For more information about omega-3s and their wide-ranging health benefits, browse our health sites.

Antipsychotic drugs work by moderating the effects of neurotransmitters in the brain, including  dopamine, serotonin, noradrenaline and acetylcholine, regulating numerous aspects of behaviour including mood, emotions, sleep and appetite.

In 2009 the Department of Health ordered a review into the use of antipsychotic drugs, and later found that they are over-prescribed for treating aggression and agitation in people with dementia, contrary to NICE guidance. In fact, the review went as far as suggesting that up to two thirds of those individuals with dementia receiving anti-psychotic drugs were prescribed drugs unnecessarily.  The concern surrounding the use of such drugs in dementia patients appears to be a significant increase in the risk of sudden death (Ballard et al, 2009), and  increasing evidence suggests that some antipsychotics may be associated with adverse cardiovascular side effects and arrhythmia (abnormal heart rhythms) which, if severe enough, can lead to sudden cardiac death (Karlsson et al, 2009).

What is extremely concerning is that the use of antipsychotics is widespread across a range of conditions. Indeed, antipsychotic medications are a common course of treatment for autism, including children who express behavioural problems, such as aggression, self-harming behaviour, and severe tantrums. Autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) affect more than 500,000 people in the UK. These neurodevelopment disorders include both autism and Asperger syndrome and involve severely impaired social, communication, and behaviour skills.  Simply put, individuals with ASD have problems with verbal and non-verbal communication, difficulties with social interaction and demonstrate lack of imagination and creative play.

Whilst people with Asperger syndrome can lead relatively normal lives, individuals with autism are usually more severely disabled and show quite severe symptoms.  Autistic children can often become hyperactive and aggressive, with seizures common in around 15 to 30 per cent of individuals. In these cases, children are often treated with antipsychotics.  In relation to this, a Brazilian group of researchers have recently suggested that omega-3 fatty acid supplementation in ASD patients treated with atypical antipsychotic drugs may reduce cardiac arrhythmias and hence the risk of sudden cardiac death (Cysneiros et al, 2009). It appears that using fish oil as an ‘add-on’ supplement could help to protect vulnerable individuals from the adverse side effects associated with pharmaceutical drugs that are so commonly prescribed.

Omega-3 fatty acids have long been known to offer a protective role against cardiovascular disease (CVD), via their inhibitory role of cardiac arrhythmias, their uptake into cell membranes, keeping them fluid and flexible,  improved function of cardiomyocytes (the cells that make up heart tissue), as well as their role in the production of anti-inflammatory substances in the body.

The omega-3 EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), in particular, is gaining much interest for its role in regulating neurotransmitters.  Already praised for its role in safely regulating and alleviating the symptoms associated with many mental health disorders – including schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder and depression as well as a number of neurodevelopmental disorders – it is therefore natural to wonder why it is that doctors and psychiatrists are still so eager to prescribe drugs with well documented, potentially life threatening, side-effects.  Given the safe record of fish oil supplementation, not to mention their well-established benefits, might it not be sensible to concentrate on researching these fatty acids as potential replacements/add-on treatments for such conditions?

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Do you have any health-related issues you’d like to discuss with Dr Nina Bailey? Send in your comments and queries to ninab@igennus.com

References

Ballard C, Hanney ML, Theodoulou M, Douglas S, McShane R, Kossakowski K, Gill R, Juszczak E, Yu LM, Jacoby R; DART-AD investigators. (2009) The dementia antipsychotic withdrawal trial (DART-AD): long-term follow-up of a randomised placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Neurol.  8:151-7.

Cysneiros RM, Terra VC, Machado HR, Arida RM, Schwartzman JS, Cavalheiro EA, Scorza FA. (2009) May the best friend be an enemy if not recognized early: possible role of omega-3 against cardiovascular abnormalities due antipsychotics in the treatment of autism.  Arq Neuropsiquiatr. 67:922-6.

Karlsson J, Wallerstedt SM, Star K, Bate A, Hägg S. (2009) Sudden cardiac death in users of second-generation antipsychotics. J Clin Psychiatry. 70:1725-6.

