The Misunderstood Mineral

Dr. Johathan V. Wright, MD

Think young into your 90s with this anti-aging secret for your brain

The biggest problem with lithium treatment is people's perception
of it. Since its most well known use is for bi-polar disorder, lithium
sometimes encounters the same stigma as mental illness itself.

I've been taking a lithium supplement every day for several years. When
I tell people about it, they sometimes get funny looks on their faces
and start eyeing the corners of the room for straight jackets. These
reactions don't surprise me, since, as I said, lithium is usually
associated with mental illness. But I've never suffered from a mental
disorder (although certain mainstream medical doctors and possibly a
federal agency or two might disagree). Treating manic-depressive
(bi-polar) illness is lithium's most widely known use–but it isn't an
anti-psychotic drug, as many people believe. In fact, lithium isn't a
drug at all. It's actually a mineral-part of the same family of
minerals that includes sodium and potassium.

You might remember reading several editions of Health e-Tips a few
months ago that discussed various benefits of lithium. In addition to
the benefits mentioned in the e-Tips, like controlling gout and
relieving rashes caused by sebhorric dermatitis, lithium also has some
great brain-boosting effects. In fact, I've reviewed both recent
lithium research and the research spanning the past few decades, and
I'm convinced that lithium is an anti-aging nutrient for human brains.
And there are also some very strong reasons to believe that lithium
therapy will slow the progression of serious degenerative mental
problems, including Alzheimer's disease, senile dementia, and
Parkinson's disease.

So there are obviously quite a few "pros" to using lithium, but you're
probably wondering about the "cons." In the 1930s and '40s, lithium
chloride was sold in stores as a salt substitute. But (as frequently
happens) some people used way too much and suffered toxic overdoses, so
it fell out of common use. Fortunately, lithium toxicity is entirely
preventable, and it's also easily treatable if it ever does occur — but
more about that later. Right now, let's get into some of the specifics
on just how you (and your brain) can benefit from lithium.

Taking (grey) matters into your own hands

Hercule Poirot, Agatha Christie's famous fictional detective, had
an amusing quirk in his incessant concern for his "little grey cells."
I thought of Hercule several years ago when I saw the following
headline in an issue of the Lancet: "Lithium-induced increase in human
brain grey matter."

That may not sound like an earth-shattering piece of news, but it
actually was quite a major discovery. To that point, medical experts
believed that once our brains matured, it was all downhill from then
on. Decades of autopsies, x-rays, and, more recently, brain scans have
repeatedly shown that brains shrink measurably with aging. But
according to their report in the Lancet, Wayne State University
(Detroit) researchers found that lithium has the ability to both
protect and renew brain cells.1 Eight of 10 individuals who took
lithium showed an average 3 percent increase in brain grey matter in
just four weeks.

Lithium may help to generate entirely new cells too: Another group of
researchers recently reported that lithium also enhances nerve cell DNA
replication.2 DNA replication is a first step in the formation of a new
cell of any type.

The Wayne State study used high-dose lithium, but I'm certainly not
using that amount myself, nor do I recommend it. Prescription
quantities of lithium just aren't necessary for "everyday" brain cell
protection and re-growth. Studies done years ago have shown that very
low amounts of lithium can also measurably influence brain function for
the better.

Protect yourself from brain damage you didn't even know you had

Aside from boosting brain mass, recent research also shows that
lithium can help protect your brain from the "beating" it gets in the
course of everyday life. Your brain cells are constantly at risk of
damage from exposure to toxins of all sorts-even ones produced by your
own body. Toxic molecules are formed naturally during the course of
normal brain metabolism.3-7 Since these "normal" toxic molecules
(sometimes called "excitotoxins") are produced every day of your life,
eventually they start to wear down or erode away brain mass.

Another well-known cause of brain cell injury is overactivated
N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors. Lithium can inhibit this
overactivity.8 And lithium also increases production of a major brain
protective protein called "bcl-2" in both human and animal brain cells.9

So it appears that lithium can protect against normal brain erosion and
shrinkage that would otherwise occur over the course of our lives. But
lithium also protects the brain from other less "normal" problems too,
like damage caused by prescription medications and strokes.

