Lithium is an element that, at the present time, is considered non-essential to the human body. However, it is getting a lot of attention as a therapy, and there are interesting reports of beneficial actions of lithium. You might have seen our blog by Dr. James Greenblatt or one of the NY Times articles mentioning lithium. It is also coming up with frequency because of increasing awareness on…

Tags: Mental Health, Mineral Imbalances, Elements Testing


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Lithium - Medication or Micro-Nutrient?

The field of epigenetics has far-reaching implications for psychiatry. As acquired epigenetic alterations can be transferred to the next generations, what scientists used to label as an inherited psychiatric disease may in fact be the result of epigenetic changes in a family’s shared environment. Many psychiatric diseases are consistent with the theory of epigenetic dysregulation because of their fluctuating nature and disease course.…

Tags: Elements Testing, Neurotransmitters, Mental Health, Mineral Imbalances


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Nutritional Lithium: Orchestrating Our Genes & Optimizing Our Moods

As far as cosmologists can tell, there were only three elements present when the universe was first formed some 13.8 billion years ago: hydrogen, helium, and lithium. As one of the three original elements, lithium is found throughout our atmosphere. The sun, stars, and meteorites burn brightly with the gleam of this highly reactive element. On earth, lithium remains a major mineral component of granite rock, and also lingers in significant amounts…

Tags: Elements Testing, Neurotransmitters, Mental Health, Mineral Imbalances


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Lithium's Billion Year Journey: A Cinderella Story for Brain Health

In part 1 of this series, we discussed the importance of correcting trace mineral imbalances of copper and zinc to reduce behavioral symptoms and improve medication efficiency in children with ADHD. There is another nutrient that should be considered by all healthcare professionals, parents, and those struggling with ADHD: magnesium. Magnesium is a macromineral required for hundreds of the body's…

Tags: Mental Health, Elements Testing, Magnesium, Neurotransmitters, Mineral Imbalances, ADD and ADHD


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Finally Focused: Mineral Imbalances & ADHD (Part 2: Magnesium Deficiency)

What if there was a safe, effective, inexpensive, and simple way to help treat one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders of childhood? Health care professionals often overlook nutrients; yet imbalances in many minerals are frequently seen in medical disorders including ADHD. Fortunately, replenishing nutrients with an integrative treatment plan has proven to be an effective treatment for…

Tags: Elements Testing, Neurotransmitters, Magnesium, Lead, Mineral Imbalances, ADD and ADHD


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Finally Focused: Mineral Imbalances & ADHD (Part 1: Zinc Deficiency & Copper Excess)

Have you seen the movie The Martian?  I highly recommend it. The premise is that an astronaut called Mark Watney goes with a team to Mars, gets left behind and has to survive. I love semi-disaster stories and even better when it's Matt Damon playing the main character. Now, according to the book, Watney had lots of vitamins and mineral supplements to supplement his diet. But if he hadn't had those…

Tags: Elements Testing, Patient Education, Selenium, Magnesium, Mineral Imbalances


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Metal Elements on a Mineral Mission to Mars

A balance of nutrients is required by our bodies to maintain good health, and selenium (Se) is an important one that often gets overlooked. This essential element is a required component of the selenoproteins, which include those that are needed to convert thyroid hormone from the inactive to the active form, and several important anti-oxidants. While optimal selenium levels are imperative for…

Tags: Elements Testing, Thyroid Health, Toxins, Selenium, Mineral Imbalances


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Understanding Selenium Supplementation

I began the study of iodine because I believe it has benefits to human health. As a breast cancer researcher I believe that iodine protects the breasts and uterus against toxic and mutagenic estrogen metabolites that form in some people more than others. Thus, choosing the most reliable test to a) determine iodine status, and, b) supplementation to maintain levels seen in populations with lowest…

Tags: Iodine, Dried Urine Testing, Mineral Imbalances


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Flaws in the Iodine Loading Dose Urine Test

According to researchers at Vanderbilt University, bromine should be recognized as the 28th essential element for all species, from fruit flies to humans. Study results were published June 5, 2014 in Cell, and demonstrate that without bromine, collagen type IV molecules will not bond together properly to form the structural proteins of connective tissues, leading to disrupted tissue development. 1…

Tags: Elements Testing, Iodine, Selenium, Bromine, Mineral Imbalances


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Bromine: An Essential Element?

As a follow up to our webinar with Thyroid Pharmacist Izabella Wentz, PharmD, she addresses questions about thyroid function and Hashimoto's Disease. Here are your questions answered. I have a patient who has your book. She has multiple gut issues, and I've tried to get her to eliminate wheat, gluten and dairy for years. She refuses. She wants to take antabine or the naltrexone you recommend but…

Tags: Thyroid Health, Hashimoto's, Iodine, Mineral Imbalances


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Treating Patients With Hashimoto's Disease: Your Questions Answered

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