McMAN’S DEPRESSION AND BIPOLAR WEEKLY
Nov. 8, 2002 Vol 4
No 37
Note: This
excellent newsletter is available weekly from:
http://mcmanweb.com/newsletter1.htm
McMAN'S DEPRESSION AND BIPOLAR WEEKLY (Nov 8, 2002 Vol 4 No 37)
**********************************
TOO GOOD TO BE
TRUE?
Call it the craziest thing to happen since mold was found to kill bacteria, and
just as difficult at first to believe - a concoction of 36 minerals and vitamins
based on a formula to calm aggressive hogs achieving remarkable results for
patients with bipolar, with few side effects. "Impossible Cure?" ran the title
of the documentary that aired recently on the Discovery Health Channel.
The story begins when Debbie Stephan was diagnosed with bipolar following the
birth of their fourth child. For the next decade, husband Tony witnessed his
wife deteriorate until one cold day in January 1994 she could take it no more.
Soon after, son Joseph, in his teens, erupted into bizarre behavior. The
lithium, however, was worse than the bipolar. In desperation, Tony turned to
friend David Hardy, who confessed ignorance about mental illness, but knew
something about how violent pigs settled down when minerals were added to their
feed. Using store-bought supplements, the two set to work In Tony's mind there
was no alternative, as the lithium at best only took the edge off his son's
illness.. He'll never be normal, he confided to his second wife, Barbara. We've
got to go for broke.
Almost exactly two years after his mother's death, Joseph took his first dose.
"Once that stuff started to kick in," he describes it, "it was like a fog
lifted." Gone were his delusions and depression. Meanwhile their grown daughter
Autumn had turned suicidal and psychotic, and was obsessing about killing
herself and her baby, notwithstanding all the medications she was on. Against
her psychiatrist's advice, who said if you rock the boat you will die, she took
her first dose and experienced a dramatic recovery.
"I believe this is the hand of God," says Tony, a devout Mormon, "the answer to
our prayers."
Word of mouth quickly spread, and in 1998, Tony and Dave formed their own
company, Synergy Group, based in Alberta. After months of trial and error, they
came up with their present formula, Essential Minerals Power Plus, or EM Power,
for short, manufactured in Utah and distributed by mail order. A separate
nonprofit organization, Truehope, staffed by patients on the supplement, handles
calls from customers.
At present, 3,000 patients in US, Canada, and overseas spend more than $100 a
month to take the pills every day.
In December last year, Tony and David got a tremendous boost to their
credibility when The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry published a one-year
open-label pilot study showing overall reduction of depression scores of 55
percent and mania scores of 66 percent in 11 patients, with the need for
psychiatric meds decreasing by more than 50 percent.. In an accompanying
commentary, Harvard psychiatrist Charles Popper MD reported success with 19 of
22 of his patients. Bonnie Kaplan PhD of the University of Calgary who did the
study was reluctant to take it on at first. "I dealt with all the true believers
and flaky people I wanted to in the 1980s when I had been studying nutrition,"
she confessed, "and I didn't want to get involved."
Her study drew the ire of her colleagues, however, as she did not investigate
the formula a single ingredient at a time. Dr Kaplan is now trying to convince
colleagues that the "spectrum of nutrients" is the single variable for the
purpose of testing the supplement..
Recently, Synergy ran into a stone wall in the form of Health Canada, which
classified the supplement a drug, which has tied up Dr Kaplan's research in
regulatory red tape and brought it to a temporary halt. The documentary gave the
impression that Health Canada also banned its sale there, but Synergy says this
is not the case.
At the same time, an Ontario dermatologist, Terry Polevoy MD, self-proclaimed
quackery watchdog, is waging his own campaign. On the program, he challenged Dr
Kaplan's credentials, claiming she is not a psychiatrist (she is a pediatric
psychologist) "making her living as a spokesperson for a startup vitamin
company." (Dr Kaplan has no business relationship with Synergy or Truehope.)
Referring to the supplement as "a dubious product," he went on to say: "If the
phone is being answered by psychiatric patients themselves, they could be manic
depressive, they could be delusional, they could be schizophrenic, they can have
all kinds of conditions."
Not even Autumn's doctor is convinced, citing the possibility of spontaneous
remission. He also expressed concern about the supplement's possible toxicity
and potential damage to the liver, which had Autumn reacting in restrained
disbelief as she rattled off the many meds she'd been on over the years.
