The Stress Connection: Meeting Hormonal, Nutritional, and Metabolic Needs

Many chronic illnesses are affected by stress (see Stress, Immune Response, and Illness). There have been many links between psychiatric symptoms, stress, mitochondrial function, and the endocrine system. A common thread connecting them all is nutrition.

The United States' government organization, NIMH, is currently running studies using nutritional substances to augment treatment of some neurobiological brain disorders such as autism, bipolar and schizophrenia.

Stress and Our Children. How Much is Too Much?

Responding to an acute stressor can boost our immune system. But the impact to our immune system, and the inflammatory response, from some stressors can be quite damaging.

Stress, Immune Response, and Illness

We often hear about the dangers of stress in our lives. We hear about stress contributing to a host of illnesses and also exacerbating existing illnesses.

But what exactly is “stress”?

"Fish Oil": $$ and Favorite Brands of Omega-3 Supplements

Over the years, many of us parents have investigated different brands of omega-3 fatty acid supplements for purity and palatability. How much EPA and/or DHA is needed for the type of symptoms our child has also been an issue. Some health care providers say GLA is important as well for some individuals who might have a problem converting. We've also come up with ideas about affordability. Here are our "secrets."

Omega-3 Fatty Acids (Fish Oil): EPA, DHA, and How Much is Enough?

We've discussed what omega-3 fatty acids are, and how essential they are for our general health (Brain Health: Omega-3 Fatty Acids (Fish Oil)). In order to choose an omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) supplement, it is helpful to understand what two of the essential fats, EPA and DHA, are.

There are so many of these fish oils supplements on the market, each touting its own ratio of DHA to EPA as "best". It may be more of a matter of "best" for "what?".

Brain Health: Omega-3 Fatty Acids ("Fish Oil")

Most people who have been researching how to help a child’s brain develop healthily, have read a lot about essential fatty acids (EFAs), specifically, Omega-3 fatty acids. They are essential to the proper development and functioning of our nervous system, including brain and vision, as well as the cardiovascular system.

Childhood-Onset Schizophrenia Has High Rates of Comorbid Diagnoses Including Autism and ADHD

Research backs up what some parents of children with childhood-onset schizophrenia (COS) have observed. They have noticed that COS, which is characterized by an onset of psychosis prior to age thirteen, seems to have many overlapping symptoms of autistic-spectrum disorders, sensory issues and attentional problems.

Specific Genes Inherited from Both Parents May Lead to Type of "Schizophrenia"

Some families have noticed a form of schizophrenia that runs in their particular family which seems to "skip" a generation. What that indicates is that there may be recessive genes involved in one parent's "schizophrenia". (That's what happened in my own family, but at least in the younger generation, we were able to beat that "genetic curse").

Genetic Links to “Developmental”, “Mental”, “Auto-Immune” and other Medical Disorders

The United States National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) refers to Childhood-Onset Schizophrenia as a neurodevelopmental disorder. Extensive genetic research of schizophrenia-spectrum disorders has linked it to many other genetically complex medical and neurodevelopmental disorders.

Viral Infections and Schizophrenia

Even as far back as 100 years ago, scientists perceived a connection between viral infections and "non-affective" psychosis. One of the leading schizophrenia researchers of the time, Kraepelin, proposed that such an infection may be a cause of "dementia praecox" (now called "schizophrenia"). An epidemic of "schizophrenic-syndrome" occurred following the devastating 1918 influenza pandemic.

Sets of Symptoms--Not the Cause–Get Diagnostic Labels

When medical science does not know the specific cause of a set of symptoms, it provides a diagnostic label that encompasses the set of symptoms even if it really says nothing about the cause of the symptoms.

Solving the Puzzle of "Schizophrenia" and "Bipolar Disorder"

I have always thought of all the symptoms my daughter has had as pieces of a "puzzle". It turns out that there were more pieces than I initially thought—I didn’t even recognize small pieces here and there as part of the puzzle.