When a clot or other obstruction occurs in a blood vessel serving the
brain, it causes a reduction of blood flow to that area. If it's bad
enough, the lack of blood flow will cause a stroke and death of brain
cells. (This type of stroke is known as an ischemic stroke.) Research
in experimental animals with deliberately induced ischemic strokes has
shown that lithium reduces the areas of cell death.10,11

In one of these studies, researchers blocked a brain artery in rats.
Some were pre-treated with lithium for 16 days, the rest weren't. The
researchers reported that the lithium-treated rats experienced 56
percent less cell death and significantly fewer neurologic deficits
than the control rats.12

And sometimes medications designed to treat other problems end up
having a negative impact on the brain. For example, anti-convulsant
medications cause abnormal levels of brain cell death. But lithium
significantly protects against this type of cell death-so much so that
this effect has been called "robust" (a term scientists use to mean "It
really works!").13

In fact, based on its general neuroprotective effect, researchers have
recently suggested that "the use of lithium as a
neurotrophic/neuroprotective agent should be considered in the long
term treatment of mood disorders, irrespective of the 'primary'
treatment modality being used for the condition."14 Translation:
Lithium should be used along with any patent medicine being used for
depression, anxiety, or any other "mood-altering" reason, since it will
protect brain cells against their unwanted toxic effects. The
researchers didn't say so, but I will: Any list of "mood altering
substances" should include alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, "uppers,"
"downers," and-for those who do inhale-marijuana. Harmless as some of
them might seem, these substances can cause brain damage with medium to
long-term abuse.

Keeping your brain's lines of communication open -and healthy

Scientists determine how healthy brain cells are by measuring
levels of a molecule called N-acetyl-aspartate (NAA). A decrease in NAA
is thought to reflect decreased nerve cell viability, decreased
function, or even nerve cell loss.15 In a study of 19 research
volunteers given four weeks of lithium, 14 experienced a significant
increase in NAA, one had no change, and four had a small decrease.16

Now, what about the interaction between those new, protected, healthy
brain cells? Communication between brain cells and networks of brain
cells is called "signaling." And lithium is actually necessary for at
least two signal-carrying pathways.17 Researchers have also reported
that lithium may help to repair abnormally functioning signaling
pathways in critical areas of the brain.18

Lithium and Alzheimer's: New hope for a "hopeless" situation

As you know, there's no cure for Alzheimer's disease and there's
very little available for patients (and families) that can offer even
partial relief from the turmoil it causes. So when new treatments are
developed or discovered, it's usually big news -a ray of hope for
people stuck in a seemingly hopeless situation. One of these newly
developed patent medications, called Memantine,(tm) was recently
approved in Europe. Even though it's not officially "approved" in this
country (yet), thousands of people are already importing Memantine to
the U.S. via various Internet sources. But why go through all the
trouble (not to mention risk) of getting and using this new patent
formula? Apparently, it "works" by protecting brain cells against
damage caused by a major excitotoxin, glutamate. But protecting against
glutamate-induced nerve cell damage is also one of the well-known
actions of lithium. So if it's true that this newly approved patent
medication slows the progress of Alzheimer's disease in this way, then
lithium should slow Alzheimer's disease progression, too. Of course,
lithium treatment, which isn't patentable and doesn't have nearly the
profit potential of patented Alzheimers medications, hasn't made any
headlines. But that doesn't mean it isn't a promising option for
patients struggling with Alzheimer's disease.

There are many other research findings that also strongly suggest that
lithium will protect against potential Alzheimer's disease and slow the
progression of existing cases. Researchers have reported that lithium
inhibits beta-amyloid secretion, and also prevents damage caused by
beta-amyloid protein once it's been formed.20-23 Beta-amyloid peptide
is a signature protein involved in Alzheimer's disease: the more
beta-amyloid protein, the worse the Alzheimer's becomes.

Overactivation of a brain cell protein called tau protein also
contributes to neuronal degeneration in Alzheimer's disease, as does
the formation of neurofibrillary tangles Lithium inhibits both of these
nerve-cell damaging problems.24,25

And you've likely read that individuals with Alzheimer's disease
usually have excess aluminum accumulation in brain cells. While it's
not yet known whether this excess aluminum is a cause, an effect, or
just coincidental, most health-conscious individuals take precautions
to avoid ingesting aluminum. Unfortunately, it's impossible to
completely avoid all aluminum, since it's naturally present in nearly
all foods. But lithium can help protect your brain against aluminum by
helping to "chelate" it so that it can be more easily removed from the
body.25

Although Alzheimer's disease and senile dementia aren't technically the
same, they do share many of the same degenerative features so there's
every reason to expect that lithium will help prevent or slow the
progression of senile dementia too.

