Supplements and possible causes of the psychotic disorders

Do any of you use any supplements? And if so, which? Do they help much to stabilise your moods, lift you from depression, stop your mania?

I take vitamin E at all times and vitamin D during depression.

I also take methylfolate and methyl-B12/-cobalamin.

The latter two are the product of the MTHFR enzyme. A considerable amount of people (10%), especially those of Northern and Western European descent, have a mutation of the MTHFR gene which causes a lower production of the MTHFR enzyme. This in turn causes the chemical reaction from normal B9 and B12 to be catalysed less than in most people. These methyl compounds are used to ameliorate this lacking enzyme activity.

The products of the MTHFR enzyme are used in a biochemical with the MR enzyme to form methionine from homocysteine.

I use the supplement acetylcysteine to further aid in the conversion of homocysteine, both by the MTHFR enzyme, but also by another enzyme called CBS. This supplement also helps to substitute for a possible down-regulation in the activity of the CBS enzyme, thus further lowering homocysteine conversion.

Both the lack of conversion and the accumulation of homocysteine are very toxic for your brain cells. The lack of enough substrates (raw materials) used by the MR enzyme further damages your cells by producing less of SAM, the main source of DNA- and RNA-material.

There is scientific evidence that there might be positive effects from this partially bypassing (maybe just one of) of these enzymes for those with psychotic disorders. It also fits into a theory of psychotic disorders where the cell damage/death is the ultimate cause of it all. That theory is also in line with fewer total and localised cell counts sometimes found in those with psychotic disorders.

So why not just take SAM (marketed as SAMe)?

SAM does help with gene expression and cell creation or repair, but doesn't do anything to lower homocysteine and there is no enzymatic control over the amount of SAM. Over-conversion of SAM can be a problem as well, possibly inducing mania.

Note however that this only might work for some people, if at all (however, it will definitely work with keeping your cells safer, as does vitamin E):

We (those with bipolar) all share much the same chemical imbalances, but that saying as much that there is a water imbalance when it rains—it is saying next to nothing.

We (the scientific community) have no idea what causes lithium, valproate or lamotrigine to work, for example. We even know so little that it is very likely that there are heterogeneous causes for every type of psychotic disorder. What's more, genetically, some people with schizophrenia may be much more like people with borderline personality disorder than some other people with schizophrenia, to name just an example. So, this might work for you or doesn't.

Whatever you do, your brain may be quite a bit more damaged than those of others (memory problems, anyone?). So always keep taking a mood-stabiliser or other med(s). Any excitement/anxiety kills (a few) cells. Mania kills. Of course, we have depression to thank we have any cells left! But also our meds.

I would however encourage everyone to have their homocysteine plasma/blood levels tested. Just in case. It is easy, just another tick of a box (and morning fasting!).

So what about you?

I was very involved in vitamins, herbs, teas minerals. The whole gambit. Then I just lost faith.

I couldn't tell the difference from supplements to no supplements. Had the same amount of manic cycles and long term depressive episodes.
Just for it being easy, I take 1 multiple vitamin and one pack of Emerg C each day.

Vitamins:B Complex 100mg, C 1000mg, D 2000iu, E 800mg, Multiple.
Fish Oil 4000mg. Magnesium 500mg.
Don't know if they're doing good or bad.

Vitamins in so-called "non-active" form are unlikely to make a huge difference, because most people have no or a small deficiency or, if there is a higher deficiency, not for long.

However, the "active" (in case of folate or B12, methylated) form can help in case of insufficient enzyme activity which doesn't just go away (if genes or some chronic biochemical abnormality are at play) because the (small) problems continuously build up over time until they are bigger problems.

Of course longer episodes of mania or depression can be different, since often your appetite is virtually non-existent. But continuous intake of vitamins when you're not manic or depressed is mostly unnecessary. Besides, eating or drinking dairy products, meat or eggs might give you the end-product of vitamin-mediated biochemical reactions without getting "enough" vitamins. If you are vegan, you might have more of a problem.

There is one big exception when it comes to problems with deficiency and that is vitamin D when you are depressed and don't leave the house much. So I would suggest taking that one. When manic, however, it does probably more harm than good.

I forgot one other use of acetylcysteine: cysteine is also used as a enzyme substrate to detoxify toxic substances in your brain. Experiments have shown that use of acetylcysteine probably have noticeable positive effects in psychotic disorders (better reported outcomes than placebo). Yet, as we don't know the causes of BP it is just probable, not certain, that it helps.