We covered mostly herbal remedies in Herbal Cures for Depression Part 1 and Herbal Cures for Depression Part 2, but this post has no herbs in it.
Instead, Part 3 discusses a single, extremely powerful nutritional supplement which has been so successful that it caused an improvement of mood and intellectual performance, and eliminated suicidal tendencies in 80% of cases in one study.
One author I consulted noted that “this is as effective as clomipramine and amitripryline.” (Steven Horne, The Comprehensive Guide to Nature’s Sunshine Products, 4th Edition, 2009.)
SAMe was studied at Harvard School of Medicine with 70 patients who not only had “major depressive disorder” but had been UNsuccessfully treated with serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI) drugs.
Half the test study participants took 1600 mg of SAMe daily, and the others were given a placebo. All were able to continue taking whatever other medications they had been taking.
The SAMe group did twice as well as the placebo group, with no serious side effects (which can include restlessness, nausea, insomnia).
Your body produces SAMe naturally – especially when you consume enough folate and vitamin B-12 — or should. But if you decide to try SAMe, remember that dosages up to 400 mg are usually well-tolerated. Beyond that (as in 4 times this amount for the cited study!), you should consult with your doctor.
Please share your experiences if you use SAMe, or try it.
