Inositol, Psychological Benefits
<p>Some preliminary results of studies on high-dose inositol supplements show promising results for people suffering from problems such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulimia" title="Bulimia" class="mw-redirect">bulimia</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panic_disorder" title="Panic disorder">panic disorder</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obsessive-compulsive_disorder" title="Obsessive-compulsive disorder" class="mw-redirect">obsessive-compulsive disorder</a> (OCD), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agoraphobia" title="Agoraphobia">agoraphobia</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clinical_depression" title="Clinical depression" class="mw-redirect">unipolar</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bipolar_depression" title="Bipolar depression" class="mw-redirect">bipolar depression</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Palatnik_20-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-Palatnik-20">[20]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Levine_21-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-Levine-21">[21]</a></sup>
In a single <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double-blind" title="Double-blind" class="mw-redirect">double-blind</a> study on 13 patients, <i>myo-</i>inositol (18 grams daily) has been found to reduce the symptoms of OCD significantly, with effectiveness equal to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SSRI" title="SSRI" class="mw-redirect">SSRIs</a> and virtually without side-effects.<sup id="cite_ref-22" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-22">[22]</a></sup> In a double-blind, controlled trial, <i>myo</i>-inositol (18 grams daily) was superior to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluvoxamine" title="Fluvoxamine">fluvoxamine</a> for decreasing the number of panic attacks and other <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adverse_effect" title="Adverse effect">side-effects</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Palatnik_20-1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-Palatnik-20">[20]</a></sup></p>
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A double-blind, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo" title="Placebo">placebo</a>-controlled study of depressed patients showed that a high dose of inositol (12 grams daily) resulted in significant improvement of symptoms, with no changes noted in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liver" title="Liver">liver</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kidney" title="Kidney">kidney</a>, or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hematology" title="Hematology">hematological</a> function.<sup id="cite_ref-Levine_21-1" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-Levine-21">[21]</a></sup> A meta-analysis of randomized trials of inositol for depression was not able to determine if inositol is of benefit.<sup id="cite_ref-23" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-23">[23]</a></sup></p>
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Older research suggests that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_%28medication%29" title="Lithium (medication)">lithium</a> functions primarily by decreasing myo-inositol concentrations in bipolar patients; however the conclusions of this research are unsupported and have been questioned.<sup id="cite_ref-BPD.26Inositol1_24-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-BPD.26Inositol1-24">[24]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-BPD.26Inositol2_25-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-BPD.26Inositol2-25">[25]</a></sup> </p>
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Other studies suggest that lithium treatment may further inhibit the enzyme <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol_monophosphatase" title="Inositol monophosphatase">inositol monophosphatase</a>, leading to higher intracellular levels of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol_triphosphate" title="Inositol triphosphate" class="mw-redirect">inositol triphosphate</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-pmid9588758_26-0" class="reference"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol#cite_note-pmid9588758-26">[26]</a></sup> an effect that was enhanced further by administration of an inositol triphosphate <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reuptake_inhibitor" title="Reuptake inhibitor">reuptake inhibitor</a>.</p>