"They're not going to hurt my liver?" she asked. "If you've never been there,"
she added, "you don't know how good it is to feel well." The supplement is
clearly not for everyone, as one former patient who had a bad reaction to the
supplement testified.
Meanwhile, Tony and David are seeking to get the research community interested
in studying their product. "Six years down the road," Tony concludes, "I want to
buy a history book and I want to read in there that they found the
neuropsychiatric disorders were nothing more or less than a nutrient deficiency
disorder. When the world accepts this as the new program for treatment of the
mentally ill, there'll be hundreds and hundreds of companies that will produce
nutrients just as good as what we produce."
MORE
Dr Kaplan, who did the EM Power pilot study, has published in article in the
November Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry which documents earlier
studies into minerals and mood, including:
* Low intracellular calcium levels in bipolar patients.
* Serum zinc levels significantly lower in depressed patients, with the severity
of the deficiency corresponding with the severity of the illness.
* A double-blind trail finding thiamin at a high dose resulted in improved
cognition.
* A double-blind study linking selenium to improved mood
* A year-long double-blind trial finding high-dose multivitamins improved mood.
And of course lithium is a mineral.
TAKING THE
SUPPLEMENT
Should you consider trying the supplement, the loading dose for EM Power is 32
pills a day (eight pills at a time), generally for a year, which can be lowered
to half that over time. A new version of the same formula to be marketed in a
month requires half the dose, and is more easily digested with fewer side
effects, Synergy claims. The main side effects are nausea and GI problems,
occurring in four percent of patients, according to the company.
In week one to week three after taking the supplement, the side effects from
your old meds will increase. Synergy's explanation is that as the supplement
starts to kick in, your body requires less of the old meds, resulting in an
overmedication effect, which can be resolved by beginning to wean off the drugs.
More meds side effects may follow later on, a sign to reduce your meds still
further, and so on until you are off your old meds. Synergy/Truehope recommends
working with your doctor and staying in touch with Truehope's operatives.
FURTHER READING
For an article I did earlier this year based on Dr Kaplan's study for the
Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, see:
http://www.ndmda.org/Research/ResearchUpdate2.html
click here
For an article on my website on nutritional supplements in general, including EM
Power, see:
http://www.mcmanweb.com/article-113.htm
click
here
For Truehope's website:
http://www.truehope.com/
click here
DISCLAIMER
Please do not interpret any of the above as an endorsement of EM Power or any
therapy using mineral or vitamin supplements. Clearly, we need a lot more
research to validate this type of treatment or to prove it wanting, just as we
need researchers willing to carry out that research, with full institutional
backing.
YOUR REACTION
If you have used EM Power or any other mineral/vitamin supplement program,
please share your experience by emailing your comments to
jmcmanamy@snet.net Confidentiality
ensured.
SEGUE
And now back to normal programming ...
STAYING VULNERABLE
A University of Texas study asked 25 women to recall sad experiences as their
brains were being scanned. Those who were currently depressed and those who had
recovered from depression showed similarities in certain regions of the brain
that were different from the healthy women in the study. According to the
study's co-author, Helen Mayberg MD, talking to WebMD: "We have known that
people remain vulnerable to depression once they have suffered a depressive
episode. But we are now seeing for the first time those brain areas that seem to
track emotional vulnerability."
The brain regions include the subgenual cingulate (identified with sadness) and
the medial frontal cortex (linked with cognitive aspects of processing emotions)
located deep within the frontal lobes.
http://my.webmd.com/content/article/1663.54540
click here
AN MAOI PATCH
Newsletter 4#19 reported on a transdermal patch involving an MAOI drug,
selegiline, used to treat Parkinson's, that was found to work for depression
without the notorious side effects associated with MAOIs. A McLean Hospital
placebo-controlled study of 177 patients with major depression found 42 percent
on the patch recovered after six weeks or much sooner, a promising result as
MAOIs are often a last resort. Ninety-four percent of the patients on the patch
stuck with the treatment, with three people dropping out because of skin
irritation at the site of the patch. The patients followed a tyramine-restricted
diet during the trial.
http://my.webmd.com/content/article/1663.54542
click here
KIDS
A feature article in US News, "The Demons of Childhood," notes only 6,300 child
psychiatrists practice in the US when the nation needs more than 30,000. Yet
more than 20 percent of child and adolescent residency programs were unfilled in
1999, largely because a young doctor must complete a three-year residency in
adult psychiatry plus an additional two-year program in child psychiatry, only
to wind up at the bottom of the pay scale for his or her efforts. The result is
less than one child psychiatrist per 100,000 kids in Mississippi and 20 per
100,000 in Massachusetts.
