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posted by mrpg on Thursday August 02 2018, @07:11AM   Printer-friendly
from the no-comment dept.

Study links depression to low blood levels of acetyl-L-carnitine

Investigators at Stanford and elsewhere have shown, for the first time in humans, that low blood levels of acetyl-L-carnitine track with the severity and duration of depression.

People with depression have low blood levels of a substance called acetyl-L-carnitine, according to a Stanford University School of Medicine scientist and her collaborators in a multicenter study.

Naturally produced in the body, acetyl-L-carnitine is also widely available in drugstores, supermarkets and health food catalogs as a nutritional supplement. People with severe or treatment-resistant depression, or whose bouts of depression began earlier in life, have particularly low blood levels of the substance.

The findings, published online July 30 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, build on extensive animal research. They mark the first rigorous indication that the link between acetyl-L-carnitine levels and depression may apply to people, too. And they point the way to a new class of antidepressants that could be freer of side effects and faster-acting than those in use today, and that may help patients for whom existing treatments don't work or have stopped working.

Acetylcarnitine.

Also at The Rockefeller University.

Acetyl-l-carnitine deficiency in patients with major depressive disorder (DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1801609115) (DX)


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  • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 02 2018, @08:56PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 02 2018, @08:56PM (#716449)

    And then there's times when you're too depressed to do anything and just waste away in bed nearly all day. That's when you're too depressed to commit suicide. You don't have the physical nor mental energy to do so. It takes too much effort to come up with a way that'll work and carry out those actions. Clinical depression is a long-term depressive state. It doesn't need to be an extremely deep depressive state.

    I've experienced both states. Gaining some hope for the future (listening to podcasts about financial freedom and starting my path towards that. Holding a job is very difficult for me due to a different medical issue), taking probiotics (this helped a surprising amount), better food (more veggies, start with microwavable mixed-frozen ones), better sleep, random meditation/hypnosis, and looking behind and seeing all the things I've survive has helped me to slowly get better. I've been clinically depressed from around 11 to 31 years old. Two suicide attempts around 26. Didn't recognize the depression (thought it was just my personality) until around 22. I'm 32 now and no longer consider myself clinically depressed. I still feel depressed if I don't sleep well or screw up something, but I'm no longer constantly thinking of suicide. I'm still not happy, but I'm not down either nor am I completely emotionally numb like when I was 16-23. I'm starting to learn and improve my social skills (more podcasts) so I could potentially have some friends in the future. I've never taken anti-depressants and I've been pulling myself up from my bootstraps. Not that I would recommend it, but it is possible to fix yourself by yourself. It just takes lots of time and some education. If you're going to lie in bed doing nothing, put on some headphones and start out with the Optimal Living Daily podcast. That podcast has a bunch of branches into more specific things.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 02 2018, @09:44PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 02 2018, @09:44PM (#716466)

    Thank-you for sharing your first-hand experiences. There is an old adage: "Opinions are like assholes; everybody has one and they stink." Speaking from experience is something else entirely. I commend you for your perseverance and am grateful your prior suicide attempts were unsuccessful, thereby allowing you to share a glimmer of hope to someone else who may be facing the same struggles. I know you helped *me* today!

    As for improving social skills, it's hard to beat immersion.

    (Background: I was one of the gawky, nerdy, ill-coordinated kids that the others liked to pick on. Add bullies to the list and childhood was no picnic. As the pecking order went, I was darn near at the bottom.)

    So, it's no wonder I excelled and spent years working in software development and QA/test. My ideal job was one where I would be given a project and then go to my fully-floor-to-ceiling walled office, close the door and focus. And, whatever you do, do NOT interrupt me! It may only be a 1-minute question and a 1-minute answer, but it would take me 15-20 minutes to get all the details back together in my mind before I could again begin to proceed.

    Now, I work retail! =)

    All day at work, I'm dealing with *gasp* people! As the years have passed, I've developed a huge circle of friends and acquaintances who know me and seek me out. They know I will tell them the truth about any product we carry. They trust my judgement on what works for their situation. They come around the corner, see me, and... smile! They are *happy* to see me. I now have far more interactions with people in the course of a day that are positive rather than anxious experiences that are to be endured. Just. Plain. Wow.

    It did not come easily or naturally, but I put myself out there, and genuinely tried to help people. Even if the words came out wrong, most people could see I meant well and made allowances. I am now much more comfortable meeting new people, carrying on casual conversations, and the normal interactions of life in a world of people.

    Granted, there are still times when it is a struggle -- usually when I am hungry or tired. But, those times are, thankfully, increasingly rare.

    Key to my progress has been: Taking the long-term view, being grateful for each attempt, however successful it may or may not have been, and trying to help others.

    Oh, and working retail has given me a whole new perspective on people who work in whatever service industry position they may have. Be it janitorial, food service, toll collector, whatever. I greet *them* with a smile, thank them, and trust that I have made someone else's day a little bit brighter.

    At the end of the day, I would like to think that the world is a better place for my having been a part of it.

    I guess you touched a nerve. Thanks for giving me an opportunity to share a bit of *my* experience.

    I wish you the very best on your path of growth and recovery!