Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder that usually occurs in young adulthood. Many non-medicinal therapies have been examined for use in schizophrenia sufferers, including gentle, non-invasive therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapies and nutritional approches.
Vitamin C Reduces Oxidation
Antioxidant therapies have been shown to be beneficial in patients with schizohrenia. Antioxidants may help to prevent free radical damage that can occur in the brain from normal metablic functioning, to which schizophrenic patients are thought to be particularly susceptible. A small, short-term study on the value of vitamin C has shown that schizophrenics who took vitamin C along with treatment medication showed better markers of blood levels of vitamin C as well as decreased levels of markers for oxidation in the brain than those who did not.
Antioxidants Help Tics and Mood
Vitamin E, Alpha-lipoic acid, and even melatonin (which is a derivative of serotonin) have also been recommended as particularly strong antioxidants for schizophrenics with some of the grotesque outward tics that can be manifestations of the illness. Additionally, seventy five percent of schizophrenics who were also taking birth control pills, and had symptoms associated with mood, were shown to be helped by taking B-6 along with their regular medication.
Omega threes can protect brain
A comprehensive paper by the American Journal of Psychiatry contends that lack of in the diet can lead to mental illness. A review of the literature in the Medical College of Georgia reports that the use of omega-3 fatty acids in combination with supplementation with antioxidants may be useful in protecting the sensitive biochemical pathways of those suffering from schizophrenia, whose brains may be more susceptible to oxidation, dietary imbalance, and the ravages of stress than those not suffering from the illness. Fatty fish and walnuts, among other foods, are good providers of omega-3 fatty acids. Care should be taken in the choice of fatty fish sources, as fish may contain mercury deposits.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapies
A positive critique of a research paper called the Cochrane Review suggests that therapies which integrate personal coping methods with personal support systems are essential and beneficial to the schizophrenia sufferer. Music therapy, although long-term outcomes have not been discovered, is considered an active form of treatment that can engage the person in his own healing in a creative and active way.
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