Then there is the matter of paying for that care. "If a child had cancer we
would be infuriated if parents were made to beg for care," says child
psychiatrist Harding. Kelly Troyer.
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/issue/021111/health/11kids.htm
click here
AT RISK
An East Carolina study of 1,000 low-income African American women found nearly
13 percent of those with depressive symptoms delivered early compared to eight
percent without the symptoms. Spontaneous preterm birth affects twice as many
African American women as white women.
http://www.lifeclinic.com/healthnews/article_view.asp?story=22644
click here
SMART RATS
A Rutgers study on female rats has found learning was impaired in the group that
received no Prozac but not with the rats receiving the drug. Prozac may protect
a woman's learning abilities after a stressful or traumatic event. With male
rats, exposure to stress actually enhances learning.
http://www.eurekalert.org/
click here
FORCED DRUGGING
The US Supreme Court has announced it will hear Sell v US, which will decide
whether the government may force a mentally ill defendant to take medication so
he will be competent to stand trial on nonviolent criminal charges. Charles
Sell, a dentist, is charged with defrauding Medicaid and private insurers. Early
this year, the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled two to one that
the government could require Sell to take his medication. The decision clashes
with a Sixth Circuit ruling.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A4926-2002Nov4.html
click here
HOME FREE
This sort of falls into the being knocked off a bridge by a car and being booked
for leaving the scene of an accident category: The Washington Post reports that
cities all across the US are cracking down on the homeless, passing ordinances
that restrict their behavior and urging residents and visitors to ignore
panhandlers' request for money. The new economic climate has resulted in a sharp
increase in homelessness, with business groups complaining loudly over the
nuisance these people cause. This week, San Francisco passed by a wide margin
Proposition N, "care not cash," which would drastically slash welfare payments
to the homeless and redirect the funds to services.
http://www.msnbc.com/news/827991.asp
click here
MEANWHILE ...
Oregon voters defeated by four to one Measure 23, which would have created
universal healthcare for state residents.
THROWING IT AROUND
The Westchester Journal News reports the pharmaceutical industry is a $250
billion business, called the world's most profitable by Fortune magazine. Last
year, according to IMS health, drug manufacturers spent $19 billion in
advertising. The industry has more than 600 registered lobbyists in Washington,
more than the oil industry, and contributed $26.5 million to political campaigns
in 2000. [McMan's note: This year Big Pharma supported Republican
candidates.]
http://www.thejournalnews.com/rtc/27part7.htm Westchester NY
click
here
UNIPOLARS ARE
BIPOLARS WAITING TO HAPPEN
According to a Medscape report on a talk given by Hagop Akiskal MD of the
University of San Diego, at the XII World Congress of Psychiatry in Yokohama,
"an estimated 30 to 55 percent of patients with major depression suffer from
bipolar spectrum disorder." Dr Akiskal favors an expansionist view of bipolar
extending outside the scope of the DSM-IV. According to one study, 73 percent of
86 patients with atypical depression met the criteria for bipolar II and
"softer" BP subtypes.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/441617
click
here
IF THE DRUG
DOESN'T KNOCK YOU OUT, THE NEOLIGM WILL
According to an Agence France report, the US tried to develop mood-altering gas
similar to that used in the recent Moscow hostage crisis, but abandoned the
program due to international law restrictions. The aim of the fentanyl-based
"calmatives" was to produce unconsciousness, but as the Moscow siege made clear,
the gas did a lot more than that.
BACK TO HIS NASTY
OLD SELF
He's back. Boone Pickens, the corporate raider from the 80s who became notorious
going after Gulf, Unocal, and Phillips, has tried to take over two independent
oil and gas companies this year. He also runs a commodities fund, owns 25
percent of the largest provider of natural gas, and is looking to sell the water
under his Texas ranch, which if it goes ahead could set a precedent for the
privatization of water. In 1997, after losing Mesa, the company he founded, and
a messy divorce, he sought help for depression. "I was going downhill." he told
the Dallas Morning News. "I had lost interest in a lot of things. I really
didn't care about seeing people anymore." Soon after, things turned around, and
at age 74 he is back his old self, if being "the most hated man in corporate
America," as Fortune magazine once called him, can be regarded as true
remission.
