Supplements And Mental Health

I'd like to discuss some supplements that can be used to alleviate mental disorders and afflictions over time and the reasons that they are effective. I'll focus mainly on depression but a lot of these supplements are good for a range of disorders.

Having suffered from depression myself I can understand how difficult and nightmarish mental health difficulties can be.

Here's a bit about how our brain works. The brain is basically a huge mass of interconnected neurons i.e. nerve cells. The tiny connections between neurons are called dendrites and where one neuron meats another neuron via a dendrite there is a small gap which is called a synapse and this is where 'messages' are sent between the different neurons. Neurons have both sending and receiving stations that are located where the dendrites meet and these are called receptors and are built out of essential fats, phospholipids and amino acids. The message that goes across the synapse is called a neurotransmitter and is usually made out of amino acids. Each neurotransmitter is made out of different amino acids.i.e. the neurotransmitter seretonin, which helps to keep you happy, is made out of the amino acid tryptophan. Adrenalin and dopamine, which help to keep you motivated are made from the amino acid phenylaline. Turning these amino acids into neurotransmitters is done using various vitamins, minerals and special amino acids.


Fatty acids.

Fatty acids work by improving receptor sites in the brain as well as improving reception. This leads to more seretonin absorption to mention only one benefit. As a result Omega 3 oil is a fantastic supplement for any mental affliction but remember that it has an accumulative effect meaning that it takes time to build up in the system. In a recent study in England by Dr Basant Puri, a 21 year old student who was depressed and had been on a variety of different anti depressants to no avail was given ethyl-EPA. Before treatment the student had been experiencing low self-esteem, small appetite, sleeping problems, suicidal thoughts as well as finding socializing difficult. After one month of supplementing omega 3 fats he was no longer having suicidal thoughts and after 9 months he no longer had depression of any kind.

Here are a few more beneficial supplements for the brain:

L-Phenylalanine = an amino acid that is a building block for the amino acid L-Tyrosine which is in turn a building block for the neurotransmitter dopamine. Dopamine is again in turn a building block for noradrenalin and adrenalin. Adrenalin deficiency is associated with depression and a general lack of motivation or energy.

5-HTP = 5-hydroxytryptophan. Tryptophan is the building block for seretonin which is a neurotransmitter that helps to keep you happy. 5-hydroxytryptophan is basically one step up the chain closer to seretonin than just tryptophan itself. A 5-HTP supplement is amazing at combating any form of depression and it has been well documented at outperforming any standard SSRI or tricyclic antidepressants in various studies.

SAMe and TMG = respectively stand for s-adenosyl methionine and tri-methyl-glycine. These two nutrients work by donating methyl groups and sometimes taking them away. i.e. noradrenaline turns into adrenaline by having a methyl group added. People with schizophrenia very often have serious problems doing this properly which, coupled with other symptoms, leads to their mental disorder.SAMe and TMG help the brain in many different ways and SAMe is one of the most documented supplements used to fight depression. In all cases it has worked faster than standard medical anti depressants and also more effectively. In the studies a high dose was used and it must be done under supervision.

The best combination of supplements to help treat depression would be:

2g Phenylalanine or Tyrosine.

150mg 5-HTP.

And 200mg of SAMe.

These should be taken along with good multivitamin and fatty acid supplements. The best way to get everything you need fatty acid wise is to supplement: for Omega 3 Hemp Seed oil, for Omega 6 Safflower oil, for EPA and DHA Cod Liver oil (or eat unfried eggs) and for GLA Evening Primrose oil. All the supplements work together and often one is no good without the others.

The main other areas which really help in depression are sunlight and exercise. Both reduce stress and sunlight directly creates seretonin in the brain. For agoraphobics who also suffer from depression it is possible to benefit hugely from a light box that is made to emit roughly the same spectrum of light as the sun. Nothing is as good as the real thing though.

Hope this helps someone out there.

Some really good information. Even though i dont suffer from depression and Ocd anymore it would have greatly bennifited me back when i was in need. Hopefully this info and MUCH more in the future can help people on this site thats help.

I'd like to point out even more that Omega-3 fatty acid is more and more known around the world for it's anti-depressant capabilities. It also makes the blood less thick and that helps too, and not just for depression. A number of bodybuilder (if not all) use it. Since I take it, that plus multi-vits, I've seen drastic level on my mood.

I used to have pretty hard suicidal thought and even researched about how to make it as fast as possible on the internet... Now I barely think about it, and everything goes fine. I just realised what was my situation, and cleared many big problems in my life hehe... Sounds like a shop-tv marketing hoax but anyways, it worked for me I garantee.

Sounds awesome ggogeta! I never knew that it had such an impact on getting rid of depression. Its good to hear that you arent depressed anymore.

BODY BUILDER 05 said:

Sounds awesome ggogeta! I never knew that it had such an impact on getting rid of depression. Its good to hear that you arent depressed anymore.

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hehe tnx for caring dude It wasn't after the 1st month though, give it some time... But so many studies give credit to it, can't be wrong. I've never seen even 1 study that said it was bad.

How long does it take for the Omega 3 to start working? I have read that weeks and even months may pass before noticeable results happen but I would be interested in some first hand information.

