A Naturopath's Experience Of Lead & People With Diagnosed Mental
Illness
fact
sheet created 18 December 2006
[LID 8802]
As a naturopath I help a lot of people with
diagnosed mental illness. Most patients I see have little understanding of the
importance of a proper diet, and the impacts this has on their mental health
and well being.
Medical literature highlights that poor
nutrition and environmental toxins are factors linked with learning and
behavioural problems, as well as depression and mental illness. Confirmation of
the research literature has been done by hair analyses conducted on my patients
with mental illness who regularly show high levels of toxins such as mercury
[Ref. 8], lead
[ Ref. 11,
13], arsenic [ Ref.
12] and
cadmium [ Ref. 14].
It would benefit patients diagnosed with a
mental illness to be referred to a dietician or Naturopath. They should also be
encouraged to include some very basic nutritional supplements such as Omega 3
[Ref. 9,
10] and a multivitamin
[Refs. 1,
2,
4, 5,
6] as part of their treatments, as
these have been shown to improve mental health. Patients would also benefit
from screening for toxins and being treated appropriately by a specialist in
this area.
Having a holistic approach to mental health
would benefit patients suffering from mental illness. It may also reduce the
number of patients requiring medication, and reduce suffering for them and
their family. The benefits of a healthy balanced diet, hydration and regular
exercise [3] should not be underestimated.
I have attached a list of articles and
research papers supporting these statements.
Regards,
Catherine Hancock N.D,
Naturopath
Good Life health food
shop
Shop 7 Dog Swamp
Shopping Centre
Yokine, Western
Australia 6060
phone
(08) 9443 1553
REFERENCES
-
Dommisse, J.
Subtle vitamin-B12 deficiency and psychiatry: a largely unnoticed but
devastating relationship? Medical Hypotheses. 34(2):131-140, 1991 - http://www.psycom.net/depression.central.folate_B12.html
-
Lansdowne, A.
T., et al. Vitamin D3 enhances mood in healthy subjects during winter.
Psychopharmacology. 135(4):319-323, 1998. Department of Psychology, The
University of Newcastle, Callaghan NSW, Australia - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=
PubMed&list_uids=9539254&dopt=Abstract
-
De Coverly
Veale, D. M. W. Exercise and mental health. Acta Psychiatry Scandinavia.
76:113-120, 1976.
-
Levenson, C.
W. Zinc: the new antidepressant? Nutrition Reviews. 64(1):39-42, 2006 - http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3624/is_200601/ai_n16078907
-
Murck, H.
Magnesium and affective disorders. Nutr Neurosci. 5(6):375-389, 2002. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=
PubMed&list_uids=12509067&dopt=Abstract
-
Benton, D.,
et al. Selenium supplementation improves mood in a double-blind crossover
trial. Psychopharmacology. 102(4):549-550, 1990. Department of Psychology,
University College, Swansea, Wales, UK. http://www.springerlink.com/content/y7633404qn8t2611/
-
Walton, R.
G., et al. Adverse reactions to aspartame: double- blind challenge in
patients from a vulnerable population. Biol Psychiatry. 34(1-2):13-17,
1993. http://www.mindfully.org/Health/Aspartame-Adverse-Reactions-1993.htm
-
Silberund,
R., et al. Evidence that mercury from silver dental fillings may be an
etiological factor in depression, anger and anxiety. Psychol Rep.
74:67-80, 1994.
-
Arvindakshan,
M., et al. Supplementation with a combination of omega-3 fatty acids and
antioxidants (vitamins E and C) improves the outcome of schizophrenia.
Schizophr Res. 62(3):195-204, 2003. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=
Abstract&list_uids=12837515
-
Nemets, B.,
et al. Addition of omega-3 fatty acid to maintenance medication treatment
for recurrent unipolar depressive disorder. American Journal of
Psychiatry. 159:477-479, 2002. http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/159/3/477
-
H. L.
Needleman, J. A. Riess, M. J. Tobin, G. E. Biesecker and J. B. Greenhouse
Bone lead levels and delinquent behavior. Department of Psychiatry,
University of Pittsburgh (Pa) School of Medicine, USA - http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/275/5/363
-
V.M Rodriguez
et al. Glutathione reductase inhibition and methylated arsenic
distribution in Cd1 mice brain and liver – http://toxsci.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/adstract/84/1/157
-
Michelle
Naylor, Lead Poisoning and the Brain - Cognitive Deficits and Mental
Illness, 21 Oct 2005, The LEAD Group Inc - www.lead.org.au/fs/fst28.html
-
William J. Walsh, Ph.D., Biochemical Treatment of Mental Illness and
Behavior Disorders,17 Nov 1997, Health Research Institute
Pfeiffer Treatment Center (HRIPTC) - http://www.hriptc.org/BioTreatment.html
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