
The History of Medicinal Lithium - secondary
https://literaryreview.co.uk/whats-in-the-7-up
======
jackhack
Curiously, but I suppose not surprisingly, another element in the same column
-- chromium -- has been shown to yield similar positive effects against
depression. In the US, this is available over the counter as chromium
picolinate. [https://www.cell.com/trends/pharmacological-
sciences/fulltex...](https://www.cell.com/trends/pharmacological-
sciences/fulltext/S0165-6147\(00\)01622-9)
[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12559660](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12559660)

~~~
cassowary37
please be careful in equating the two: there are decades of studies, including
large trials, demonstrating benefit for lithium. It's considered gold standard
treatment for bipolar disorder even in an era where big pharma pushes hard for
newer and more costly meds. there is modest and inconsistent evidence from
small trials that chromium picolinate, a dietary supplement, may be beneficial
in depression. Oh, and note that chromium is more expensive than lithium too!

(edit to add: re lithium:
[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5947163/;](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5947163/;)
re chromium, I could find one RCT with n=15 in depression)

~~~
braindeath
> big pharma pushes hard for newer and more costly meds.

Lithium is not perfect. It causes permanent kidney damage and is a pretty bad
teratogen. Also overdose is pretty bad, which is never ideal for a mood
medication.

There is actual value in investigating new medications for bipolar beyond big
pharma profits.

~~~
vonseel
I was under the impression Lithium side effects or dangers can be mitigated by
monitoring blood levels properly.

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nutate
Liquid lithium syrup is still available (with a prescription?). I purchased
some, but without sugar it doesn't taste much like sevenUp when combined with
soda water. The first time I ever had it (in a mental ward) it really tasted
like sevenUp, but I think that was set and setting more than anything. I love
lithium (especially in comparison to newer mood stabilizers), but I do have to
track my liver function with it. I generally just use pills, but in other
countries the liquid is more popular. This is all for bipolar, not for
recreation. I'll have to check out that book from the old library.

~~~
trentlott
My wife has tried several new mood stabilizers and combination drugs, but none
of them work as well as lithium

Her old med (Latuda) will go up to $300/mo after the 1 year trial
period....but it never worked very well.

It is absurd that something so simple should work as effectively as it does

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cassowary37
Fun lithium fact: while most people start the lithium story with Cade (indeed,
there's a form of lithium-responsive bipolar disorder which was sometimes
called Cade's disease), it was previously used by Lincoln's surgeon general,
William Hammond, to treat manic excitement (in the form of lithium bromide).
But Hammond thought it was the bromide, not the lithium, that did the trick.

obligatory wikipedia reference:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_A._Hammond](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_A._Hammond)

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pmlnr
Related read: [https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/14/opinion/sunday/should-
we-...](https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/14/opinion/sunday/should-we-all-take-
a-bit-of-lithium.html)

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DoreenMichele
Some practical provisos if you are actually taking lithium:

[https://pro.psychcentral.com/what-to-remember-about-
lithium/](https://pro.psychcentral.com/what-to-remember-about-lithium/)

[https://www.drugs.com/lithium.html](https://www.drugs.com/lithium.html)

[https://www.livestrong.com/article/553214-correct-liquid-
int...](https://www.livestrong.com/article/553214-correct-liquid-intake-with-
lithium/)

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Uhuhreally
interestingly lithium's medicinal properties depend on its isotope

