells, the result is depression,
often accompanied by other health problems such as insomnia and migraine
headaches. Prozac and Zoloft are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
(SSRIs) that prevent serotonin from returning to the nerve cell it
originates from.
So with SSRIs steering serotonin toward the correct
cells, and with omega-3s improving the brain cells' ability to receive
seroronin, it's no wonder that both of these studies concluded by
encouraging patients with severe depression to continue SSRIs treatments
while also taking the supplements necessary to increase levels of
omega-3.
But before you inhibit the reuptake...
According
to the National Mental Health Association, about 15% of depressed
patients are classified as severe. In other words, someone who
experiences mild to moderate depression may find all the relief they
need from an increased intake of omega-3 and other foods and supplements
that promote the ideal transmission of nerve impulses in the brain.
As
I've mentioned several times, the best source of omega-3 is fish,
particularly dark meat fish such as tuna and swordfish. The problem,
which I've also mentioned several times, is the threat of ingesting too
much mercury, which is sometimes present at high levels in these fish.
Fish oil supplements are an excellent alternative, and will deliver far
more omega-3 than your diet ever could, unless you happen to eat large
amounts of tuna and swordfish every day.
High
levels of B vitamins have also been shown to relieve symptoms of
depression. In addition to supplements, good dietary sources of vitamin
B are: tuna, salmon, avocados, bananas, mangoes, potatoes, broccoli,
cauliflower, poultry and meat. Note that stress (which often goes hand
in hand with depression) is believed to deplete your body's store of B
vitamins.
People who are depressed are often deficient in
magnesium, as well, which is found in whole grains, nuts and leafy green
vegetables. Herbal supplements like valerian root, chamomile, black
cohosh, and rosemary may also help manage depression. And the standout
among the herbs is, of course, St. John's wort, which is sometimes
called the "natural Prozac" for its apparent ability to help
manage the proper functioning of seratonin in the brain.
Perhaps one of the greatest mistakes people make is
assuming depression is all mental, or "in their heads." Proper
nutrition is as important to your head as it is to your heart, skin,
joints...you get the idea.
Source: The Health
Sciences Institute e-Alert October 28, 2002