A younger, healthier brain with just one small dose a day

As I mentioned earlier, some of these studies used rather high
doses of lithium. And in some instances, as in the case of manic
depression, doses as high as 90 to 180 milligrams of elemental lithium
from 900 to 1800 milligrams of lithium carbonate are necessary.
Quantities of lithium in that range must be monitored closely to guard
against overdose and toxicity.

But you really don't need large amounts to improve your "every-day"
brain function. Studies have repeatedly shown that substantially lower
amounts of lithium can significantly improve brain function (as
reflected in behavior).

The amounts of lithium I recommend for brain anti-aging range from 10
to 20 milligrams (from lithium aspartate or lithium orotate) daily.
I've actually been recommending these amounts since the 1970s. At first
I was exceptionally cautious and asked all of my patients taking
lithium to have regular "lithium level" blood tests and thyroid
function tests. After a year or so, I quit asking for the lithium level
blood tests, since 100 percent of them came back very low. Another year
after that, I stopped requesting routine thyroid function tests, too,
only doing one when I was suspicious of a potential problem. In the 30
years since, I've rarely found one.

Protect your brain starting today–no prescription necessary

High-dose lithium is available only by prescription. But low-dose
lithium (capsules or tablets containing 5 milligrams of lithium from
lithium aspartate or lithium orotate) is available from a few natural
food stores and compounding pharmacies, as well as from the Tahoma
Clinic Dispensary.

If you're interested in keeping your brain as young as possible for as
long as possible, you should definitely consider lithium therapy.
Review this information with your physician…but make sure he is
skilled and knowledgeable in nutritional and natural medicine!

Lithium fights crime and some of your most nagging health concerns

Turns out it's not only the strict use of the death penalty
lowering crime rates in some areas of Texas. And while I'm sure "Dubya"
would be quick to take credit, it's not stricter laws or changes in
sentencing guidelines either. Using 10 years of data accumulated from
27 Texas counties, researchers found that the incidence of homicide,
rape, burglary, and suicide, as well as other crimes and drug use, were
significantly lower in counties whose drinking water supplies contained
70-170 micrograms of lithium per liter than those with little or no
lithium in their water.

The researchers wrote: "These results suggest that lithium at low
dosage levels has a generally beneficial effect on human
behavior…increasing the human lithium intakes by supplementation, or
the lithiation [adding lithium] of drinking water is suggested as a
possible means of crime, suicide, and drug-dependency reduction at the
individual and community level."

Lithium may be useful in treating Alzheimer's disease, senile dementia,
and possibly Parkinson's disease. Lithium not only protects brain cells
against normal wear and tear, but also offers additional protection
against a whole variety of toxic molecules, including patent
medications. It can also promote brain cell regeneration and increase
brain cell mass. In essence, the research suggests that lithium is a
brain anti-aging nutrient.

All of these results are every bit as good as (if not better than) the
data that led to dumping toxic waste (fluoride) into so many public
water supplies. So why haven't public health and safety "authorities"
been pushing for further intensive research on water-borne lithium and
criminal behavior?

I'm certainly not in favor of the government adding anything to pure
drinking water. But if it insists on forcibly mass-medicating us
through our water supply (a thoroughly un-American concept I'm 100
percent against no matter what the added substance is), why haven't
they considered adding something that might actually do some real good
for people's health and safety? Isn't the possibility of reducing
homicide, suicide, rape, robbery, burglary, theft, mental hospital
admissions, and drug addiction related arrests just as important as the
possibly of preventing tooth decay?

Call me pessimistic, but I suspect lithium is still being ignored
because no huge, politically connected industry has enormous quantities
of lithium-containing waste lying around. (In the 1940s, that's exactly
how water fluoridation began, by using up huge quantities of
fluoride-containing toxic waste generated by the politically connected
aluminum industry.)

But if there's one thing we all know about the U.S. government, it's
that we shouldn't wait for the people running it to do anything to help
us, especially when we can help ourselves. So today let's go over a few
more of lithium's benefits and I'll tell you how you can help yourself
to this valuable mineral right now.

Lithium tackles another addiction

In 30 years of nutritionally oriented practice, I've been told by
many alcoholics and their relatives that low-dose lithium can be very
helpful for both alcoholism and associated mood disorders. For
"practicing" alcoholics, I recommend a trial of lithium orotate, 10
milligrams three times daily (along with diet advice, niacin,
glutamine, and other supplements). I ask recovering alcoholics to try 5
milligrams, three times daily (occasionally more). The majority of
these patients report improved mood and decreased desire for alcohol
after about six weeks using lithium therapy.

