New research suggests that dietary interventions could help reduce the incidence and intensity of bipolar disorder.
- Arachidonic acid, a polyunsaturated omega-6
fatty acid, could
be a key driver of bipolar disorder, according to a new study.
- Bipolar disorder is a mental health condition
in which a person experiences intense bouts of manic highs and depressive
lows that are often highly disruptive to their lives.
- Arachidonic acid is found in foods and human
milk, suggesting that dietary interventions could help reduce the
incidence and intensity of bipolar disorder.
When a person has bipolar disorder, they are overcome
by an alternating cycle of extreme emotional highs and lows.
The condition can severely affect a person’s
livelihood, as the highs are characterized by an unrealistic sense of
invincibility, and the lows by debilitating depression.
The causes of bipolar disorder may vary, but it is
believed the condition may be related to genetic factors.
A new study presents evidence that bipolar
disorder (BPD) may be at least partially a product of low
levels of
Arachidonic acid is a polyunsaturated omega-6 fatty acid. Lipids
are fatty or waxy and water-insoluble substances in the body responsible for
various key functions.
The
researchers found that higher levels of arachidonic acid correlated to a lower
incidence of bipolar disorder.
The findings are published in Biological Psychiatry.
Lipid
biomarkers in bipolar disorder
Using publicly available
metabolomic data from 14,296 European individuals, the authors of the study tested
913 circulating metabolites for a link to bipolar disorder, identifying 33 that
are associated with the condition.
Most of the metabolites, including arachidonic acid,
were lipids.
No association was found between the lipids and other
disorders such as schizophrenia or
depression.
The researchers found a slight suggestion of a
connection to the regulation of a person’s response to the drug lithium,
which is sometimes prescribed for bipolar disorder, though not to the degree it
was in the past due to toxicity.
Significantly,
the study found that the lipid associations with bipolar disorder were prompted
by genetic variants within the FADS1/2/3 gene cluster.
This is known to be an area of strong risk factor for
bipolar disorder and is responsible for initiating the conversion of linoleic
acid into arachidonic acid.
Jason Ng, MD, associate professor of
endocrinology and metabolism in the Department of Medicine at the University of
Pittsburgh, not involved in the study, explained the FADS1/2/3 gene cluster
results in “lipids of certain configurations that may lower or increase the
risk of BPD.”
The study’s first author, David Stacy, PhD, a research fellow at the
University of South Australia, described the genes’ role in encoding a family
of fatty acid
“Since
this gene cluster is
Arachidonic
acid levels and bipolar disorder
An important implication
of this study is that dietary intervention could play a role in reducing the
risk of bipolar disorder, particularly among those with a family history of the
condition.
Dietary intervention could also help minimize the
progression of this condition for those who already live with it.
Arachidonic
acid is obtained through diet as an omega-6 fatty acid found in foods such as
seafood, eggs, and meat. It can also be synthesized from dietary linoleic acid
in nuts, seeds, and oils.
“Our findings suggest that
a genetic propensity to lower plasma levels of arachidonic acid and arachidonic
acid-containing complex lipids may be associated with a higher risk of bipolar
disorder. We know that arachidonic acid plays an important role in brain
development and functioning, but exactly how it might mediate [the] risk of
bipolar disorder is unclear. Much work still needs to be done to determine
this.”— David Stacy, PhD, lead study author
Optimal levels for
arachidonic acid are not yet known, another reason why this study represents
early insights that may “potentially further the understanding of the
underlying biology of bipolar disorder,” Ng explained to MNT.
“Higher levels of arachidonic acid have been
associated with gallstone formation and brain
inflammation. Lower levels of arachidonic acid may potentially increase the
risk of some psychiatric disorders, such as bipolar disorder,” Ng said.
In
addition, the human liver also synthesizes arachidonic acid from linoleic acid,
which is present in human milk, suggesting a role in healthy neurodevelopment.
“This study continues to support looking at how we can
optimize infant and child nutrition to get healthy amounts of arachidonic acid,
which may help lower [the] risk of bipolar disorder in the future potentially,”
Ng said.
Could a
blood test diagnose bipolar disorder?
Bipolar disorder was
formerly referred to as manic-depressive disorder.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH)
There are
- Bipolar I disorder —
With this form of BPD, manic moods last for at least seven days and for
the better part of those days. At times, behavior can become so extreme
that medical care is required. This is followed by a depressive
episode that usually lasts at least two weeks. Some people
may even experience both phases atop each other at the same time. “Rapid
cycling” refers to having four or more episodes of mania or
depression within one year.
- Bipolar II disorder —
This is a less severe version of bipolar I but is also characterized by
swings between manic and depressive moods.
- Cyclothymic disorder,
or cyclothymia — A
high-speed bipolar disorder in which manic and depressive moods do not
last long enough to qualify as episodes.
If the current study’s findings are further verified,
they may result in providing clinicians with biomarkers that may allow for a
diagnosis of bipolar disorder.
“To my knowledge, there are currently no clinically
approved blood biomarkers used for the diagnosis of bipolar disorder,” Stacy
reported.
“The hope is that biomarkers will facilitate psychiatric diagnoses and guide treatment options in the future, but we’re not there yet,” Stacy concluded.
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