“B-vitamin (B6, B12, folate) supplementation can aid concentration skills in young people with first-episode psychosis,” Allott told Healio Psychiatry.
With vitamin B12 supplementation, psychosis improved in 2 months, and there was also partial improvement of neurological symptoms.
Vitamin B12 deficiency has been highly linked to several psychiatric disorders like impaired memory, irritability, depression, dementia, delirium, schizophrenia and psychosis1.
A review of worldwide studies has found that add-on treatment with high-dose b-vitamins - including B6, B8 and B12 - can significantly reduce symptoms of schizophrenia more than standard treatments alone.
The paranoid symptoms disappeared completely under treatment with vitamin B12 and thyroid hormones. Moreover, the neuropsychological deficit improved markedly. The relationship between psychiatric symptoms and organic disease, and also the differential diagnosis, is discussed.
Complications of psychosis
People with a history of psychosis are more likely than others to have drug or alcohol misuse problems, or both. Some people use these substances as a way of managing psychotic symptoms. But substance abuse can make psychotic symptoms worse or cause other problems.
Psychiatric manifestations can be associated with vitamin B12 deficiency. These include depression, irritability, dementia, delirium, and hallucinations. There have been reports of B12 deficiency presenting as psychosis2,3 or as catatonia.
With effective treatment most people will recover from their first episode of psychosis and may never have another episode. It is important to remember that psychosis is a treatable condition and if help is sought early, an individual may never suffer another episode.
It could have been worse—a severe vitamin B12 deficiency can lead to deep depression, paranoia and delusions, memory loss, incontinence, loss of taste and smell, and more.
Homocysteine levels rise in manic episode in bipolar disorder (Chiarani et al., 2013). Vitamins B6, B12, and folic acid reduce homocysteine levels in people with bipolar disorder. Vitamin B6 may also improve cognitive symptoms (Malouf & Evans, 2003; Selhub, 2002).
Deficiency of Vitamin B12 can result in hematological changes, neurological and psychiatric problems, which can manifest as irritability, changes in personality, depression, and memory loss [9]. It is also known to worsen depression by excitotoxic reactions caused by the accumulation of homocysteine [10].
May benefit your brain by preventing the loss of neurons
Vitamin B12 deficiency has been associated with memory loss, especially in older adults ( 24 , 25 ). The vitamin may play a role in preventing brain atrophy, which is the loss of neurons in the brain and often associated with memory loss or dementia ( 26 ).
Some studies suggest that glycine, sarcosine, NAC, several Chinese and ayurvedic herbs, ginkgo biloba, estradiol, and vitamin B6 may be effective for psychotic symptoms when added to antipsychotics (glycine not when added to clozapine).
B-group vitamins may help the concentration of those experiencing first episode psychosis, according to a study published in Biological Psychiatry. Psychosis is often a precursor to developing schizophrenia, but psychotic symptoms are also associated with bipolar disorder and severe depression.
Psychosis could be triggered by a number of things, such as: Physical illness or injury. You may see or hear things if you have a high fever, head injury, or lead or mercury poisoning. If you have Alzheimer's disease or Parkinson's disease you may also experience hallucinations or delusions.
Your experience of psychosis will usually develop gradually over a period of 2 weeks or less. You are likely to fully recover within a few months, weeks or days.
It is suggested that psychosis is due to an affection of the supplementary motor area (SMA), located at the centre of the Medial Frontal Lobe network.
The most common psychiatry symptoms reported in the literature associated with vitamin B12 deficiency was depression, mania, psychotic symptoms, cognitive impairment and delirium.
The positive effect of increased magnesium concentration could be explained by the decreased activity of NMDA receptors, using the same reasoning that the excessive activity of some glutamatergic brain systems are involved in some psychotic symptoms.
The drugs that are often reported in cases of drug-induced psychosis, and are most likely to result in psychotic symptoms, include cannabis, cocaine, amphetamines, methamphetamine, psychedelic drugs such as LSD, and club drugs such as ecstasy and MDMA.
In fact, many medical experts today believe there is potential for all individuals to recover from psychosis, to some extent. Experiencing psychosis may feel like a nightmare, but being told your life is over after having your first episode is just as scary.