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Do Supplements Help Mental Health?

Credit: Medical News Today

A large review of scientific evidence is leaning towards the fact that dietary supplements really don’t help people suffering from mental disorders.

Supplements are typically viewed as a shortcut to helping people build a healthy body and mind, but more and more studies are beginning to contradict that idea.

Researchers in Australia recently took a heavy interest in studying some of the research and medical evidence on what results have been shown for taking supplements. The controlled trials that they studied included over 10,000 patients who were taking supplements to help treat symptoms associated with depression and other kinds of mental illnesses.

The supplements that were most observed included vitamin B9, omega 3 fatty acids, zinc, magnesium, and a few amino acids. All of the supplements yielded safe results. However, if the supplements were taken for mental health purposes, there showed no significant evidence indicating any benefits.

One area where some positive results occurred was when people were taking omega 3 for major depression and relieving symptoms of ADHD. It also seemed to show some benefits in helping with mood disorders and schizophrenia. Results also showed that methylfolate showed positive results for additional treatment for schizophrenia and depression.

Overall, however, a majority of the supplements did not significantly improve mental health as they would have you believe. Still, some of them were useful as an additional treatment for some of the disorders. Because they are not harmful to humans, this can be viewed as somewhat of a positive result.

Moving forward, researchers would like to see why some of these supplements were indeed helpful. Could this be an indication that our bodies are low in some essential nutrients that supplements could help out with?

As always, people should always consult their doctors when taking any kind of supplement to be sure that it is safe for their body.

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