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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
[email protected]Shown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by johnj on April 7, 2002, at 19:21:35
I am interested in augumenting my AD's with some vitamins and I have heard "sublingul" being thrown around. what does this mean? What vitamins, like B, have some of you taken? What time of the day do you take them? Any pointers or websites that give some good info, not just trying to sell the stuff? I suffer from unipolar/ and anxiety. Thanks! This site is a great find!!
John
Posted by TSA West on April 7, 2002, at 19:33:21
In reply to Sublingual vitamins....for those in the know, posted by johnj on April 7, 2002, at 19:21:35
Psychosomatic Medicine, Volume 61(5) September/October 1999 "Dietary Supplements and Natural Products as Psychotherapeutic Agents":
FOLIC ACID & B12
Folic acid deficiency is one of the most common nutritional deficiencies in the world and has often been associated with neuropsychiatric disorders (116). This deficiency may be an overlooked and understudied risk factor for depression. Several studies have found that up to 35% of depressed patients are folate deficient (117–120). In elderly patients, the incidence of deficiency is even more marked and may be as high as 90%. (121, 122).Folate and vitamin B12 are required for the methylation of homocysteine to methionine and for the synthesis of S-adenosylmethionine. S-adenosylmethionine is involved in numerous methylation reactions involving proteins, phospholipids, DNA, and neurotransmitter metabolism. Both folate and vitamin B12 deficiency may cause similar neurological and psychiatric disturbances, including depression, dementia, and a demyelinating myelopathy (123, 124). Bottiglieri (116) proposes that a defect in methylation processes may be central to the biochemical basis of the psychopathology seen with these vitamin deficiencies. Folate deficiency may specifically affect central monoamine metabolism and aggravate depressive disorders. In addition, the neurotoxic effects of homocysteine may also play a role in the neurological and psychiatric disturbances associated with folate and vitamin B12 deficiency.
Fava et al. (125) examined the relationships between levels of folate, vitamin B12, and homocysteine and response to fluoxetine (20 mg/d for 8 weeks) treatment in 213 outpatients with major depressive disorder. At baseline, depressive subtypes were assessed, a blood sample was collected from each patient, and serum metabolite levels were assayed. Response to treatment was determined by the percentage change in score on the 17-item HAM-D. Subjects with low folate levels were more likely to have melancholic depression and were significantly less likely to respond to fluoxetine. Homocysteine and B12 levels were not associated with depressive subtype or treatment response. The authors concluded that there was a link between low folate levels and poorer response to antidepressant treatment. They suggested that folate levels be considered in the evaluation of depressed patients who do not respond to antidepressant treatment.
Phenylalanine and Tyrosine
The amino acid catecholamine precursors phenylalanine and tyrosine have been reported to enhance mood in some individuals. There is a reasonable theoretical basis for enhancing endogenous tyrosine. Orally administered [alpha]-methyl-para-tyrosine induces relapse in remitted depressed patients (145), apparently by competing with endogenous tyrosine and resulting in depletion of the catecholamines dopamine and norepinephrine (145). Open trials of tyrosine (160) and phenylalanine (161) reported positive effects. However, as is often the case, improvement of trial design disadvantaged the drug. In a controlled trial of 65 patients receiving either 100 mg/kg tyrosine, imipramine, or placebo, investigators found no antidepressant effect of tyrosine (162). As with serotonin precursors, however, it is possible that combination of phenylalanine with an MAO inhibitor may enhance the therapeutic effects (163).
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Neuronal membranes contain high concentrations of the essential fatty acids arachidonic acid and DHA, which are crucial components of the phospholipid bilayer (each comprises approximately 25% of the phospholipid content; see Ref. 164). It has been suggested that depletion of omega-3 PUFAs, particularly DHA, impairs membrane function and may be of etiological importance in depression, aggression, schizophrenia, and other mental and neurological disorders (165–168).
There is intriguing indirect evidence to support this in the form of reports that rapid lowering of blood lipids by hydroxymethylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitors is associated with a large number of psychiatric disorders; for example, 15% of psychiatric drug reactions were attributed to statins in a national Norwegian database (169). Reactions included aggression, nervousness, depression, anxiety, and sleeping disorders. Cholesterol-lowering therapies and low cholesterol levels have been thought to increase the risk of suicide by lowering serotonin turnover. However, drug and diet therapies to lower cholesterol also alter levels of essential fatty acids. Because levels of essential fatty acids predict 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid levels in cerebrospinal fluid and cholesterol levels do not (170, 171), cholesterol levels may be a surrogate marker of changes in essential fatty acids.
It was recently reported that fatty acid composition of phospholipid in red blood cell membranes (thought to mirror neuronal membranes) of depressive patients showed significant depletions of total omega-3 PUFAs, particularly DHA (172). In one study, dietary supplementation with DHA and EPA showed marked mood-stabilizing activity in bipolar disorder (173). It has been theorized that adequate long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, particularly DHA, may reduce the development of depression just as omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids may reduce coronary artery disease.
Posted by BlueJay Bird on April 7, 2002, at 23:39:15
In reply to Sublingual vitamins....for those in the know, posted by johnj on April 7, 2002, at 19:21:35
Sublingual means "under the tongue" -- sublingual vitamins are vitamins that are soft and literally melt under your tongue. A good one for psychiatric use is either B12 alone or a combo of B12/FolicAcid/B6.
Posted by Anna Laura on April 9, 2002, at 13:41:21
In reply to Sublingual vitamins....for those in the know, posted by johnj on April 7, 2002, at 19:21:35
> I am interested in augumenting my AD's with some vitamins and I have heard "sublingul" being thrown around. what does this mean? What vitamins, like B, have some of you taken? What time of the day do you take them? Any pointers or websites that give some good info, not just trying to sell the stuff? I suffer from unipolar/ and anxiety. Thanks! This site is a great find!!
> JohnYou might want to take a look at this site (vitamins are delivered orally through sprays: they should be more effective bypassing the digestive tract)
www.sprayology.com
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