Link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4999787/
Title: Supplementation with Omega-3 Fatty Acids in Psychiatric Disorders: A Review of Literature Data
Authors: Lindsay Brown, Academic Editor, Bernhard Rauch, Academic Editor, and Hemant Poudyal.
Date: July 27, 2016
Source: MDPI Journal of Clinical Medicine
Summary
Highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFAs) are in neural phospholipids and are important in neuronal cell membrane. They help the mechanisms of brain cell signaling like dopaminergic and serotonergic pathways. Dopaminergic is the dopamine neurotransmitter and serotonergic means a nerve cell that releases and is stimulated by serotonin.
Schizophrenia
Studies show that patients with schizophrenia have low levels of EPA and DHA. A 12-week placebo-controlled trial in 30 males and 15 females on stable antipsychotic medication who were still symptomatic. Only 35 patients completed the trial. EPA was shown more effective in the reduction of symptoms as assessed with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Less encouraging findings were also present with a study by Fenton and Colleagues who designed a 16-week study. 87 patients were given 3g of EPA a day vs. placebo. There were no positive or negative results shown.
Conclusion
Biggest improvements with omega-3 supplementation have been seen with mood disorders, in particular, depressive symptoms with a does as low as 1g a day. EPA is seen to be more effective than DHA.
Improvements were seen in schizophrenic individuals who took DHA supplements, measured by the PANSS.
ReplyDeleteHow do omega-3s increase dopamine production?
DHA supplementation showed positive improvements in patients with schizophrenia.
ReplyDeleteDid your study explain why, on a molecular level, the schizophrenia patients showed positive improvement?
While the patients with schizophrenia have been shown to have low levels of EPA and DHA, the schizophrenic patients given EPA supplementation didn't show significant improvement.
ReplyDeleteIf EPA is seen to be more effective than DHA, does that mean that DHA has almost no effect on schizophrenic patients?
There are no positive and negative effect of Omega-3 on schizophrenia.
ReplyDeleteWhat form of omega-3 is given to the patient?
The PANSS is used to determine the symptoms of mental illness. EPA and DHA were shown to mediate some of the symptoms of schizophrenia.
ReplyDeleteCould the failed study have made some error? It seems unlikely that not one of the 87 patients made improvements? Could it have been that they were supplementing too much or too little?
Fatty acids reduced Schizophrenia symptoms in patients in the trial.
ReplyDeleteIf these participants were already on medication how severe were there symptoms that more medication, like the omega-3's, could help.
Omega 3's improve mood disorders and many brain functions but did not show any difference in patients with schizophrenia.
ReplyDeleteWhat mechanism of schizophrenia differs from that of mood disorders and could this be targeted for improvement?
Higher EPA amounts can potentially help reduce issues with neuro transmitters that can lead to mood disorders.
ReplyDeleteWhy does EPA have more of an effect on this than DHA?
Although increasing omega-3 intake can positively affect those with ADHD and similar diagnoses, it is not proven to have an affect in those with schizophrenia.
ReplyDeleteIn patients with schizophrenia, what is the difference in their brain function compared to someone with another disorder that allows increased omega-3s intake to not have an effect?