Chromium Effective for Atypical Depression

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Chromium Effective for Atypical Depression

http://bastyrcenter.org/content/view/912/

 

Chromium supplementation may relieve symptoms in people with a mood

disorder known as atypical depression, according to the Journal of

Psychiatric Practice (2005;11:302–14). These findings are good news

for the many people who suffer from this often difficult to treat

condition.

 

Atypical depression, the most common form of depression in

outpatients, is characterized by increased appetite, excessive

sleepiness, sluggishness, and increased sensitivity to being

rejected by another person and improved mood when something good

happens (mood reactivity). Compared with other forms of depression,

atypical depression tends to be more chronic and is associated with

more suicidal thoughts and greater disability. Medical therapy

usually consists of a specific type of antidepressant drug

(monoamine oxidase inhibitors).

 

The symptoms of atypical depression resemble those of a blood sugar

regulation disorder commonly called reactive hypoglycemia or

dysinsulinism. This metabolism abnormality results in a wide range

of physical and mental symptoms and may be relieved by changes to

the diet, such as avoiding refined sugar, caffeine, and alcohol, and

eating small meals six times a day.

 

Chromium is an essential trace mineral that plays a key role in

blood sugar regulation by facilitating the action of insulin.

Chromium deficiency in animals leads to insulin resistance and

diabetes, and chromium supplementation has improved blood sugar

control in people with either diabetes or reactive hypoglycemia. It

is possible that, in some cases, atypical depression is a

manifestation of reactive hypoglycemia or dysinsulinism. If so,

chromium supplementation might relieve symptoms by improving blood

sugar regulation.

 

In the new study, adults with atypical depression were randomly

assigned to receive 600 mcg of chromium per day (in the form of

chromium picolinate) or a placebo for eight weeks. In the chromium

group, 54% experienced a clinically significant improvement in

depression compared with 36% in the placebo group. While this

difference was not statistically significant, the chromium group

showed significant improvements in four depression-related symptoms:

appetite increase, increased eating, carbohydrate craving, and daily

fluctuations of feelings. Because chromium was effective for those

specific symptoms, the participants who suffered from carbohydrate

cravings at the start of the study were analyzed separately. In that

subset, 65% of those receiving chromium but only 33% of those

receiving placebo responded to treatment, a statistically

significant difference. Chromium treatment did not cause any serious

side effects.

 

The results of this study suggest that chromium supplementation

relieves certain symptoms in people with atypical depression and

also severe carbohydrate craving. If chromium works by improving

blood sugar regulation, then its effects might be enhanced by

appropriate dietary modifications and by supplementing with other

blood sugar–stabilizing nutrients, including B vitamins, magnesium,

zinc, and copper. It is also possible that chromium works by a

separate mechanism: by altering the way in which the chemical

messenger serotonin functions in the brain. Additional research is

needed to further clarify which depressed patients are most likely

to respond to chromium, what is the optimal dose, and what dietary

modifications and other nutritional supplements would maximize its

benefits.

 

An expert in nutritional therapies, Chief Medical Editor Alan R.

Gaby is a former professor at Bastyr University of Natural Health

Sciences, where he served as the Endowed Professor of Nutrition. He

is past-president of the American Holistic Medical Association and

gave expert testimony to the White House Commission on Complementary

and Alternative Medicine on the cost-effectiveness of nutritional

supplements. Dr. Gaby has conducted nutritional seminars for

physicians and has collected over 30,000 scientific papers related

to the field of nutritional and natural medicine. In addition to

editing and contributing to The Natural Pharmacy (Three Rivers

Press, 1999), and the A–Z Guide to Drug-Herb-Vitamin Interactions

(Three Rivers Press, 1999), Dr. Gaby has authored Preventing and

Reversing Osteoporosis (Prima Lifestyles, 1995) and B6: The Natural

Healer (Keats, 1987) and coauthored The Patient's Book of Natural

Healing (Prima, 1999).