Lifting Depression: The Chromium Connection [Hardcover]

Malcolm Noell Mcleod (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2005

A new, safe, natural treatment-with no side effects-for atypical depression has been discovered by psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Malcolm McLeod. Until now, there has been no effective treatment for atypical depression that is free of unwanted side effects. In "In Lifting Depression: The Chromium Connection," Dr. McLeod describes how he serendipitously discovered that chromium, a trace mineral deficient in the diets of most Americans, was more effective and faster acting in some patients than even the strongest antidepressant drugs. Although he was initially skeptical, Dr. McLeod was unable to dismiss the effects he observed in his patients who took chromium. He began to piece together hundreds of clues from insights he gained during therapy sessions; then he conducted an in-depth study of medical and scientific literature. Over time, he deduced a scientific and medical explanation for chromium's powerful, therapeutic effects. Over the past ten years, Dr. McLeod! tested his theory and treatment by conducting single-blind and double-blind studies with patients who were desperate for help and wished to participate in trials. He used placebos, combined chromium with prescription medications, tried chromium alone, and tested different amounts of chromium and a variety of chromium products. His dedication to the scientific method of exploration led him to recruit independent medical researchers who conducted studies that support many of Dr. McLeods's original findings. Peer-reviewed psychiatric journals, including "Journal of Clinical Psychiatry," "International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology,: and "Biological Psychiatry," have published Dr. McLeod's "stunning" discovery. "Lifting Depression: The Chromium Connection" is the step-by step story of a discovery that has the potential to help millions of depressed people. In addition to explaining why and how chromium works, Dr. McLeod details a five-step program that can help overcome depression and improve overall well-being. He also helps patients self-identify the troubling symptoms which can be be relieved by chromium picolinate supplementation

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Malcolm N. McLeod, M.D., has maintained a private practice of psychiatry and psychoanalysis in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, for more than thirty years. He is also a clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina (UNC) School of Medicine in Chapel Hill and training and supervising psychoanalyst at the UNC-Duke University Psychoanalytic Education Program. A graduate of UNC and UNC School of Medicine, Dr. McLeod is credited with one of the major medical and scientific breakthroughs in depression. Dr. McLeod holds U.S. Patents on the use of chromium in the treatment of depression.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Basic Health Publications; 1 edition (October 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591201640
• ISBN-13: 978-1591201649
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,047,462 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very informative for sufferers of atypical depression!, December 13, 2005

By 

W. L. Baker (Mt. Pleasant, MI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lifting Depression: The Chromium Connection (Hardcover)

Dr. McLeod has done his research and this book brings the reader right into the middle of it. He gives illustrative case studies of specific patients who benefited from adding chromium picolinate to their daily supplement intake. He also reviews the scientific study commissioned by Duke University to validate the effects of chromium picolinate in alieviating atypical depression. Overall, the book is scientific and convincing in terms of chromium picolinate's positive effect on atypical depression.

I am grateful to Dr. McLeod for writing this book for 2 reasons. First, I didn't even know that atypical depression existed before this book; and yet I've been seeing a psychiatrist for 8 years and taking antidepressants for 5 years. If you have symptoms such as fatigue for no reason, excessive craving of sweets & carbs, sleeping too much, heaviness in arms or legs, extreme sensitivity to rejection and onset of symptoms early in life (before age 30), Dr. McLeod might suggest you have atypical depression. Secondly, I can't believe a solution as simple and as natural as chromium could possibly work. And yet is IS working for me. Zoloft has been helping me for several years to cope with the daily task of living; but not without side effects. Chromium has no known side effects!

Dr. McLeod discusses patients in the book who take chromium with antidepressants and patients who take chromium alone. It would obviously be up to your doctor to help you decide which way to go. He also highlights several cases when chromium was not a good solution... in one case, a woman found her mood lifted, but she felt a lot of excessive energy and anger and had to discontinue. In another case, chromium had no effect on a man with rapid-onset depression... but as Dr. McLeod explains, chromium (so far) is only shown to help with atypical depression, which often lasts a lifetime.

The text of the book is not particularly well-written... it often feels choppy and stilted. But hey, Dr. McLeod is a psychiatrist, not a writer. And he does do a good job of writing for the lay person. I had no problems understanding his scientific analyses.

