New Approaches to Mental Health

"All the new corn comes from old fields." Chaucer

Ref. 1 explains "metabolomics", a new approach to the biochemistry of various metabolic diseases. I predict a bright future for this brute force approach. The locus of body chemicals is called the "metabolome". One problem with this approach is that abnormal chemicals may be involved. Measuring the normal chemicals may not detect an abnormal chemical, but it could find the effects of the abnormal chemical.

The World Psychiatric Association

This outstanding organization has a website at www.wpanet.org. Educational articles and PowerPoint presentations are available in various languages including English and Spanish. I have studied the articles and presentations by Mesa of Cuba. These are in both English and Spanish.

Mesa

Dr. Segundo Mesa-Castillo works at the Psychiatric Hospital of Havana. He has done a great deal of work, but I feel that he has misinterpreted his results (4). He found particles in schizophrenia that he feels represent a virus. My view is that these particles are real, but they are a toxin.

"Therefore the platelet morphological alterations observed that can contribute to the knowledge of the etiology of the illness can also constitutes a biological diagnostic test (endophenotipic marker ) when allowing to differ by means of an analysis of blood a patient of a normal person." Mesa

Mesa claims to have a biological test for schizophrenia. My view is that his test (5) is valid. The test measures abnormal platelets is schizophrenia. These platelets are enlarged containing glycogen granules. To me this signifies a slowing of glucose metabolism. The cells may be overeating some macronutrients. This may cause the slowing of glucose metabolism. The macronutrients could be amino acids.

Advances in Orthomolecular Psychiatry

"All of these are chemically-induced metabolic disorders, which suggests the strong possibility that the "true" schizophrenias left in the "wastebasket" might also be due to biochemical abnormalities." Carl C. Pfeiffer (Nutrition and Mental Illness)

Pfeiffer (7) took an interest in amino acids towards the end of his career. He thought that some amino acids were beneficial. He also took an interest in hypertension and other known physical diseases (11).

"Of course, hypertension is heterogeneous by nature and cannot be attributed solely to any single cause. However, the indictment of the heavy metals, as well as a deficiency of other cations such as calcium, magnesium, and potassium, warrants a more nutritional approach and less reliance on current pharmacological therapy in selected cases."

C. C. Pfeiffer and R. J. Mailloux (11)

Princeton Brain Bio Center, 86 2 Rt. 518, Skillman, New Jersey 08558, USA.

His finding of low plasma tryptophan is interesting, but this may not tell us what the tryptophan level is in the tissues. If there is a transport error, the tryptophan could be too high in the tissues. This finding may have spurred his interest in amino acids in the Eighties.

Pfeiffer and Braverman both believed in orthomolecular psychiatry (19).

Hoffer

Hoffer is still alive, but Pfeiffer is deceased. Hoffer, like Pfeiffer, has been a very prolific writer. The references I have given here for Hoffer (20-23) are only a sample of his work.

Conclusions

All the answers are not yet in. More research needs to be done. I have attempted to put the pieces of the puzzle together (24-27). It is complicated, and there may be more than one puzzle. However, my view is that many forms of mental illness have biochemical similarities. Mesa's work provides important clues. Mesa found degenerating neurons in the brain with fat deposits. The neuron pathology was similar to the platelet pathology. This suggests that the brain cells are overeating some macronutrients, perhaps amino acids. Glucose metabolism is retarded.

All of this work supports orthomolecular treatment except for Mesa's virus theory. The virus theory supports antiviral drugs. However, these drugs have been tried and they failed.

References

1. Quinones, Marlon P., and Rima Kaddurah-Daouk. "Metabolomics tools for identifying biomarkers for neuropsychiatric diseases.(Report)." Neurobiology of Disease 35.2 (August 2009): 165(12). Health Reference Center Academic. Gale. Newton Free Library. 7 July 2009

2. Cytokines and schizophrenia: Microglia hypothesis of schizophrenia.

Monji A, Kato T, Kanba S.

Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2009 Jun;63(3):257-65.

3. PLoS One. 2009;4(5):e5495. Epub 2009 May 8.
Association between catechol-O-methyltrasferase Val108/158Met genotype and prefrontal hemodynamic response in schizophrenia.Takizawa R, Tochigi M, Kawakubo Y, Marumo K, Sasaki T, Fukuda M, Kasai K.

