How Fish May Lift Depression

The fatty acids in fish oil may help ease symptoms of manic depression, according to a new study in this month's issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.

In a four-month study of 30 people undergoing treatment for bipolar disorder, researchers found that the omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil could act as mood stabilizers, providing short-term relief.

Dr. Andrew Stoll, the lead author of the study conducted at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, said the preliminary research "opens the door for more research on omega-3 fatty acid's effect on a variety of other psychiatric disorders."

The subjects were between the ages of 18 and 65 and were also undergoing prescribed treatment for manic depression. Fourteen were given pills with the equivalent of 15 cans of tuna a day; 16 were given placebo pills made out of olive oil.

Nine of the 14 patients who got the omega-3 fatty acids experienced relief of their symptoms; three of the 16 who got the placebo described such relief.

Researchers have hypothesized that overactive cell-signaling pathways in the brain cause bipolar disorder. The study concluded that the ingestion of large amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, a type of polyunsaturated fat, can dampen these cell-signaling pathways.

Ingesting the fish oil had no significant side effects other than some cases of mild gastrointestinal distress, researchers said.

Researchers acknowledged that the study involved a small number of patients and might have been compromised because some subjects reported a distinct "fishy" taste that may have tipped them off to their treatment.

Dr. Francisco Fernandez, chairman of the psychiatry department at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Ill., said he also had concerns about the study's methods but said they didn't detract from the promising results. "Obviously, all these things will need to be addressed in a follow-up study," Fernandez said. "But I think it's very encouraging. It's not something that takes a leap of faith."

Written By Andrew Buchanan