The chapters of the book are as follows:

Part One: Coping with Depression
1. Life is a Burden
2. Recognizing a Disorder
3. Looking for Causes
4. Formulating a Treatment Plan
5. Taking the Back Roads
6. The Long Way Home
7. Murder of the Senses

Part Two: Finding One of Nature's Secrets
8. A Ray of Light
9. A Miracle in Nature
10. Needle in a Haystack
11. Land Ahoy
12. Elizabeth: A Careful Observer
13. Do No Harm
14. Sara: Lost and Wounded
15. Giving Sorrow Words

Part Three: From Observation to Explanation
16. A Prepared Mind
17. A Lock and a Key
18. Sadness and Long Sorrow

Part Four: A Beautiful New Vista
19. An Undergraduate in Experience
20. Joseph: Insulin Resistance Syndrome
21. The Sky Turns Clear and Blue
22. Help from the Experts
23. Proof

Part Five: There, and Back Again
24. A Grateful Psychiatrist
25. Where It All Began
26. Our Paths Crossed for a Moment
27. Putting It All Together

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Miracle Cure, March 26, 2006

By 

TClark (Detorit Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lifting Depression: The Chromium Connection (Hardcover)

Four years ago I had a heart attack and by-pass surgery. Soon afterwards I fell in a deep depression with anxiety attacks. Since then I have been seeing a psychiatrist on a monthly, or sometimes weekly basis. I ended up in the hospital and an out care facility for 6 weeks. I had to take a medical retirement because the depression seemed untreatable. I've tried just about every medication and or combination, for depression, but nothing seemed to work. At one time my doctor told me I was one of the hardest cases he had ever treated. He knew from the onset it was not an emotional problem but a chemical imbalance. He used all the new, old, and uncommon drugs. We were at the end of all the drugs and combinations out there so he was pushing me to electric shock thearpy. I did not want to do this, it was frightening. I started to study on my own. I was desparate. One day I went online and found this book. At first I passed over it because it seemed to simplistic or I thought it might be a gimmick. I was so wrong. I read the book. It seem plausible enough, but I did not seem to fit the criteria for chromium deficiency as described in the text. But as I said, I was deparate. I bought a $12 bottle of chromium and started taking it that day. The next day I saw my doctor. I told him about the chromium, he seem a little amused but had no objections to me taking it. I was in the process of starting to take another antidepressant at the same time. Three days later I felt normal for the first time in 4 years. I knew it was too early for the antidepressant to be working and that chromium had to be the explanation. I cried in relief and called my brother because I had to tell somebody and I knew my doctor would think I was crazy. The next day I still felt normal. At that point I called my doctor and told him that I was feeling great. He was afraid I was manic or something. Even though he was very skeptical he was willing to work with me as I took the chromium. I stopped taking the antidepressant and I gave him my book to read. That was two months ago. I am no longer taking drugs for depression. I am feeling better now than I have for years. My doctor is amazed. He has suggested chromium to another patient who has not had success with conventional medicine. What would I say about this book? It has been a life changing a miracle! If you are at your wits end and nothing seems to help with your depression, what have you got to lose...(a meaningful life)? Read this book. Give it to others you care about who cannot find relief from their depression. I know it will not work for everybody, but it did for me. It gave me back my life. Five stars does not seem to give it enough justification!

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible Medical Breakthrough!, January 17, 2006

By 

Enigma - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lifting Depression: The Chromium Connection (Hardcover)

If you, or someone you know struggles with even some of the following: fatigue, high cholesterol, carbohydrate/sugar cravings, weight gain, high blood pressure or has been diagnosed with atypical depression, this book could be the breakthrough you've been waiting for.

It sounds too good to be true, but when the peer reviewed scientific literature backs up the claims, you have to sit up and take notice.

In this fabulous book, Dr. McLeod shares his incredible & accidental discovery that a nutrient deficiency (Chromium) is at the root of a glucose metabolism problem "insulin resistance" that can lead to a suite of health symptoms (above) that include atypical depression.

The book outlines how a simple supplementation with Chromium Picolinate at the right dosage along with excerise and diet changes, lead to dramatic and complete relief for many people in as little as 2 days. Wow.

Thank you Dr. McLeod.

(You have to wonder why screening for nutrient deficiencies like this one, isn't standard medical procedure?)