Complementary, alternative, and dietary or nutritional treatments are popular because they suggest the possibility of cure illness without the side effects (or stigma) that might come from customary treatments. Despite their popularity, the effectiveness of such treatments for mental illness has not been well-studied in the medical literature. Lots of people would be willing to try such treatments (and many are doing it on their own) but we don’t have a lot of scientific data to inform these practices.

This lecture will talk about why these treatments are important to study and will review some of the evidence to support the following treatments: Omega-3 fatty acids; N-acetylcysteine; Melatonin; Cannabidiol (CBD oil); and grain-free or ketogenic diets.