According to one review article in the British Journal of Addiction,
"both controlled and uncontrolled experiments show that symptoms of
both alcoholism and affective disturbance are reduced in patients
treated with lithium."2 (All of the studies reviewed used high dose
prescription lithium.)

I also often recommend direct blood relatives of alcoholics (parents,
children, or siblings) consider a trial of lithium orotate, 5
milligrams two or three times daily, even if they have never noticed a
mood problem. I explain that this is a "personal clinical trial," and a
safe one, that they can discontinue in six to eight weeks if they don't
feel a difference. I also ask that the individual discuss this personal
clinical trial with their husband, wife, or other close household
member, since I've found that the individual doesn't always notice
subtle (or even not-so-subtle) mood changes in himself. But immediate
family members notice-particularly when the changes are for the better!
I haven't kept a count of exactly how many individuals have tried this
approach over the last 30 years, but it's probably somewhere in the
vicinity of 300 to 400-maybe more. And the majority report positive
changes: less depression and irritability for women, and less
irritability and "temper" for men.

Can lithium help solve your health mysteries?

So far, you've read about how lithium can help combat mental
illness, mood disorders, and chemical dependency. All of these
benefits, in turn, help communities become safer places overall by
reducing rates of violent crime. And, yes, increased safety does
benefit you and me. But right now, let's discuss some ways that you
might be able to put lithium to work in your own life with some
surprising applications for a few rather "mysterious" conditions.

By "mysterious," I don't mean brand-new, mutated viruses like the
recent outbreak of SARS. No, the conditions I'll go over today have
been around for quite a while. But the mystery lies in the fact they
each of them is still considered "incurable." Let's start with one of
the most painful.

Fibromyalgia relief: This "last resort" could rank No. 1

This condition primarily strikes women and causes debilitating pain
and stiffness. Lithium can help alleviate these symptoms without the
problems associated with conventional fibromyalgia treatments, which
include tranquilizer, antidepressant, and non-steroidal
anti-inflammatory medications (which only temporarily mask the pain and
sleeplessness that often occur).

One study examined three women suffering from fibromyalgia, none of
whom had responded to conventional treatment. When researchers added
lithium to the women's current treatment, all three noticed a marked
reduction in their symptoms.3

The authors of the study didn't explain why they didn't have the women
discontinue their ineffective conventional treatments, but I've got a
pretty good idea that their motives might have had something to do with
the fact that the conventional treatments, as useless as they were for
these women, are the "standard" protocol.

But I digress.

The gout-eliminating combination that tastes as good as it feels

You might remember reading the Health e-Tip on lithium and gout
several months ago (2/3/03, subject line: "Help! My big toe is on
fire!"). As the e-Tip mentioned, gout occurs when the body can't
process and eliminate excess uric acid. The result is a painful burning
or stabbing sensation usually in the ball joint of the foot.

Although there are no published studies on this topic, over the years
I've found the combination of low-dose lithium (10-15 milligrams twice
daily) and vitamin C (2 grams twice daily) can be very effective in
preventing recurrent attacks of gout. Vitamin C significantly reduces
serum uric acid levels. Lithium makes uric acid more soluble so it
doesn't crystallize into painful "needles." These two actions combine
to significantly reduce gout attacks. If you have gout, I also
recommend that you drink 32 oz. of cherry juice at the first sign of an
attack. Just please make sure it's real cherry juice–no sugar added.
Although no one is sure why or how it works, studies have shown that
cherry juice usually eliminates the pain of acute gout.

85 percent cluster headache relief in just two weeks

Cluster headaches are another one of those inexplicable conditions
that my patients tell me always seem to come on at exactly the wrong
time. In fact, they might actually be one of the most "mysterious" of
the conditions I've listed so far since, like fibromyalgia, the cause
isn't known. They tend to attack relentlessly for weeks to months and
then often go into remission for months or even years. But lithium (in
relatively high doses) can significantly reduce both the severity and
frequency.

One study examined lithium's effects on 19 men with cluster headaches.
Eight had rapid improvement-an average 85 percent reduction-in their
"headache index" in just two weeks. Four individuals had both cluster
headaches and psychiatric symptoms; these four had almost complete
elimination of their headaches. The remaining seven had only a slight
benefit.5

Another research group tried lithium therapy (again, relatively high
quantities) for 14 individuals with cluster headaches. Five individuals
had complete disappearance of their headaches, four had significant
improvement, and four had no change.6

There's no guarantee that lithium will cure your cluster headaches, but
there is a good chance that it might help. With so few other options
available, it's at least worth a try.

