Fish Oil And A Psychotic Relapse

Growing scientific evidence indicates that patients with schizophrenia have abnormalities in the way phospholipids -- a type of fat that forms cell membranes -- are metabolized in their brain. The phospholipids that form the membranes of brain cells are rich in unsaturated essential fatty acids, or EFAs, and specifically with long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, sometimes referred to as PUFAs. People with schizophrenia may have a dysfunction in how they metabolize these fatty acids and fish oil may help compensate for some of these deficits.

Schizophrenia and Psychotic Episodes

Schizophrenia afflicts 1 percent of people worldwide. People with this disorder have various symptoms including abnormal emotional responses, difficulty telling the difference between real experiences and what they imagine and problems acting normally in social situations. People with schizophrenia usually develop symptoms slowly, and then cycle through periods of greater normalcy punctuated with discrete episodes when symptoms become severe. Many can behave normally much of the time, but residuals of their unusual thought processes often persist. When properly treated with psychotropic medications, most can manage their day-to-day affairs, but during acute psychotic episodes they experience a significant, often disabling break in their ability to accurately perceive reality.

Symptom Relief and Delay

Antipsychotic medications have significant side effects that may be particularly prohibitive for young people at risk, and some people develop a tolerance for the medication or fail to respond adequately. People who have sub-clinical symptoms of a psychotic episode or who are at very high risk of developing psychotic symptoms may benefit from consuming 2 to 4 g of fish oil each day, according to Schizophrenia.com. Not all fish oils are equally effective. Those who use fish oil that is high in EPA, a type of omega-3 fatty acid, can experience an improvement in symptoms or a delay in the onset of psychotic symptoms, according to a 2010 study published in the "Archives of General Psychiatry."

Mechanism

Inflammatory immune responses may play a role in the deficits schizophrenics have in metabolizing EFAs and PUFAs. Fish oil may help by restoring a balance in the proportion of anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids available to the immune system relative to the pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids that are more widely present in Western diets.

Preventing Psychotic Relapse

Large carefully designed studies have not specifically examined the use of fish oil in preventing relapse of psychotic episodes. External and internal stress, anxiety and depression can contribute to the development of severe psychotic symptoms. Appropriate use of medication, effective stress management, proper sleep and a balanced diet can reduce the endogenous and exogenous stress that triggers or contributes to the onset of severe psychotic episodes. Use of fish oil enhances mood and depression, reports Daniel Hall-Flavin of the Mayo Clinic. It has numerous positive health benefits and few, rare side effects, so there is potential benefit and little harm in using it as an adjunct to traditional psychotropic medications. Use of fish oil has been demonstrated to reduce the severity of symptoms and likelihood of relapse in bipolar disorder, a condition that can trigger psychotic symptoms in severe cases.

Limits

Schizophrenia and psychotic disorders are serious, chronic illnesses and there is not significant evidence that dietary supplements can cure or prevent them. Fish oil should be used only as an adjunct to antipsychotic and other psychotropic medications.