However , mechanistic studies found significant improvements in hippocampal neuronal health and brain glutathione .
CONCLUSION There is preliminary evidence that taurine improves outcomes in FEP , whereas effects of omega-3 and antioxidant vitamins/amino-acids are inconsistent ; perhaps mainly benefitting patients with high levels of oxidative stress .
AIM The effects of nutrient-based treatments , including adjunctive vitamin or antioxidant supplementation , have been explored extensively in long-term schizophrenia .
However , no systematic evaluation of trials in " first-episode psychosis " ( FEP ) has been conducted , despite the potential benefits of using these treatments during the early stages of illness .
Therefore , we aim ed to review all studies examining efficacy , tolerability and the biological mechanisms of action , of nutrient supplementation in FEP .
Oxidative stress reduction related to the efficacy of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in first episode schizophrenia: Secondary outcome analysis of the OFFER randomized trial.
Intervention studies of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids ( n-3 PUFA ) as add-on therapy in patients with schizophrenia have not examined changes in oxidative stress . A r and omized placebo-controlled trial of a 26-week intervention composed of 2.2g/day of n-3 PUFA was found to reduce symptom severity in first-episode schizophrenia patients . The present study is an extension of our previous report , whose secondary aim was to assess the association between the clinical effect of n-3 PUFA and changes in oxidative stress indices . Seventy-one patients aged 16 - 35 were enrolled in the study and r and omly assigned to the study arms . Total plasma antioxidant capacity and 8-epi-isoprostane F2α content were assessed at baseline and at weeks 8 and 26 of the study as secondary outcome measures . Significant changes in oxidative stress indices favouring the intervention group were observed : decreases in 8-isoprostane F2α ( p<0.001 ) and increases in total plasma antioxidant capacity ( p<0.001 ) . Significant correlations between changes in clinical scores relevant to symptom severity and changes in oxidative indices were observed . The results of the present study hence suggest that the efficacy of a six-month intervention with n-3 PUFA observed in first-episode schizophrenia may be related to improvement in oxidative stress indices
However , mechanistic studies found significant improvements in hippocampal neuronal health and brain glutathione .
CONCLUSION There is preliminary evidence that taurine improves outcomes in FEP , whereas effects of omega-3 and antioxidant vitamins/amino-acids are inconsistent ; perhaps mainly benefitting patients with high levels of oxidative stress .
AIM The effects of nutrient-based treatments , including adjunctive vitamin or antioxidant supplementation , have been explored extensively in long-term schizophrenia .
However , no systematic evaluation of trials in " first-episode psychosis " ( FEP ) has been conducted , despite the potential benefits of using these treatments during the early stages of illness .
Therefore , we aim ed to review all studies examining efficacy , tolerability and the biological mechanisms of action , of nutrient supplementation in FEP .