Simple relief from those annoyingly persistent problems

Along the same lines as these mysterious conditions are a few other
conditions that lithium can benefit. But these are less on the
mysterious side and more in the vein of annoyingly persistent. Even so,
lithium can still help in a number of ways.

One research group reported that lithium inhibits the reproduction of
several viruses, including herpes simplex viruses (HSV 1, HSV 2),
adenovirus (the "common cold" virus), cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr
virus (associated with mononucleosis and many cases of chronic
fatigue), and the measles virus.7

Another randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of lithium
carbonate (doses ranging from 150-900 milligrams daily) demonstrated "a
consistent reduction in the number of herpes episodes per month, the
average duration of each episode, the total number of infection days
per month, and the maximum symptom severity. In contrast, treatment
with placebo resulted in an increase in three of the four severity
measures."8

In addition to lithium, selenium, lysine, and other nutrients can also
help suppress the reproduction of herpes simplex (and other viruses)
and speed the recovery process should an active infection occur. I tend
to think it's better-and safer-to follow this approach (using small
quantities of several effective nutrients rather than a larger quantity
of just one), so nearly 10 years ago I worked with Bio-Tech Pharmacal
to create a useful anti-herpes formula. We combined low-dose lithium
with selenium, lysine, vitamin C, olive leaf extract, and other
nutrients into two formulas, one (called HPX) for prevention of herpes
simplex, and the other (called HPX2) for treatment of outbreaks. Those
who have used it tell me it does the job, cutting down or eliminating
recurrent herpes infections and/or helping them heal more quickly when
they do occur. HPX and HPX2 are both available through natural food
stores, compounding pharmacies and the Tahoma Clinic Dispensary.

A quick end to a Grave disease

Hyperthyroidism can be persistent and difficult to treat. It comes
on either very suddenly or very gradually-so gradually, you might not
even notice that something is really wrong until the symptoms become
severe. Graves' disease is one of the common names for hyperthyroidism.
In this condition, the immune system disrupts the functioning of the
thyroid gland, causing it to become enlarged and to secrete too much
hormone.

Mainstream treatments completely shut down the production of thyroid
hormone using dangerous patent medicines. But lithium can get to the
root of the problem much more safely.

In 1972, Mayo Clinic researchers published the first clinical
investigation of lithium treatment for Graves' disease.9 Using
high-dose lithium for 10 individuals, they reported that thyroid
hormone levels fell by 20-30 percent within five days.

Twenty-six years later, in a review of more than 10 successful trials
of lithium therapy for Graves' disease, the authors wrote: "a small
number of studies have documented its [lithium's] use in the treatment
of patients with Graves' disease… it's efficacy and utility as an
alternative anti-thyroid [treatment] are not widely recognized…"10
They also note lithium's rapid effect: "Lithium normalizes [thyroid
hormone] levels in one to two weeks…" But they also caution that
"toxicity precludes its use as a first-line or long-term therapeutic
agent." If they'd just added flaxseed oil and vitamin E to their
treatment, they would have basically eliminated the risk of toxicity.

Lithium's benefits: Ripe for the picking

Perhaps the budding evidence about lithium and brain protection
will spark even more interest in researching this mineral. Maybe
researchers will accumulate enough evidence to prove that lithium can
slow or even reverse brain aging. And perhaps researchers will conclude
that putting very low dose lithium into drinking water to reduce
violent crime is even more important than adding fluoride to prevent
tooth decay.

But I won't hold my breath. Lithium isn't patentable, so I doubt that
patent-medicine companies will even consider funneling huge amounts of
research dollars into it. And if the patent-medicine companies aren't
interested in it, it isn't likely to be "approved" for these or other
uses any time soon. But remember, "approval" does not ensure safety or
effectiveness; it just means that procedures have been followed, forms
have been filled out, and money-lots and lots of money-has changed
hands.

Now for the good news: Just because lithium won't be formulated into
the next wonder drug and isn't likely to be making the headlines of
your local news, that certainly doesn't mean you can't enjoy all of its
benefits-from brain anti-aging to headache relief–right now. Low-dose
lithium supplements are available in some natural food stores or from
the Tahoma Clinic Dispensary.

If you decide to give lithium a try, as with any new treatment or
preventive measure (even an all-natural one), it's always a good idea
to consult with a physician skilled and knowledgeable in natural
medicine as part of your decision.

The Misunderstood Mineral

The Misunderstood Mineral

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