EPA May Prove Helpful for Depression

EPA May Prove Helpful for Depression

BEER-SHEVA, Israel--Omega-3 fatty acids may be beneficial in treating depressive episodes, according to researchers from Ben Gurian University who published a study in the March issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry (159:477-9, 2002)(http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org). Boris Nemets, M.D., and colleagues based their research on previous findings that countries with high rates of fish oil consumption, and therefore high omega-3 consumption, tend to have low rates of depressive disorder. Specifically, researchers looked at the ethyl ester of eicosapentaenoic acid (E-EPA) as an adjunct to treatment for depressive episodes in 20 patients with a current diagnosis of major depressive disorder. For four weeks, patients randomly received either placebo or E-EPA in addition to ongoing antidepressant therapy. Results indicated that by week three, the treatment group experienced significant benefits. However, researchers concluded that it was not possible to distinguish whether E-EPA enhanced antidepressant action or if it had independent antidepressant properties.