Fish oil has for some time been linked with mood disorders, and was a key part of the prescription in Professor Basant Puri’s book, published originally in 2004, The Natural Way to Beat Depression: The Groundbreaking Discovery of EPA to Change Your Life. Since then, there have been several large-scale trials adding further support for the therapeutic use of purified fish oil in treating mood disorders. Now, an international team of researchers from Austria, Australia and Switzerland have revealed research findings (to be published in the February issue of Archives of General Psychiatry) which indicates a preventative effect of fish oil on the development of mental illness into fully developed schizophrenia.

The study, which involved 81 people deemed to be at high risk of developing psychosis, showed that a three-month course of fish oil may cut the rate of schizophrenia by a quarter. Half of the group were randomly assigned to take fish oil daily for three months, and the other patients took a placebo. After a year of monitoring all the subjects, 2 of the 41 (or about 5%) patients in the fish oil group had become psychotic, compared with 11 out of the 40 in the placebo group (about 28%).

The authors are hopeful that this finding will present real and effective alternatives to antipsychotic drugs, some of which are very potent and can have serious side effects. Fish oil supplements, on the other hand, are generally well tolerated, and are a safe option for people with mental health problems.

Igennus donations to ME Research UK

Since the Spring of 2006, we have been working alongside full time Carer Lynne Kersh, to provide the benefits of our supplement Vegepa for thousands of ME patients, while raising important funds for biomedical research for ME Research UK.  Lynne’s daughter Daliany is a long-standing sufferer of ME.

The Vegepa For ME scheme now has almost five thousand members, who take Vegepa on a regular basis to help manage their symptoms of M.E. Overwhelmingly, most people have experienced marked improvements in some of their symptoms (noticeably better concentration, less brain-fog, more refreshing sleep, while others report greater energy).

For every box of Vegepa sold through this scheme we donate 50 pence to charity, providing funding for academics to carry out research into this much misunderstood condition.

As Lynne says, “I’m absolutely delighted that during the life of the scheme we have been able to donate £31,739.50 to ME Research UK. More is being collected every day towards our next donation — and the scheme now has 4829 members in 20 different countries.”

We would like to thank Lynne and all members of the Vegepa for ME scheme for making this possible, and hope that we can donate even more in 2010, helping to support ME Research UK action projects such as a brain imaging study at the University of London, and the brain, liver and muscle project at the University of Newcastle.

The human brain is a complex organ that controls our senses, our movements, receives information, analyses information, and stores this information as memories. Dementia, simply put, means ‘deprived of the mind’ and, contrary to what many of us consider an acceptable part of growing old, memory loss and dementia are not a natural part of the ageing process. Scientists are now suggesting that the omega-3 EPA, found in fish oil, can help. Like any organ, the brain needs nurturing, and if we provide our brain with the correct nutrients then we can help to ensure the function of our brain remains at its most efficient.

Oily fish is particularly high in the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and it is these fats that are known to have a profound role in brain function – in part through their regulation of neurotransmitters such as acetylcholine, which plays a vital role in regulating cognitive function.  Loss of acetylcholine-producing neurons is thought to account for some of the degradation of cognitive function associated with Alzheimer’s disease. These fats have consequently become the focus of many studies looking at methods to protect the brain from premature aging.

Indeed, evidence to clarify the role of EPA on memory has been the focus of a study published in a recent edition of the Journal of Neurochemistry (Taepavarapruk & Song, 2009).   In the study, researchers fed artificially stressed animals a control diet containing palm oil, which then showed a subsequent decrease in the release of acetylcholine. This decrease was also associated with a decrease in expression of nerve growth factor – a protein that is important for the growth, maintenance, and survival of neurons.  Both of these changes were associated with memory impairment.

In contrast, similarly stressed animals fed diets containing EPA showed improved memory, which the scientists conducting the study linked to an inhibition in the reduction of acetylcholine and nerve growth factor release.  Simply put, EPA helped to maintain acetylcholine and nerve growth factor function, which in turn helped to maintain memory.  More interestingly, however, was their finding that of the two fatty acids studied (EPA and DHA), it was only EPA that demonstrated these beneficial results.

Whilst DHA provides an important structural role in brain nerve tissue, the results of this study further imply that EPA has a very direct protective role, influencing both the production and release of neurotransmitters that become depleted in Alzheimer’s disease.