CONAN THE BI-BARIAN
According to The Sunday Mirror, depression is a constant in the life of late
night talk show host Conan O'Brien, said to have bipolar. ''There's no cure for
getting depressed,'' he said. ''There's no cure for self-loathing either. But
figure out enough about it so that when it happens you can get over it and keep
moving and just accomplish more.'' He has been in and out of therapy since the
late 1980s.
GROUND CONTROL TO
MAJOR TOMS
According to Psychology Today, NASA is developing a self-help program for
astronauts to address psychological issues, including depression, during their
extended time in space. A prototype is expected for evaluation by October 2003,
with plans to develop the program further. A human mission to Mars, by today's
reckoning, will involve nine months travel in each direction, plus probably a
year on the planet, itself.
PSYCH WARS
Last week's Newsletter reported on a Janssen-backed study that found Zyprexa and
other antipsychotics ran a higher risk of diabetes, but not, of course,
Janssen's own Risperdal, prompting this writer to comment, "Don't be surprised
to find Eli Lilly retaliating with its own study, this time involving prolactin
levels affecting guess which drug."
It turns out yours truly has an uncanny psychic ability to see into the past. In
August last year (Vol 3 No 32), I reported that: "Eli Lilly, maker of Zyprexa,
has issued findings that show Risperdal (manufactured by Janssen) and the older
antipsychotics increase prolactin levels ... "
According to IMS Health, antipsychotics accounted for more than $6 billion in
sales worldwide in 2000, and is expected to surpass $8.1 billion in 2005,
according to Decision Resources.
FROM THE AJP
* A study of 1,746 adults found no difference in treatment response between
sexes to Prozac or tricyclics, though women had a better response than men to
MAOIs. Women below 50 and over 50 had equivalent response rates to tricyclics
and Prozac. The results challenge earlier findings that men preferentially
respond to tricyclics and women to SSRIs, and that younger women do better than
older women on SSRIs.
* A survey of Europeans with major depression found 18.5 percent had either
delusions or hallucinations, representing four of 1,000 individuals in the
general population. Feelings of worthless or guilt or suicidal thoughts were
associated with high rates of hallucinations and delusions.
* A study of women on Prozac or tricyclics throughout their entire pregnancy
found none of the antidepressants affected their child's IQ, language
development, or behavior after 15 and 71 months compared to women not on
antidepressants.
* Partially adherent patients on mood stabilizers were 81 percent likely to be
hospitalized over 18 months vs nine percent among those who remained adherent.
http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/current.shtml
click here
TRICYCLICS
A Japanese meta-analysis of 35 studies found low dose tricyclics as efficacious
as high dose tricyclics, with the advantage of fewer dropouts due to side
effects.
http://bmj.com/cgi/gca?sendit=Get+All+Checked+Abstracts&gca=325%2F7371%2F991
click here
FROM BIPOLAR
DISORDERS
* A 16-week trial found Mirapex (Pramipexole), a dopamine agonist used to treat
Parkinson's, found 67.7 percent of patients with unipolar or bipolar depression
responded, with 10 of 31 dropping out due to adverse effects.
* An open-label study of Neurontin added to other mood stabilizers or atypical
antipsychotics found overall Hamilton depression scores decreased 53 percent,
with better response among those with mild to moderate bipolar depression.
* Add-on Gabitril demonstrated limited efficacy among treatment-refractory
patients, with serious side effects.
* Patients receiving high loading doses of Depakote had slightly better mania
scores after three days than the slow-dosing group.
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/servlet/useragent?func=showIssues&code=bdi&journal=mbd
click here
MEA CULPA
"As I have listened personally to the stories of men and women who have endured
such abuse, I have learned that some of these consequences include lifelong
struggles with alcohol and drug abuse, depression, difficulty in maintaining
relationships and, sadly, suicide. I acknowledge my own responsibility for
decisions which led to intense suffering."
Cardinal Law of Boston, saying something he should have
said years ago.
MCMAN'S WEB
Check out more than 190 articles on all aspects of depression and bipolar, plus
a bookstore, readers' forum, message boards, and other features at:
http://www.mcmanweb.com/
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"Knowledge is necessity."