I have no real studies right now but it's been maybe 5 months I am getting those. Also it's important to note that the body can only absord a certain quantity of omega fatty acid. So if you eat a big load of omega 6 ( which is good also) which is a caracteristic of western culture, then there will be less absorption of omega 3.

Example: a 9g of omega-6 per day and 3 g omega-3 (very unlikely though for north americans) would give you a 3:1 ratio. so there might be 3 g of omega-6 digested and only 1 of omega-3 digested, which isn't enough. I don't know if that was clear enough but if you are currently eating big ammounts of omega-6 fatty acid, better get a good ratio of omega-3 in order to get full benefits.

This wiki can hopefully give some usefull info

this link also

Good links Ggogeta.

From my experience supplementing specific fatty acids in the list that I gave in my first post are pretty much the best supplements that you can take for your health. Personally I've experienced benefits from taking Omega 3 etc, within a couple of weeks from starting.

I've found that it improves mental clarity as well as general mood and energy. Simply put, the longer you take it, the better but it won't take more than a month to see imporvements. I'd recomend not just taking one fatty acid supplement, I'd recomend taking at least a couple that cover the full spectrum of what you need. This way the effects will be more pronounced and will arrive quickly.

On a side note, many scientists beleive that the longer life span of the Japenese population is due to the amount of oily fish that they consume. Hence fatty acids.

If you really want some simple but effective fatty acid supplements that will cover almost everything that you need then supplement some fish oil for Omega 3 and Starflower oil or Evening Primrose oil for Omega 6. Those two would work well together.

If you want only one supplement for all fatty acids then I think that hemp seed oil is the best. Is has a very good ratio of Omega 3 to Omega 6 oils.

TomdW said:

If you want only one supplement for all fatty acids then I think that hemp seed oil is the best. Is has a very good ratio of Omega 3 to Omega 6 oils.

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Nice post, I'd also say 1 month is a good period to expect in order to see great results... and those results are exactly what TomdW said. On the other side,
vegetable omega 3 fatty acid are 10 times less efficient as the body need to change them in the kind of omega 3 you will retreive in fish oil. (there are 3 kinds of omega-3) So better get that fish oil than veggies but non of them are bad for you though.

And as I mentionned before, we north americans eat way too much omega 6 compared to omega 3 allready because of our diet. So that would make sense for us to only take omega 3 supplements ( or eat more fish that is)

But if you are allready eating fatty fish regularly, then yeah you might wanna check out the supplements for omega 3 6 and 9.

On my personal experience, omega 3 alone did the job, I guess that,s because it's the only one I was missing since I eat like a mofo, but no fish at all.

vegetable omega 3 fatty acid are 10 times less efficient as the body need to change them in the kind of omega 3 you will retreive in fish oil

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I would like to see where you found that info out. I know myself that the conversion process would make it less efficient but from the doctors I've spoken to it isnt like what you say. Also many factors would play a role, which you fail to mention such as health of the subject, height, weight and age.

REDZULU2003 said:

I would like to see where you found that info out. I know myself that the conversion process would make it less efficient but from the doctors I've spoken to it isnt like what you say. Also many factors would play a role, which you fail to mention such as health of the subject, height, weight and age.

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Hey red,

First of I don't want this to become a flame war about omega 3 . I remember reading DLD's article saying that veggie omega 3 were less efficient (refering to flax seed oil) BUT were still good to eat. All I'm saying is that they are less efficient, not useless or something.

here's an entry from a website

http://www.wholehealtHydromaxd.com/refshelf/substances_view/1 said:

Different types of omega-3s. Key omega-3 fatty acids include eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexanoic acid (DHA), both found primarily in oily cold-water fish such as tuna, salmon, and mackerel. Aside from fresh seaweed, a staple of many cultures, plant foods rarely contain EPA or DHA.

However, a third omega-3, called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), is found primarily in dark green leafy vegetables, flaxseed oils, and certain vegetable oils. Although ALA has different effects on the body than EPA and DHA do, the body has enzymes that can convert ALA to EPA. All three are important to human health.

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Here we go, veggie is good, even has some different effect on the body but must be converted to EPA and DHA which are the 2 fatty acid that gives you the omega-3 benefits.

As for the other factor, I'm sure they are playing a role on the qty you need to eat, but not that much.

it wont get into a flame war, dont be sili. I'm just trying to get all the facts, so anyone reading this doesnt get the wrong idea about either choices of Omega 3.

I've also been told by a Doctor that the conversion rate for the Veggie Omega 3 into the fish oil omega oils isnt known exactly and it varies on each person but he did say that using the Fish oil would be best to gurantee the best conversion of the oils, but didnt mean it was better or anything and that both have their benefits.

You might want to check out the post #12 at http://www.mattersofsize.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22748

I just don't want to look like a smart ass who's contradicting everyone else

I never thought you were a smart ass, like I've said one must get the facts in order to learn properly and not merely by word of mouth or in our case text.
Not everything you read on the net is true.

You've provided the reference material and I've learned new things now and will be buying some good quality Fish omega oils once my veggie supply runs out but I still say for those who dont like eating fish or gelatin, vegans or vegatarians etc than the Vertese range offer great value for money but for me I need more of the benefits from these oils for my illness and I'm really glad that this info has surfaced here for me to act upon.

Thanks Ggogeta.

My pleasure Red