These results offer hope to many people and further support the role of the omega-3 EPA in neuronal function.  For example, it has been previously demonstrated in vitro and in animal studies that EPA (preferentially over DHA) stimulates the expression of several myelin proteins known to play a vital role in maintaining cell membrane integrity (Salvati et al, 2004; Salvati et al, 2008).   As the evidence for EPA’s neuro-protective role in dementia increases, we are also seeing a corresponding growth in the demand for high quality, purified EPA fish oil.  Indeed, the supplement market has grown considerably in the last decade and is now saturated with a wide variety of products, of which the average content appears to be 180 mg EPA and 120 mg DHA in 1000 mg fish oil. Not all supplements offer the same benefits, however, and low concentration fish oil products are certainly impractical for therapeutic use.

With increasing concerns over contamination and research uncovering the unique individual biological properties of DHA and EPA, there has been a significant rise in high quality highly purified supplements containing specific ratios of EPA to DHA, as well as pure EPA with no DHA and vice versa. With research uncovering the unique properties of EPA in treating Alzheimer’s disease, a pure EPA supplement that is free of DHA is likely to offer the most benefit for therapeutic use. Vegepa high strength EPA capsules contain a unique synergistic formulation which combines ultra-pure EPA and organic virgin evening primrose oil, providing a highly concentrated source of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and botanical free radical-scavenging triterpenes. An increasing number of doctors and nutrition experts are using Vegepa for a number of conditions including depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, cardiovascular health, arthritis, dementia, as well as common skin disorders.

References

Salvati S, Natali F, Attorri L, Raggi C, Di Biase A, Sanchez M. (2004) Stimulation of myelin proteolipid protein gene expression by eicosapentaenoic acid in C6 glioma cells. Neurochemistry International 44: 331-8.

Salvati S, Natali F, Attorri L, Di Benedetto R, Leonardi F, Di Biase A, Ferri F, Fortuna S, Lorenzini P, Sanchez M, Ricceri L, Vitelli L. (2008) Eicosapentaenoic acid stimulates the expression of myelin proteins in rat brain. Journal of Neuroscience Research 86: 776-84.

Taepavarapruk P, Song C. 2009 Reductions of acetylcholine release and nerve growth factor expression are correlated with memory impairment induced by interleukin-1beta administrations: effects of omega-3 fatty acid EPA treatment. J Neurochem. Dec 3. [Epub ahead of print]

The study, from the University of California, recruited 608 patients with coronary heart defects to observe the effects of omega-3 on heart health; after five years, scientists repeated these tests and discovered that those patients with the highest omega-3 intake showed a 32% reduction in cellular aging – a marker of biological age.

This story has spread like wildfire across national newspapers worldwide – an exciting finding which adds further weight to the notion that the secret to longevity is to approach our health from the inside out. What we eat nourishes us from the inside, and a healthy, youthful body is more likely to look youthful on the outside too. Anti-ageing creams applied topically to the skin may help to slow the visual signs of ageing, but what really is key to slowing the ageing process is our physiological health – and that can’t be faked or cheated.

The Guardian covered this story last week, likening the protective effect of omega-3s on our cells to the plastic at the ends of shoelaces, “preventing the ends of chromosomes… becoming damaged and keep the DNA organised and contained.”

This is good news for those of us who want to slow down the ageing process, staying healthier for longer. Omega-3s are easily incorporated into the daily diet, whether by increasing our consumption of oily fish, or by taking purified omega-3 fish oil supplements, which enable us to take concentrated doses of these beneficial nutrients, without exposure to the contaminants present especially in larger species of fish.

The authors of this study importantly point out that omega-3s are just one of the factors involved in this aspect of the ageing process in cells, citing oxidative stress as another influence over our biological age. In this respect it is really important to pay attention to other areas of the diet, particularly in relation to eating plenty of antioxidant-rich fruit and vegetables, preferably organic sources in order to avoid fertilizers and herbicides. Vitamin E and vitamin C are potent antioxidants and can be sourced via the diet or through supplementation.

Our purified omega-3 supplements derived from anchovy oil promote the benefits of the long-chain fatty acid EPA, known in particular for its role in brain function, mood and cardiovascular health. Read more about our range of purified omega-3 products, which are endorsed by leading medical professionals.

