The Washington Post recently reported that the fatty acids of fish oil significantly reduced the symptoms of manic depression. A Harvard University clinical trial of 44 patients with manic, or bipolar, depression had such positive results with 14 fish oil capsules daily, that the experiment was stopped and all the patients were treated with the fish oil. Based on these results, the National Institutes of Health has given approval for a larger study this summer. The hope is that the study will lead to insight into the cause of this psychiatric disorder.

Fish oil is extremely high in omega-3 fatty acids that have been associated with reduced cardiovascular disease and other health benefits. The highest concentrations of omega-3 fatty acids are in the eyes and the brain. They appear to be important in the proper functioning of cell membranes.

Although the study looked only at the effects on bipolar depression, a condition marked by large mood swings from mania to deep depression that affects 1% to 2% of the population, some researchers feel that omega-3 fatty acids may play an equally important role in unipolar depression which affects an estimated 20% of the population in one form or another.

In the study, patients were given 10 grams of fish oil fatty acids per day, a very large dose. There were only minor side effects such as gastric upset and diarrhea. Despite the positive results, researchers are concerned about the unsupervised use of fish oil by manic depressive patients to treat their condition. Patients should take fish oil supplements only after consulting with the their doctors. Patients taking large doses of fish oil should also take vitamins E and C as antioxidants.

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