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Summary: There's nothing
fishy here - fish may boost
your mood.
DEPRESSION
Fish have long been called
"brain food," but they might
also be called "mood food":
A study shows that consuming
fish oil may reduce the
symptoms of manic
depression.
It's well-accepted that oily
fish like salmon and
mackerel are packed with
fats called omega-3 fatty
acids that can reduce the
risk of heart disease,
cancer and osteoporosis, as
well as inflammatory
diseases like arthritis. But
less well-known are the
benefits of omega-3s on mood
disorders like depression.
Andrew Stoll, M.D., and a
team of researchers
conducted a study to
determine whether patients
with bipolar or manic
depression would see their
blues disappear after adding
omega-3 fatty acids to their
normal course of
antidepressants. The team
gave seven capsules of fish
oil concentrate or an olive
oil placebo twice daily to
30 volunteers and monitored
them over a four-month
period.
Stoll, a physician at McLean
Hospital in Belmont, Mass.,
found that the group of
patients consuming fish oil
pills in addition to their
normal medication ultimately
showed fewer symptoms than
patients taking only their
regular drug therapy.
Furthermore, of eight
patients in the study taking
no antidepressants at all,
the four who were given the
omega-3 treatment remained
depression-free for longer
than patients taking a
placebo pill.
While researchers remain
unsure of how omega-3 fatty
acids help to alleviate
manic depression's highs and
lows -- though they suspect
it involves the substance
incorporating itself into
nervous tissue -- they do
know that their finding may
herald a new class of
low-cost, natural mood-stabilbilizing
drugs.
Article courtesy of
www.psychologytoday.com
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