References

Farzaneh-Far, R. Lin, J.,  Epel, E.S.,. Harris W.S, Blackburn, E.H. Whooley, M.A, ‘Association of Marine Omega-3 Fatty Acid Levels With Telomeric Aging in Patients With Coronary Heart Disease’,Journal of the American Medical Association 2010, Volume 303, Issue 3, pp. 250-257.

The not-so-effective traditional approach to ADHD

It can be difficult being the parent of a child with ADHD – perhaps your other children row excessively with him or her, and find it difficult to accept that their ‘naughty’ sibling often gets off the hook. Yet treating your child with behavioural problems exactly the same as your other offspring is not necessarily the fairest approach either. This is one example of a number of problems that ADHD can have on a family:

• Poor grades at school
• Problems building relationships with other children
• Temper tantrums and aggressive behaviour
• Relationship problems between parents (often resulting from each parent having a different approach to dealing and interacting with their child)

Many parents consider pharmaceutical medication recommended by their child’s doctor when other approaches such as parent education programmes and behavioural techniques have not demonstrated significant improvements. Understandably many people are reluctant to put their child on Ritalin (the brand name for methylphenidate), largely due to serious questions about its impact on the developing brain and its serious side effects, particularly in younger children.

What’s more, The Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with ADHD in the USA has been monitoring the treatment of 600 children across the US since the 1990s, and has found that drugs such as Ritalin and Concerta work no better than behaviour therapy after three years of treatment. Alarmingly, the researchers in this study also found that the children on drugs weren’t growing as much as other children in terms of both height and weight. All in all that’s a lot of unnecessary chemicals and risk involved for very little gain in the long run.

What is possible?

Usually parents resort to giving their child Ritalin or Concerta when they see no real alternative to help their child and deal with their behaviour. Perhaps a marriage is starting to show strain and the potential to relieve some of the immediate problems with their child is a welcome break. These reasons are certainly not uncommon.

Naturally, parents want the best for their offspring; to see them doing well at school, with lots of healthy friendships and a general enthusiasm for life. We all want to see our children happy, and for life to be easier for them. Well this is all possible, without drugs.

What many people don’t know is that children’s learning disorders (not just ADHD) can be influenced a great deal by the diet – and we don’t simply mean those artificial e-numbers. Brain chemistry is, to a good extent, influenced by what we. Food can control mood, attention, behaviour… a whole host of characteristics which are present in ADHD.

Our aim in producing natural omega-3 supplements is to offer people effective and science-based alternatives to prescription medication. What’s more, you can be content in knowing that medical professionals and leading psychiatrists recommend Vegepa, since its ingredients are backed by substantial research showing that omega-3 EPA balances brain chemistry and improves children’s attention, learning and mood.

Vegepa was the first omega-3 supplement to be used in a study which examined aspects of children’s behaviour and learning using MRI brain scanning technology, which revealed astonishing results, including remarkable improvements in reading age, handwriting, problem solving, and the children felt better too.

Many children’s learning problems are strongly linked with levels of omega-3 in the diet, and there are very few cases where manipulating the diet slightly won’t help improve at least some of your child’s more serious symptoms.

What you can do to improve your child’s diet and omega-3 intake

Persuading a child to eat healthily can be a challenge that even the most determined parents struggle with. Still, if your child enjoys eating fish then cooking salmon, mackerel and anchovies at mealtimes is a great way to boost their omega-3 intake. Eating too much can be detrimental, however, and the FSA recommends two portions weekly to be within safe limits.

If your child is like the majority of other children and turns their nose up at the sight of fish, you still have the chance to manage their symptoms naturally, without resorting to prescription medication.  A course of Vegepa provides super strength omega-3 EPA, the important brain-boosting nutrient, which has been shown to ease symptoms of ADHD.

• Vegepa Chewables are 3x the strength of Eye Q fish oils!
• Supplementation is safe and easy
• Our oils are highly purified
• Precisely formulated to replenish chemical imbalances and restore a natural balance
• Enhances concentration, attention, learning and behaviour
• Naturally orange flavoured
• Free from salicylates, sugar, artificial flavourings & colours
• Recommended by leading practitioners

Get your child started on a course of omega-3 EPA Vegepa Chewable capsules now by ordering from our secure online shop. If you want to receive more detailed information e-mail press@igennus.com with the subject line ’subscribe.’