Hope and Help for People with Mental Health Disorders using Nutritional Medicine
Did you know there are nutritional and complementary medical treatments available to treat mental health problems? Anxiety, bipolar, depression, eating disorders and even schizophrenia can be managed and treated successfully with natural medicines.
You see the ads on TV for medications to treat depression. We hear the stories of growing numbers of children with autism or attention deficit. It seems no matter where you turn someone is either taking a prescription drug or is looking to get off a psychiatric medication. Autism, anxiety, bipolar, depression, mood disorders, schizophrenia, and even eating disorders are so prevalent it seems almost common place and accepted as our society’s new norm. Some current national statistics:
As of 2007 the number of people receiving federal subsidies for psychiatric disability was approximately 4 million. This is 1 in every 76 Americans.
There has been a 35 fold increase in children disabled with mental illness.
Approximately 40 million Americans age 18 and older have an anxiety crisis in a given year.
Approximately 15% of adults will experience severe depressed mood during their lifetime with about 15% of these adults committing suicide. Suicide is also the 3rd leading cause of death in youth aged 15 to 24 years old.
Eating disorders, such as Anorexia Nervosa, have the highest mortality rate of any mental health illness at 10% at 10 years and 20% at 20 years. Anorexia also has the highest risk of suicide among ALL psychiatric illnesses.
This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the alarming statistics regarding mental health issues in our country, and the problem is getting worse. For example, there have been no advances in biological treatments for Anorexia Nervosa in 50 years. According to James M. Greenblatt, M.D. Chief Medical Officer of Walden Behavioral Care and Assistant Professor at Tufts Medical School and author of Answers to Anorexia states that “there is not one drug approved for the treatment of anorexia” despite the fact that these individuals are commonly placed on medications that have little to no effect.
Nutritional medicine may hold the key to many individuals suffering with one of these debilitating disorders. There are a variety of examples to prove this point. Here are just a few that are important to consider:
Amino acid deficiencies such as tyrosine, tryptophan and others can predispose an individual to imbalanced brain chemistry. For example, tryptophan is a precursor for the production of serotonin. Without adequate serotonin individuals are left feeling depressed, moody, anxious and lack a certain “zest” for life. In 2009, in the Archives of General Psychiatry, it was reported that over 27 million people were prescribed antidepressants, or more than 10% of the US population. Many of these drugs are the common SSRI’s (Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors) like Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil and Lexapro.
Folate and B12 imbalances are often prevalent in the population of people with depression. Many times replacing these vitamins in therapeutic levels has a tremendous beneficial effect on mood and mental function.
Zinc deficiency has been recognized for years in the Eating Disorder community (but commonly goes unappreciated by the medical community), particularly those with Anorexia Nervosa. Zinc is critical for supporting the brain and neuro-chemical balance. With chronically low zinc the function of digestion, taste, growth and immune function are all impaired. Zinc also has a role in how the brain learns, perceives, and interprets information such as fear and stress.
In keeping with anorexia nervosa there are those, including Dr. Greenblatt and others, who feel this disorder is classically a disease of starvation and the subsequent problems such as anxiety, obsessive compulsive behavior, rigidity and perseveration of thought, and eventually suicidal tendencies are the result of a starved brain from a serious lack of nutrients. In reality, this can be said of most mental health problems, and in our experience is absolutely true. If nutritional deficiencies in amino acids, essential fats, minerals, vitamins and other micronutrients are present how can anyone expect to have an optimally functioning brain? In short, they cannot.
This article is not meant to insinuate that traditional psychiatry and various medications have no role in mental health treatment. Obviously, these disorders are complex and multi-factorial with respects to causation. However, the complete lack of awareness within much of the traditional medical community regarding nutritional medicine is shocking and tragic. Too many people continue to suffer with mental health disorders who can be helped – and in many cases recovered – when the appropriate diagnostic tests and nutritional and complementary therapies are employed. It is time to shift the paradigm in assessment and treatment for the millions of individuals needlessly suffering from these debilitating disorders and once again look to a more comprehensive and balanced approach that nutritional medicine has to offer.
Dr. Kurt Woeller is passionate about health. This includes physical, mental, and spiritual health, as well as financial well-being which makes all other three much easier to pursue. He is a physician dedicated to natural living and healing with an emphasis on fitness, nutrition and bringing more joy to yourself and others as the keystone to a Long Full Life. To learn more about Dr. Woeller visit www.Dr.Woeller.com.
