Research has demonstrated MBCT is as
effective as antidepressants in the prevention of depressive relapse or recurrence.
In fact, cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), specifically Cognitive Therapy has been shown to be as
effective as antidepressants without the side effects.
Mind therapy Mindfulness - based cognitive therapy (MBCT) may be just as
effective as antidepressants in helping prevent people with chronic depression from relapsing, say UK scientists.
A 2008 study showed that magnesium was as
effective as antidepressants in treating depression among people with diabetes.
Exercise can be as
effective as antidepressants in reducing symptoms.
A recent study at Duke University Medical Center found that regular exercise was roughly as
effective as antidepressants in reducing the symptoms of depressed patients.
Overall, the studies suggested that the herb was more effective than a placebo and just as
effective as antidepressants such as Prozac yet came with fewer side effects.
Research has shown that moderate exercise can be just as
effective as an antidepressant because it releases natural feel - good chemicals in the brain.
In another study, it was about as
effective as the antidepressant fluoxetine (marketed under the brand name Prozac or Sarafem).
In one early «90s study involving elderly depressed patients, a type of folate known as 5 - methyltetrahydrofolate (5 - MTHF) was found to be roughly as
effective as the antidepressant trazodone.
A 6 - week, double - blind study on orally administered SAMe found that SAMe was about as
effective as the antidepressant imipramine for the treatment of mild depression.
The chemicals and hormones also help in reducing depression and sometimes can be just as
effective as antidepressant medications.
According to the Jan 5 JAMA study, if your Hamilton score is less than 24, then placebo is just as
effective as antidepressant drugs.
Another meta - analysis reached similar conclusions about the equivalence of CBT and BT1 and a recent large - scale clinical trial of BT showed that it was as
effective as antidepressant medication for depression.3 While BT and CBT were equally as effective for lower - levels of depression severity, patients with severe depression specifically benefited more from BT than CBT.3 Behavioural activation, which involves graded activity and goal scheduling, is the central component of BT for depression and may be related to a more general mechanism of change that is operating in many different treatments for depression, especially CBT.
Not exact matches
But the study also suggested that some
antidepressants were more
effective than others; several older
antidepressants were found to be more effectivee than more modern ones, but the modern treatments (such
as Prozac) were better tolerated by patients.
And early research finds that another important nutrient found in beets — uridine — is
as effective as prescription
antidepressants when it's combined with omega - 3s.
But clinical trials that compared exercise to
antidepressants found that exercise was
as effective in treating major depression
as medications.
But the researchers caution that it will take several more years to get the compound into phase II clinical trials to test its potential
as an
effective and safe
antidepressant for people.
«Although, both ketamine and memantine have similar actions when nerve cells are active, under resting conditions, memantine is less
effective in blocking nerve cell communication compared to ketamine, This fundamental difference in their action could explain why memantine has not been
effective as a rapid
antidepressant» said Dr. Monteggia, who holds the Ginny and John Eulich Professorship in Autism Spectrum Disorders.
They also found weak evidence that botulinum toxin, the anti-seizure drugs pregabalin and oxcarbazepine,
as well
as drugs classified
as tricyclic
antidepressants and atypical opioids were probably
effective in reducing pain.
Researchers found moderate evidence that the
antidepressants duloxetine and venlaxine, which act
as serotonin - norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, were
effective in reducing neuropathy - related pain.
Talk therapy and
antidepressants could both be equally
effective as stand - alone treatments for major depressive disorder.
This is why tryptophan can act
as an
effective sleep aid and a mild
antidepressant.
In studies, SAMe has been shown to be roughly
as effective as tricyclic medications (an older generation of prescription
antidepressants).
This plant has been used
as an extremely
effective alternative to
antidepressants, and can be a welcome mental boost for just about anyone (unless you're experiencing symptoms of bipolar mania.
The results of a review of twenty nine randomized, placebo controlled trials revealed that St. John's wort was more
effective than placebo for depression and just
as effective as standard
antidepressants.
Your doctor might also prescribe meds, such
as antidepressants, to help ease pain and fatigue; antiseizure drugs, like pregabalin, may also be
effective.
According to the Black Dog Institute, a clinical and research facility specialising in depression, there is scientific evidence that 16 weeks of regular exercise is
as effective as prescription
antidepressants in tackling depression.
No less than eight studies have found that St. John's wort is
as effective as standard
antidepressants for depression.
According to the Jan 5 JAMA study, if the Hamilton score is less than 24, then placebo is just
as effective as SSRI
antidepressant drugs.
There is certainly a widespread ignorance among doctors et al that the most
effective way to prevent or to reduce excessive weight gain from steroids (and
antidepressants, antipsychotics, some anti - epileptic / anticonvulsant drugs, etc) is to avoid salt and salty food
as rigorously
as possible.
Given the high risk of side effects from
antidepressants, one may only hope that more doctors and health professionals will begin to look into the potential of using yoga
as therapy to combat depression in kids, to give them a safe and
effective way to help combat the heavy burden of hopelessness and inertia that all - too - often accompany depression in youth.
Medications are rarely necessary, but in severe or refractory conditions, tricyclic
antidepressants can sometimes be beneficial to the condition, acupuncture has also proven to be an
effective treatment modality
as well.
When researchers pitted the omega - 3 fat eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) against the
antidepressant drug fluoxetine (brand name Prozac), EPA was just
as effective as the drug in relieving symptoms of depression in humans — and the same may be true in dogs
as well.4
Electro - acupuncture has been used in a variety of settings
as an
effective antidepressant drug therapy, without the unpleasant side effects associated with medication.
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
as first line treatment for depression were more cost
effective than tricyclic
antidepressants (TCAs) alone, but less cost
effective than TCAs
as first line treatment with SSRIs for dropouts.
There is a growing evidence base in support of the effectiveness of acupuncture for a range of musculoskeletal conditions11, 12; however, despite its widespread use by participants13 there has been limited evidence for acupuncture
as an
effective treatment option for depression.14 Patients with strong preferences for psychotherapy or counselling for depression are not likely to engage in
antidepressant treatment, 15 yet the evidence for counselling
as a treatment for depression is limited16 despite widespread utilisation in primary care in the UK, with around 90 % of general practices providing on - site counselling services.17 To address this evidence gap, a randomised controlled trial Acupuncture, Counselling or Usual Care for Depression (ACUDep) compared acupuncture or counselling to usual care
as treatments for primary care patients with ongoing depression.18 The results showed that acupuncture and counselling were clinically
effective in reducing depression in the short to medium term.
There is increasing research showing that mindfulness - based courses, particularly mindfulness - based stress reduction (MBSR) 10, 11 and mindfulness - based cognitive therapy (MBCT) 12 are
effective interventions for a broad range of health problems.13 — 15 Mindfulness interventions have been shown
as effective for recurrent depression, reducing relapse rates and
antidepressant usage12, 16 — 18 and for reducing anxiety.15, 19 Research also shows that perceived stress decreases following participation in a mindfulness intervention, with the decrease maintained at follow - up (between 1 and 3 months).20 — 23
In practice, the study shows that, in the short term, supportive psychotherapy plus
antidepressants are at least
as effective as more complex psychotherapeutic treatments for people with HIV and depressive symptoms.