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SSRI - Birth of Modern Psychiatry

The above video explains how the pharmaceutical industry has largely “medicalized” many normal emotional states through the promotion of SSRI (Selective Seratonin Reuptake Inhibitor) drugs.  While some people do benefit from such medications, for many, they produce severe side-effects and/or create personality changes that can be disturbing to the people taking the drugs and the people who know them.

In my opinion, SSRI drugs should be reserved for use in people who have difficulty functioning in day to day life and who have already unsuccessfully tried natural methods of controlling depression and anxiety (such as exercise, omega 3 fatty acids, 5-HTP, meditation, Emotional Freedom Technique, etc.).

The only other cases where SSRIs are justified, in my opinion, are in cases where there are signs of severe mental illness, such as in people who view videos like the one above and feel that the video is out of sync with the audio portion of the presentation.  This is a very serious condition indeed, and generally requires institutionalization and often electro-convulsive therapy for any hope at all of recovery (I am of course joking, and although there were some technical issues with the above video, I thought that the information was worth sharing despite the technical issues).

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The following video is an introduction to Emotional Freedom Technique, or EFT for short.  EFT is an acupressure-based method of clearing negative emotions, eliminating bad habits, and alleviating pain.  I know the tapping they show in the video looks pretty silly and there actually is a specific procedure and specific points that you tap on - it’s not just random tapping like it looks on the video. 

I have used EFT on myself and on many of my patients for a wide variety of conditions.  As I said before, it is useful for dealing with negative emotions, habit control, and reducing pain.  Although it looks pretty strange, it can be remarkably effective and can often be a big key to solving certain health problems.

I suggest you give EFT a try.  You can download a free manual on how to do the technique at the Emotional Freedom Technique website.  While there are opportunities for advanced EFT training, in my experience the basic technique works extremely well in most cases, so the free basic manual is all most people need to get great results. 

Emotional Freedom Technique Documentary Film -Try It On Everything

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Depression: Alternative Treatment Methods, 2/3

The above video discusses the lack of science behind using medication to treat depression.  It is widely advertised and accepted by the medical profession that most cases of depression are due to chemical imbalances in the brain and that these imbalances can be corrected with medication.  But there is a problem.  Not only has it never been proven that depression is due to a deficiency of seratonin in the brain and that the SSRI (Selective Seratonin Reuptake Inhibitor) medications help depression by increasing seratonin levels, it is well-known that depression can be related to a number of other issues such as hypoglycemia, drug side-effects, and stress. 

So even if we assume seratonin is an issue in some cases of depression, how do doctors know who has depression because of seratonin deficiency and who has depression from other causes?  They don’t.  After all, they certainly aren’t testing seratonin levels in their patient’s brains before prescribing anti-depressants.  Given that exercise, counseling, omega 3 fatty acids, meditation, and other non-drug treatments for depression provide equivalent or better results without the sometimes serious side-effects of the medication, it makes sense to me to reserve medication as a last resort in treating depression rather than using it as the first option as it so often is today in the United States.

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Omega 3 fatty acids are getting more and more good press as an important part of preventing a number of common health problems.  But why is supplementing with Omega-3’s so important?

First you have to understand that supplementing with Omega-3 fatty acids does not give you “extra” of these beneficial fats.  In fact, most supplementation recommendations probably give most people the minimum they need to balance the other fats in their diets.  Various studies have indicated that indigenous cultures (which typically have very low rates of cancer, heart disease, arthritis, and other chronic conditions) consume a ratio of omega-6 fats to omega-3 fats of approximately 1:1 to 2:1.  Currently in the United States, that ratio ranges from 20:1 to more than 30:1!

Why the huge difference?  First of all, grains and most commercially produced vegetable oils are primarily omega-6 fats and these are staples in the modern American diet.  Second, the primary source of omega-3 fats in the American diet used to be from meats, fish, eggs, and poultry.  What do I mean used to be?  Don’t we still eat those foods in relatively large quantities?  Yes, but what those foods are being fed has changed.

 At one time, most of the meat and poultry came from “free-range” livestock, meaning the animals ate insects and plants that grew wild in their environment.  Insects and plants are high in omega-3 fats, so the animals that eat them are likewise high in omega-3’s.  Today though, most commercially raised meat, poultry, eggs, and even farm-raised fish, are fed primarily grain - which is high in omega-6 fats, not omega-3’s, so the meat, eggs, and fish are also high in omega-6.  This combined with our own tendency to eat a lot of grain-based foods has led to a dramatic shift in the ratio of fats in our diets. 

This shift in the dietary fat ratio with very little omega-3’s being consumed sets us up for a wide variety of health problems.  Because omega-3’s are essential to a number of biochemical processes, the lack of these important fats has led to a general increase in problems that include depression, inflammatory conditions (such as arthritis and allergies/asthma), and cardiovascular disease.  There is even speculation that a lack of omega-3’s may be at least partially involved in the development of neurodegenerative disorders and some types of cancer. 

In any event, except for those very rare individuals who eat almost no grains AND who consume primarily free-range meats, wild game, and/or wild-caught fish, I strongly recommend taking a high-quality supplement at a dosage of 1000 mg of omega-3 fatty acids per day.  Omega-3 supplements are usually made from fish oil, or may be from krill oil.  In either case, if you are getting a good product from a reputable company that has independent lab certificaton of their supplements (as to purity and potency), you should be fine. 

For those who are strict vegans and do not consume animal products of any kind, I suggest using flax seed oil supplements(at least 1000 mg per day).  Flax oil is not high in omega-3’s but the fats in it can be converted to omega-3 in the body in most individuals.  There are some people who cannot efficiently make the conversion to the needed omega-3’s, and if you are having problems with depression and/or inflammatory conditions despite taking flax oil, you may want to consider fish oil, or you may want to try walnut oil (which is high in omega-3’s).  Another option is to try evening primrose or borage oil , as these contain fatty acids that don’t require as much conversion in the body to produce omega-3 fats. 

Stay tuned to my natural remedies blog for more nutrition information for a healthy life!

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