Posted by Lao Tzu on May 8, 2010, at 15:06:27
In reply to How do you know if it's helping, posted by alchemy on May 8, 2010, at 9:12:20
Yes, that is an excellent question. My mother has often asked me how do I know what every single vitamin I take feels like? I only say that each vitamin has a "feel" in terms of how it affects my mood, good or bad. How do I know this? Perhaps I am just a sensitive person. I do have bipolar/schizophrenia and perhaps because I am in that category my perception is unusual and not the norm. In reality, I don't know exactly what the vitamins are doing and if they are helping, just to answer your question. I do, however, feel as if my mood, anxiety, and depression are much improved because of them. If I am less anxious, something is helping. If I am less depressed, something is helping. If I don't feel brain fog and fatigue all the time, something is helping. Could be the vitamins, if that is all you are doing. But you also have to take into consideration other interventions, other changes you make in your daily life that impact you on a physical, spiritual, and psychological level. In other words, do the supplements present more as a placebo effect than as real solutions to the problem? I don't know for sure. Even if it is placebo effect, it still means something good is coming from taking the vitamins. But really, they have to be doing something, don't you think? Our bodies need them to be healthy, don't they? The key is not to overdo it. One example I have is about fish oil. My doctor first noticed that my triglycerides were high, so I started taking fish oil everyday. After six months, I had my blood checked again and my triglycerides were normal. In this case, I knew the supplements were working. It is not that easy to know if supplements are actually correcting brain chemistry. I often go with what I read in books or online. There has been research done on certain vitamins for depression, such as vitamins B12, B6, and folic acid. Most doctors will agree with you about these three important vitamins, that they do impact the brain and can help with depression. As far as the myriad supplements out there, some very unusual and unorthodox, the answer to your question is that you can't know if they are helping, unless there is valid research that says they improve depression. You can check out the government's NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health) online. They often cite valid current research with natural supplements. Unfortunately, they don't always post the results of the study, so you are left wondering if the supplement even works.
poster:Lao Tzu
thread:946773
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20100322/msgs/946788.html