Can Tardive Dyskinesia Be Prevented or Reversed?

Tardive Dyskinesia is a devastating side effect from taking prescription Neuroleptic (anti-psychotic) drugs, anti-spasmodic drugs, and anti-anxiety drugs. These drugs are used for conditions such as depression, Parkinson's, and schizophrenia. There are at least 100 drugs that cause T.D. including Metoclopramide (brands names of Reglan, Octaminde and Moxolon) which are prescribed for acid reflux. T.D. does occur in some patients even within the first month of taking the drug. The longer you take the medicine, the more likely you are to develop Tardive Dyskinesia. If you are over 65, your chances for developing T.D. increase. You need to seriously weigh the reason you are taking the drug against the risk of developing T.D. T.D. symptoms may not end even when you stop the medication. This can be permanent in some patients.

Tardive Dyskinesia and Its Effects On the Body:

T.D. causes the patients face, tongue, and limbs to thrust and writhe. The patient utters involuntary sounds such as smacking, sucking of the lips, crying, grunting, or laughing. The uncontrollable persistent spasms strain muscles and exhaust the patient's body. If the patient stops the offending drug, then begins the medication again, he may have T.D. even more severely. This is why it is so dangerous to give children adult drugs that are not cleared by the FDA for their problem or age group. While traditional doctors have no cure for TD, many Orthomolecular doctors do treat T.D. with a great deal of success. To find out more about Orthomolecular Medicine and TD, please go here . There are links as well at the end of this article for more research.

Orthomolecular Medicine Uses Specific Nutrients To Prevent and Reverse T.D.

Orthomolecular Medicine works to normalize the brain's neurotransmitters. Some neurotransmitters excite the brain and some calm brain activity. In normal brain activity, they are balanced. In T.D. and many seizure disorders, the neurotransmitters are going hay wire. They have lost their proper function and are causing abnormal activity. Orthomolecular Medicine also works to re-balance the nutrition of the body and correct deficiencies. These deficiencies may be caused from genetic problems, diseases, mental diseases, diets that are deficient, and medications that disrupt the mental and physical homeostasis.

Research Studies By Orthomolecular Medicine on T.D.

It has been shown in several research studies, giving B6 starting at 100mg and progressing up to 400mg over 4 weeks results in significant improvements in abnormal movements. In another study, patients improved in a week given 1000 to 1400 mg of Vitamin B6 per day. Orthomolecular Medicine works by evaluating then normalizing severe nutritional deficiencies in a patient. These nutritional deficiencies are either genetic or caused from prescription medicine. The patient needs to be closely monitored by an Orthomolecular physician when taking large doses of vitamins. Orthomolecular physicians take both blood and urine tests to assess the patient's brain neurotransmitters. Once they have that data, they prescribe the correct dosage of the vitamin or amino acids to normalize the patient's brain neurotransmitters. It is important that you do this under physician monitoring after proper testing.

In another study reported, TD was treated with manganese, B3, B4, and B5, B6 and Vitamin C with success to both prevent TD and cut down the effects of TD. You need to be treated by a psychiatrist that is nutritionally oriented.

Nutrients Used In the Prevention and Reversal of Tardive Dyskinesia:

Manganese Is concentrated in the area of the brain where abnormal muscle movements originate. Often patients with psychiatric problems are deficient in manganese and their brain uses a higher than normal amount of this mineral. Hospital diets have been also been found to be deficient in Manganese. Orthomolecular physicians often use manganese, niacin, choline, Vitamins E, B6 and EFA's to prevent T.D. Orthomolecular physicians feel manganese and Niacin are two of the most important nutrients crucial in the prevention and reversal of T.D. It is much easier to prevent T.D. then try to reverse it. In many cases even Orthomolecular physicians can't reverse the brain abnormalities.

Choline: a precursor to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, important in movement and memory. Choline helps protect nerve cells.

B6: essential to the function of the nervous system. It supports the production and healthy maintenance of the brain's neurotransmitters and is used in the metabolism of amino acids.

B Vitamins: used to maintain healthy nerve tissue and healthy neurotransmitters.

Essential Fatty Acids: Help to prevent and reverse severe T.D. side effects especially in a protocol with other nutrients.

Herbs: Some naturopathic physicians have had success using an herbal formula including Skullcap, Lady's Slipper, Wood Betony, Kava Kava, Valerian, Licorice, Siberian Ginseng, and Capsicum. Again this should be used under the direction of an Orthomolecular or naturopathic physician. Nervines and stimulants can alter brain neurotransmitters balances so caution is necessary and important. The patient can get worse instead of better.

Why You Have Not Heard About Orthomolecular Medicine:

Orthomolecular Medicine and Orthomolecular Psychiatry are critically viewed by standard medicine. Standard medicine prefers drug treatment and surgery rather than prevention. I know Orthomolecular Medicine works on many patients. I have talked to patients who were doing amazing well after years of heavy drugs and standard treatment. I have included links at the bottom of this article where you can review research and some stories by patients as well. Considering the standard protocols of heavy psychiatric drugs, shock treatment, years of therapy, and hospitalization into mental institutions, reviewing this information is worth your time and effort. There are many mental conditions that are either caused from or made worse from nutritional deficiencies, and imbalances of the brain's neurotransmitters. Scientists still have years of research ahead to know how the brain completely works. They are learning new information every year. Orthomolecular Medicine has been and is ahead of its time. New research as the years go by will validate the research being presented in Orthomolecular Medicine. Science has a hard time accepting new treatments and admitting they are wrong. It is usually 100 years later before scientists accept new research as valid.

The information in this article should only be used under the direction of an Orthomolecular physician or naturopathic physician. This is not a treatment to undertake yourself.

References:

Natural Healing for Schizophrenia and Other Common Mental Disorders, 3rd Edition, by Eva Edelman, Borage Books, 2001, pp 152-153

http://www.orthomolecular.com/?ctr=article&act=show&id=37

http://www.byregion.net/section/AZ-Healers/practitioners

http://www.nutritional-healing.com.au/content/condition.php?condition=Schizophrenia

http://www.alternativementalhealth.com/articles/td.htm

http://www.brainandspinalcord.org/legal/tardive-dyskinesia/medications.html