Can a safe, all-natural nutrient combat depression as well as – or better than – antidepressants?

As we explained on Tuesday, a Harvard study headed by Dr. Andrew Stoll says the answer is yes. Further research supports his findings. And hundreds of patients are enjoying big gains in mood without drugs or medication.

“Jeremy Benson” (not his real name) of Boston took part in one of those studies. He’s so happy with how this nutrient works that he’s ditched his antidepressants and is sticking with this simple, safe remedy.

“I’m fine today. Not only do I not feel blue, but [if depressed feelings] come, I am able to handle them.”

So what is this all-natural remedy that has both patients and scientists talking?

It’s called omega 3… specifically EPA. It’s concentrated in brain cells and governs mood.

Modern diets have become increasingly deficient in omega 3. Which may explain the huge increase in depression rates during the last 50 years.

Dr. Stoll put this theory to the test with a four-month Harvard study. He studied two groups of patients with depression. One group received a placebo. The other group supplemented with 10 grams of fish oils each day.

At the end of the study, two-thirds of the fish-oil group were showing huge improvements in mood. The placebo group showed no significant improvement.

The patients taking the omega 3 supplement felt so much better they were able to give up their antidepressants. And they continued to feel as balanced as – or better than – when they were taking medication.

Dr. Stoll has continued working with these patients and they’ve gone on to live healthy, happy lives. Without antidepressants.

“I still see these people,” says Dr. Stoll. “All continue to take omega-3 supplements. In my practice, I am in favor of it, so I advise people to take it.”

Science Supports Theory

Plenty of research and medical experts support Dr. Stoll’s discovery.

Joseph Hibbeln, MD, is the Chief of the Laboratory of Clinical Studies for the National Institutes of Health in Maryland.

He says there’s a direct link between omega 3 deficiency and depression.

“One hundred years ago we were eating much closer to our paleolithic diet,” says Dr, Hibbeln. “We didn’t have mass production of corn and soybeans or hydrogenation. But in the past 100 years, the balance of omega 6s to omega 3s has changed,” says Dr. Hibbeln.

Our grandparents ate a diet that was high in omega 3 and low in omega 6. Dozens of studies show this ratio is vital to good health.

“We grow seed oils, such as corn and soybeans,” says Dr. Hibbeln. “And they have much higher ratios of omega 6s to omega 3s. Corn oil, for example, has a ratio of about 74 or 75 omega 6s to one omega 3.”

Over the 100 years that our diets have reversed this ratio, depression rates have skyrocketed.

As further proof that omega 3 is critical to our mental health, countries that have high fish consumption have much lower rates of depression.

Dr. Myrna Weissman – an epidemiologist at Yale University – published related data in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

“Dr. Weissman is recognized as the world’s [leading] expert in psychiatric epidemiology,” says Dr. Hibbeln. “The quality of the data is the gold standard.”

Dr. Weissman’s research showed that people in countries with low depression rates ate much more fish than those in countries with high depression rates.

So how much omega 3 should you be getting?

“I start patients on one gram of EPA per day,” says Dr. Stoll. “I go up on the dosage until an effect is seen on mood. I usually do not have to exceed six grams of EPA per day.”

There are plenty of emerging studies and research on the omega 3/depression link. And we’re publishing a brand new report on the subject this week. This report investigates the link between omega 3 and depression, and reviews the latest studies and research.

It reveals how this all-natural remedy is a completely safe alternative to antidepressant drugs. And looks at the best ways to get this vital nutrient into your diet… and how much you need to take.

To get this report – and additional in-depth health research – simply sign up for our monthly health advisory service, Natural Health Dossier. If you are not a current subscriber to Natural Health Dossier, you can get more information on how to become a subscriber here.

To your health,

Ian Robinson,
Managing Editor,
NHD “Health Watch”