4. Mesa CS, Niubó CE, González NL. Características histopatológicas de una reacción de aglutinación observada en pacientes psicóticos. IV Congreso Ibero-Americano de Anatomía Patológica. IV-CVHAP 2001 Comunicación-E-001; 2001.

5. Mesa CS. Schizophrenia: cytopathological diagnosis valuation scale. Carib Med J 1998; 60: 29-32.

6. Pfeiffer, Carl C. (1987) Nutrition and Mental Illness: An Orthomolecular Approach to Balancing Body Chemistry. ISBN 0-89281-226-5 Healing Arts Press, One Park Street, Rochester, Vermont 05767, The Princeton Brain Bio Center, 862 Route 518, Skillman, NJ 08558, Tel. 609-924-8607.

7. Braverman, ER and Pfeiffer, Carl C (1987) The Healing Nutrients. Keats Publishing Inc, New Canaan, Connecticut.

8. Pfeiffer, Carl C. (1978) Dr. Carl C. Pfeiffer's Updated Fact/Book on Zinc and Other Micro-Nutrients. Keats Publishing, Inc, New Haven, Connecticut. ISBN-10: 0879831693; ISBN-13: 978-0879831691

9. Pfeiffer, Carl C. et al (1975) Mental and Elemental Nutrients, A Physician's Guide to Nutrition and Health Care. Keats Publishing, Inc, New Haven, Connecticut.

10. Pfeiffer, Carl C. Dr. Pfeiffer's Total Nutrition: Nutritional Science and Cookery. (ISBN: 0671240595) NY: Simon & Schuster, 1980-85.

11. Pfeiffer CC, Mailloux RJ. (1988) Hypertension: heavy metals, useful cations and melanin as a possible repository. Med Hypotheses. Jun;26(2):125-30.

12. Pfeiffer CC, Camo B. (1988) Wilson's disease. Arch Neurol. Mar;45(3):247.

13. Pfeiffer CC. (1987) Elementary, dear Watson! Biol Psychiatry. Jul;22(7):805-6.

14. Braverman ER, Pfeiffer CC. (1985) Suicide and biochemistry. Biological Psychiatry. Feb;20(2):123-4.

15. Braverman E.R., Lamola, S, and Pfeiffer, C.C. (1985) Comparison of acute and chronic L-tryptophan loading. Advances in Clinical Nutrition, July 21.

16. Braverman, E.R., Lamola, S and Pfeiffer, C.C. (1985) Low plasma tryptophan in depressed out-patients. Abstracts, 4th World Congress of Biological Psychiatry, Sept. 9, Philadelphia, Pa.

17. Braverman, E.R., Lamola, S. and Pfeiffer, C.C., (1985) Pharmacology of chronic supplementation of amino acids. Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 25:455-474. (No known electronic link)

18. Pfeiffer CC. (1984) Schizophrenia and wheat gluten enteropathy. Biol Psychiatry. Mar;19(3):279-80.

19. Braverman, E.R. and Pfeiffer, C.C. (1982) Orthomolecular medicine and megavitamin therapy: future and philosophy. The Journal of Orthomolecular Psychiatry, vol. 11(1):28-40.

20. Hoffer A. Nutrition for the General Practitioner. Keats Pub (November, 1988).

21. Hoffer A. Orthomolecular Medicine for Physicians. Keats Pub., New Canaan, CT, 1989.

22. Hoffer A & Walker M: Smart Nutrients - A Guide to Nutrients That Can Prevent and Reverse Senility. Avery Publishing Group, Garden City Park, NY, 1994. Updated Version: Smart Nutrients: Prevent and Treat Alzheimer's, Enhance Brain Function.

23. Hoffer A. Hoffer's Law of Natural Nutrition. Quarry Press, Kingston, ON, 1996.

24. www.associatedcontent.com/article/1885884/top_nutrition_doctors_the_giants_of.html

25. www.associatedcontent.com/article/1878963/integrative_medicine_and_psychiatry.html
26. www.associatedcontent.com/article/1875519/let_them_eat_risperidone.html
27. www.associatedcontent.com/article/1872117/microscopy_studies_in_mental_health.html