Posted by Cam W. on December 31, 2000, at 15:48:44
In reply to reply, posted by name on December 30, 2000, at 23:24:54
> The promotion of pharmaceutical approaches to mental difficulty rather than promotion of dietary, personal and cultural approaches....Could you please give examples of any of these approaches to treating mental illnesses that have worked as effectively as psychopharmaceuticals in alleviating many of the symptoms of mental disorders. Some adjuctive psychotherapies (esp. cognitive behavioral therapies and social skills training) have merit in treating mental disorders.
Perhaps there is some evidence of a low cholesterol diet being efficacious in slowing the course of Alzheimer's disease, but I see no legitimate proof of any diets (outside of a balanced diet for those with or without mental disorders) doing anything for mental disorders. There is a guy at the University of Calgary claiming that mega-vitamin therapy of bipolar disorder does work, but I'd like to see the large scale clinical trials before rendering a verdict on this. Again, megavitamin therapy should be seen as a pharmaceutical approach to the treatment of bipolar disorder, so it would not fit into your definition of diet.
As for changing society's views of mental illness. Please suggest a way of effectively doing this. The stigma of mental illness is the one major roadblock in the seeking of help for mental disorders and is a major component of relapse due to medication non-compliance. Public education programs and policies (like the one instituted in the UK) seem to have minimal effect in relation to the amount of money being spent on these types of programs.
Any validated suggestions that you may have would be greatly appreciated. It is not that we do not want to use pharmaceuticals to treat mental disorders; it is that there is no viable option. As for financial incentives; if you can come up with a way to effectively treat a serious mental condition (eg schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, Alzheimer's, etc.) without the use of drugs, you could make a fortune. Business people would lap up such a program, if one were available.
Sincerely - Cam
poster:Cam W.
thread:3628
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20001117/msgs/3645.html