Is it possible to improve mental health through diet and supplements? Absolutely. Certain aspects of mental health, such as mood, focus, memory, alertness, can definitely be improved through lifestyle habit changes. If people ate a healthy diet, slept well, exercised, did yoga and found ways to calm the mind through meditation or prayer, there would be fewer cases of mental health problems and less of a need for mental health services. Of course, certain mental illness conditions are not easily managed with natural options, hence drugs can be very useful, particularly in schizophrenia and other forms of psychosis.
   Would you like to increase your mental power and mental stamina? Do you work long hours or study for long hours and occasionally need a natural supplement to improve your mental concentration and power? If so, consider Mind Power Rx.

Prevent mental decline
Staying physically fit with age helps protect people from mental decline by maintaining a healthy flow of blood to the brain. Chronic stress can speed up memory decline in older people who already have some impairment in their brain function. American Journal of Psychiatry, December 2009.

Having close personal relationships in middle age that cause stress, problems or worries, contribute to a decline in thinking ability in older age.

Mental illness raises risk for premature death
Individuals with any mental disorder have a more than twofold increase in all-cause mortality compared with the general population.

Mental Training throughout life, training neurons
Memory and intelligence can improve through mental training. Brain cells (neurons), just like muscles, are dynamic structures. When the mind is kept active, brain cells grow and dendrites (the treelike communicating arms between neurons) lengthen and form additional connections with neighboring neurons. These serve to improve mental function. It's never too late to give your neurons a workout.
   The human mind or brain is made of living tissue that has the ability to restructure itself. You can improve your  memory, creativity, and intelligence through your own conscious effort. Researchers have discovered that the length of dendrites increases proportionally to a person's education and lifestyle. Those with a college education who continue to stay mentally active have longer dendrites than those with less education and an intellectually sedentary lifestyle. Thinking and intelligence improve as more dendrites lengthen and connect with adjoining dendrites. Animal studies also confirm the "use it or lose it" theory. Rats placed in an enriched environment (maze learning) show an increase in dendrite growth and enhanced problem-solving ability. When rats are moved to an impoverished environment, dendrites regress. Neurons can grow and change through the last days of life.

Eur Neuropsychopharmacology. 2014. Modafinil combined with cognitive training is associated with improved learning in healthy volunteers - A randomised controlled trial.

Mental Illness and DSM - Who do you trust?
Most Americans probably don't realize that the majority of doctors who contribute to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, known as the DSM have direct or indirect financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry. The American Psychiatric Association, which publishes the DSM, has said it would require financial disclosures for the next version. A study found 56 percent of 170 psychiatric experts who worked on the edition, published in 1994, had at least one financial link to a drug maker at some point from 1989 through 2004. The relationships included speaking or consulting fees, ownership of company stock, payment for gifts and travel and funding for research. All of the experts who developed sections defining mood disorders, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, and other psychotic disorders had such links. It appeared that the connections were especially strong in those diagnostic areas where drugs are the first line of treatment for mental disorders. The question becomes, "Are psychiatric drugs overprescribed because of the financial ties between the writers and the pharmaceutical companies?"

Mental depression
This a very common disorder that can be mild, moderate, or severe. In mild to moderate cases, certain supplements can be helpful including 5-HTP, SAM-e, St. John's wort, or Mind Power Rx.

Age of father
Children born to older fathers are at higher risk for various psychiatric and learning problems than once thought. Among more than 2 million children born in Sweden, researchers found that those born to fathers aged 45 and older were more prone to problems such as autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, attempted suicide and drug abuse. Other problems include poor grades in school and low IQ scores. Children's Medical Center of New York, New Hyde Park, N.Y.; Feb. 26, 2014, news release, Indiana University; Feb. 26, 2014, JAMA Psychiatry, online.

Born preterm
People who were born very preterm may be at higher-than-normal risk of anxiety disorders and certain other mental health issues, even into adulthood.

Moving addresses or locations through childhood and adolescence
Moving to different towns, states, or countries may increase a child's risk for mental health and behavioral problems later in life. This is especially true for those who change addresses frequently during early adolescence.

Questions
Q. Which of these mental enhancement nutrients is the best, dmae, bacopa, choline bitartrate, vinpocetine extract, or acetylcarnitine?
   A. Actually, I prefer a combination of small amounts of different nutrients as opposed to a high amount of just one. Mind Power Rx is a good combination for mental improvement.

Q. I am on faculty at the Department of Psychiatry at a university located in Pennsylvania. I am proposing to do a large scale clinical trial (approximately 80 patients for up to 12 weeks) with Huperzine (or Huperzine-A), a pro-cognitive agent in patients with severe mental illnesses.
     A. Huperzine would not be my first choice in treating mental decline since it only addresses the cholinesterase system, and there are many, many other factors that are related to mental decline or mental illness. We suggest taking a look at this memory page which has a link at the top of this page.

Q. i am looking for a caffeine alternative to help with energy during the day and for better mental clarity while studying. Is rhodiola or maca better for this purpose? i also don't want anything that will make me have foggy thinking.
   A. Mind Power Rx is great for mental clarity, focus and alertness. MultiVit Rx is great for overall physical and mental energy and vitality. Most people prefer these combination formulas to the single herbs.