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Healing Schizophrenia: Complementary Vitamin & Drug Treatments

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I feel I should offer a rebuttal to B. Chiko. The report referenced by Chiko is the 1973 APA psychological report, a report full of errors, misleading statements and poor arguments. Hoffer has claimed that Niacin & vitamin C works best on acute schizophrenics, the 1973 report used niacin alone on chronic schizophrenics. Hoffer wrote a well thought out retort to the 1973 report entitled `Megavitamin Therapy in reply to The American Psychiatric Association Task Force Report on Megavitamin and Orthomolecular Therapy in Psychiatry.' In it he details all of the misleading statements of the APA report, and I urge everyone here to actually read the 1973 report and its rebuttal. In fact, after reading this retort JR Wittenborn, one of the six authors of the APA report conducted a test of niacin using Hoffer's parameters (acute schizophrenics) and found positive results (A Search for Responders to Niacin Supplementation). Naturally none of the skeptics reference that study. Hoffer claims his theories have helped over 100,000 patients with niacin. Should we encourage all of them to throw their niacin in the trash? I urge everyone here swayed by either my or Chikos arguments to actually read the 1973 report, then read the rebuttal.

There was a drug for schizophrenia first discovered over 50 years ago, but because it was a medication unrelated to mental illness nobody wanted to use it. Doctors laughed at other doctors who prescribed it and many in the medical community wrote off how effective it was. However for the doctors willing to shrug off the criticism of the skeptics and who tried it noticed massive improvements. This drug was just an antihistamine, how could it treat schizophrenia? That drug was called thorazine (thorazine was originally an antihistamine), and it started the revolution that led to antipsychotic medications which has helped millions of people. Where would we be if we had just written off thorazine because it was `just an antihistamine'? Why is this better than writing off niacin for being `just a vitamin'? Would we be better off today as a community of medical patients if we had let the skeptics win on that battle? Would we have geodon, abilify or risperdal today if we hadn't fought back against the medical dogmatists fifty years ago?

All I know is my feelings of unreality, my magical thinking and my paranoia are not present now that I am on niacin therapy. No error laden, misleading study written 33 years ago is going to make me feel like I'm not better or take away the fact that I can function better.

When I stumbled across this book I was looking for some help for a sibling. My family and I had seen the detrimental tranquilizing affects of anti-psychotic meds first hand. Moreover, their side effects (even with the new generation of meds) can include tardive dyskinesia. This book provided some much needed hope that there might be something proposing an alternate. This is a well written book intended for comprehension by the general public. And while I am aware of the APA's 1973 criticisms of niacin therapy, I was disposed to try it anyway. Dr. Hoffer provided convincing anecdotal evidence that there was at least some efficacy in the use of his regimen. He does not claim that all schizophrenics will be entirely off anti-psyche meds with the use of his regimen. A nice side effect of niacin therapy (we use inositol hexanicotinate) at high dosages is a reduction of LDL cholesterol. At any rate, Hoffer's book ultimately convinced us to try the treatment. My sibling has now been off anti-depressants and anti-psyche meds for some time now. The tardive dyskinesia sx that had emerged are also gone. It is too early to state that my sibling is entirely free of previous sx and to be convinced that they may not return. However, even in the event they do return, my sibling will have had a reasonably lengthy "drug holiday". It has meant much to my sibling and to us to have allowed the personality, love of life, awareness, to have returned for a time. I highly recommend Abram Hoffer's book for those interested in learning about schizophrenia, its symptoms, causes, and potential alternative treatments. I might add that prayer and requests for divine intervention have been a big part of our treatment plan as well.

I believe the reason that Dr. Hoffer has been so effective in his treatment of mental illness with niacin goes allot further than what is obvious in this book. There is significant evidence that mercury is causing many mental disorders, along with about 50 other health problems. There is allot of coverup and ignorance on this issue, but it will be revealed over the next 10 years in legal cases that will be bigger than that of the tabbaco industry.

Mercury causes severe glutathione depletion by robing glutathione molecules of an electron, and resulting in the depletion. With low glutathione levels, our body cannot naturally detoxify and a whole series of health problems result. Niacin is a very powerful tool to rebuild glutathione levels in a body, and our body depends on glutathione to detox mercury and other toxins. I believe this is one of the hidden reasons niacin is so effective in dealing with mental disorders, since mercury is the underlying cause of the disorders, and niacin helps cleanup.

Regards,

Glenn

Thanks God, for doctors like Abram Hoffer. His book(s) have given me great insight into the true nature of schizophrenia. My son may one day soon have a life because of Dr. Abram Hoffer and his students.

Dr. Hoffer is right on with his research. This is a book gives much needed guidance into treating schizophrenia from a holistic/naturopathic approach.

Wow! I have learned more from this 213 page book than I have from five years worth of doctors. I have put into use some of the suggestions in the book and my family member is doing so well one of their medications is being eliminated. Well worth trying!
Healing Schizophrenia: Complementary Vitamin & Drug Treatments

I'm surprised that they are still publishing books on this old, disproven theory. Many research groups tried to duplicate Hoffer's megavitamin theories for treatment of schizophrenia, but nobody could.

The good news is that there are some new amino acids that ARE showing strong positive benefits in schizophrenia and have the multiple clinical studies done by different academic groups - that support the claims being made. Look into these amino acid approaches to therapy (glycine and n-methyl-glycine / sarcosine ) and read about the new studies in this area. Do a search on Glycine and schizophrenia and you'll find the reearch.

Excellent Seller -- prompt sending of product; book as stated, fine condition! Thanks!