Column #121

A panic attack is a sudden surge of overwhelming anxiety and fear that’s triggered without the presence of actual danger. Its symptoms are similar to “fight-or-flight” which is provoked by identifiable dangers. In a panic attack the heart pounds and breathing becomes labored which causes fear of dying. This is the human brain in action.

A panic attack can be a one-time event, but usually there are repeat episodes. The recurrent attacks can be triggered by situations, especially those that have caused prior panic attacks such preparing for a speech or similar high-anxiety events.

Anxiety is slightly heritable and frequently co-occurs with depression to an extent that some psychiatrists think they may be twin disorders. Like depression, panic attacks strike twice as many females as males.

Per normal, medical professionals treat panic attacks with numerous drugs all of which have side effects. The most prescribed are the antidepressants Paxil, Prozac, or Zoloft and the benzodiazepines Ativan, Valium, or Xanax.

Less often prescribed are antidepressants such as Anafranil, Norpramin, and Tofranil, antidepressants with mixed neurotransmitter effects such as Effexor, and monoamine oxidase inhibitors such as Marplan, Nardil, or Parnate.

Panic attacks, depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease, ADHD, addiction, autism, dementia, and many related afflictions are brain-related malfunctions. Since immunity, nerves, and brain function are tied together, I searched for studies that associate panic attacks with Omega-3 essential fatty acid (EFA) deficiencies.

A Google Scholar search for “Omega-3 Brain Health” came up with 197,000 results. The first study to catch my attention was “Cross-National Comparisons of Seafood Consumption and Rates of Bipolar Disorders” by Simona Noaghiul, M.D., M.P.H. and Joseph R. Hibbeln, M.D. It compared rates of bipolar disorder with pounds of seafood consumption per person for citizens of various countries.

It concluded that when a nation’s seafood consumption averages at least 50 pounds per person its citizens have lower rates of bipolar I disorder, bipolar II disorder, and bipolar spectrum disorder. The findings are consistent with the hypothesis that an insufficient dietary intake of Omega-3 EFAs increases the risk of affective emotional disorders.

Another study, “Omega-3 Supplementation Lowers Inflammation and Anxiety in Medical Students: a Randomized Controlled Trial” by Janice K. Kiecolt-Glaser, et al., showed that decreasing Omega-6 to Omega-3 EFA ratios led to lower anxiety suggesting that Omega-3 supplementation can reduce inflammation and anxiety even among healthy young adults. The resulting reduction in anxiety symptoms associated with Omega-3 supplementation provided the first evidence that Omega-3 may have potential anxiolytic (anti-anxiety drug) benefits which inhibits anxiety.

In “Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Prevention of Mood and Anxiety Disorders” the scientists stated that Omega-3 EFAs have been prescribed for many years as the secondary prevention in various chronic diseases and mental disorders. They concluded that the clinical evidence about the preventive benefits on mood and anxiety disorders by Omega-3 EFAs is supported by “their regulatory effects on immunomodulation, anti-inflammation, signal transduction, neurotransmission and neuroprotection.”

These recent studies back the classic report by Dr. Artemis P. Simopoulos titled “The Importance of the Ratio of Omega-6/Omega-3 Essential Fatty Acids.” This report is must reading for everyone interested in nutrition. It reviews the positive impact the 1:1 EFA ratio has on chronic diseases compared to the negative impact caused by the 15:1 ratio of the average American.

There’s no question nutrition is a modifiable environmental factor that’s important in preventative medicine. For instance the long list of chronic diseases unequivocally caused by dietary deficiencies includes scurvy, rickets, and beriberi. But physicians are reluctant to accept any theory ascribing chronic disease to bad food (deficiencies, overdoses, and sugar) which is one reason chronic disease is such a huge problem.

We will always need more clinical trials to justify the preventive application of food in daily practice. But proper trials are very difficult and costly because a prescribed diet must be a total metabolical approach that addresses multiple modalities and also includes sleep, exercise, and meditation.

Unlike testing one drug (which always has side effects) for a particular ailment, eating a proper diet rarely has side effects. Yet prescribing one pill in a study is simple compared to many months of limiting numerous participants to a strict diet that is low glycemic, nutrient diverse and dense, with a 1:1 balance of EFAs. And these studies must start and conclude with Omega-3 blood tests to measure the change in EFA balance with possible changes in the symptoms of chronic disease.

Instead of waiting for “official word” from upon high for dietary solutions for each and every chronic disease, consumers with chronic diseases can perform their own personal trials. It’s easy. Take the Omega-3 Blood Test and follow “The Real Diet of Man.” If you find your EFA ratio is high at the beginning, then supplement with fish oil to accelerate change. In about six months repeat the test and assess the symptoms. Then you’ll know if you’re on the right track with using a low-risk, low-cost approach compared to the alternative.

To your health.

Ted Slanker

Ted Slanker has been reporting on the fundamentals of nutritional research in publications, television and radio appearances, and at conferences since 1999. He condenses complex studies into the basics required for health and well-being. His eBook, The Real Diet of Man, is available online.

For additional reading:

Cross-National Comparisons of Seafood Consumption and Rates of Bipolar Disorders by Simona Noaghiul, M.D., M.P.H. and Joseph R. Hibbeln, M.D.

Omega-3 Supplementation Lowers Inflammation and Anxiety in Medical Students: a Randomized Controlled Trial by Janice K. Kiecolt-Glaser, et al.

Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Prevention of Mood and Anxiety Disorders by Kuan-Pin Su, et al.

Anxiety and Omega-3 Fatty Acids by Barry Sears

Does Omega-3 Help With Anxiety?

Effects of N-3 Fatty Acids, EPA v. DHA, on Depressive Symptoms, Quality of Life, Memory and Executive Function in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment: a 6-month Randomised Controlled Trial by Natalie Sinn, et al.

Fight-or-Flight Response from Wikipedia

About Anxiolytics from Healthline

Ted Slanker’s Omega-3 Blood Test

Omega-3 Blood Test and use slanker as a code for a discount

The Importance of the Ratio of Omega-6/Omega-3 Essential Fatty Acids by Dr. Artemis P. Simopoulos

Brain Function is Unequivocally Food Dependent by Ted Slanker