Scratching the surface When it does make headlines, it's usually an article like the one I just read: "Lithium cuts suicide risk in recurrent depression". While lithium is extremely effective for treating mental conditions like bipolar disorder and severe depression, those are hardly this mineral's only uses. It can help all sorts of conditions you wouldn't expect, including cluster headaches, gout, dermatitis, and even Alzheimer's disease. Buildup of a substance called beta-amyloid protein is one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease: the more beta-amyloid protein, the worse the Alzheimer's becomes. But researchers have reported that lithium inhibits the secretion of beta-amyloid protein, and that it prevents damage caused by this substance once it has been formed. And even if you're not battling Alzheimer's, lithium can help keep your brain operating at peak performance. In fact, Dr. Wright considers this mineral to be one of the most important anti-aging nutrients for human brains. And in true "practice-what-you-preach" form, he takes a low-dose lithium supplement every day. To get lithium's general brain anti-aging benefits, Dr. Wright typically recommends taking 10 to 20 milligrams of lithium aspartate or lithium orotate daily. While the high doses of lithium used to treat mental illness are only available by prescription, low-dose lithium is available from some natural food stores and compounding pharmacies. If you can't find it locally, it's also available through the Tahoma Clinic Dispensary. To read more about lithium's other health benefits, refer back to the September 2003 issue of Nutrition & Healing. Subscribers can download this issue for free by visiting www.wrightnewsletter.com and logging on with the username and password listed on page 8 of your most recent issue. | 
