Finally,
something natural for Depression: Part 2
SAMe is well tolerated and the labels in health food stores do carry a warning that it may induce mania in bipolar patients. Even though SAMe is readily available as a dietary supplement, its synthesis is not easy. The majority of formulations of SAMe tested in the last decade have shown that many products contain less than the stated amount of the supplement.
Additionally SAMe is also prohibitively expensive. A month's supply can cost anywhere from $140-$200 and there is no guarantee that it contains the right dosage. Moreover, SAMe is not covered by Medicare or medical insurance.
Long-term data on safety of SAMe are not available but from what is known over the past 30 years, the supplement appears to be safe. SAMe has also been shown to have moderate pain relieving activities. There are countless reports from arthritic patients that the supplement does work well for pain relief. For depression, the dose of SAMe is between 800-1600 mg per day. Optimal dosage or the safe upper limits have not yet been determined.
The era of making novel pharmaceutical drugs based on amine uptake inhibition appears to have come to an end. The focus now is to search for natural supplements that may help boost the effects of the available drugs. Even though this study showed that SAMe may help reverse resistant depression, more studies are required to confirm these findings. Individuals who are thinking of buying SAMe from health stores need to make sure that they buy from a reputable store because fakes and counterfeit supplies continue to infiltrate the health supplement market. In fact, many supplements are often spiked with real drugs- so buyer beware.
SAMe is well tolerated and the labels in health food stores do carry a warning that it may induce mania in bipolar patients. Even though SAMe is readily available as a dietary supplement, its synthesis is not easy. The majority of formulations of SAMe tested in the last decade have shown that many products contain less than the stated amount of the supplement.
Additionally SAMe is also prohibitively expensive. A month's supply can cost anywhere from $140-$200 and there is no guarantee that it contains the right dosage. Moreover, SAMe is not covered by Medicare or medical insurance.
Long-term data on safety of SAMe are not available but from what is known over the past 30 years, the supplement appears to be safe. SAMe has also been shown to have moderate pain relieving activities. There are countless reports from arthritic patients that the supplement does work well for pain relief. For depression, the dose of SAMe is between 800-1600 mg per day. Optimal dosage or the safe upper limits have not yet been determined.
The era of making novel pharmaceutical drugs based on amine uptake inhibition appears to have come to an end. The focus now is to search for natural supplements that may help boost the effects of the available drugs. Even though this study showed that SAMe may help reverse resistant depression, more studies are required to confirm these findings. Individuals who are thinking of buying SAMe from health stores need to make sure that they buy from a reputable store because fakes and counterfeit supplies continue to infiltrate the health supplement market. In fact, many supplements are often spiked with real drugs- so buyer beware.
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