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Exposing Psychology, Exalting Christ |
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| Research Finds Antioxidants Play Critical Role in Schizophrenia, Depression
From March 2007 newsletter
of http://www.alternativementalhealth.com For nearly five decades, independent psychiatrists starting with pioneers such as Carl Pfeiffer, Abram Hoffer, and Humphry Osmond, have asserted that, for many people, antioxidants, such as vitamins C and E, are vital for mental health recovery. Because of repeated successes, antioxidant therapy combined with other nutrients continues to this day, despite the open ridicule of professional medical associations and most psychiatrists. Recent studies, however, are showing the antioxidant approach may be closer to the mark than it has been given credit for. Reporting in the Feb. 14, 2007, issue of Human Psychopharmacology, Turkish researchers from the Uludag University Medical Faculty tested 96 patients with major depression and 54 controls. Blood tests were taken for oxidative and antioxidant markers. The researchers concluded: "Susceptibility of RBCs [red blood cells] to oxidation were significantly higher in the MDD group compared with the control group... MDD [major depressive disorder] is accompanied with oxidative stress." Even more striking was their finding regarding the lack of impact of depression medication: "Oxidative-antioxidative systems do not seem to be affected by 6 weeks of antidepressant treatment." A similar study carried out at Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China, was reported in the December 2006 issue of the Journal of Zhejiang University SCIENCE B. Examining 46 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, scientists observed changes of blood oxidative-antiovidative levels in schizophrenic patients and their relationship to clinical symptoms. The researchers studied blood markers for antioxidant activity and boldly concluded: "There are dysregulation of free radical metabolism and poor activities of the antioxidant defense systems in schizophrenic patients. Excess free radical formation may play a critical role in the etiology of schizophrenia. Using antioxidants might be an effective therapeutic approach to partially alleviate or prevent the symptoms of schizophrenia."
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