Great, I may have kidney failure from lithium, but nobody thinks I look my age. Hmm, look younger and die younger or look older and die older, which sounds better? :)

Will not be a guinea pig only to die on Zyprexa. But I'll let you know on the lithium, being 66 and taking it for a few years. I wonder if there is a study and if it factored in only longevity or length of time on the drug.

If I live to be 100, still taking lithium, Pharma may want to make a copycat drug and re-patent it.

With or without lithium the mental health system has done a miserable job of helping those who have received services remain alive. An average of 32 years of potential life lost ........ In the putative era of "Wellness & Recovery" too many aren't living long enough to achieve either.


Mortality and Medical Comorbidity Among Patients With Serious Mental Illness


Data for 20,018 patients admitted to an Ohio public mental health hospital between 1998 and 2002 were matched against state death records, and 608 deaths were identified. Leading causes of death and medical comorbidities, years of potential life lost (YPLL), and standardized mortality ratios were calculated for this population. Observed deaths in our patient population were more than three times as high as expected, compared with the U.S. general population. The mean age at death for ODMH decedents was 47.7±15.3 years, corresponding to an average of 32.0±12.6 years of potential life lost per patient.

http://psychservices.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/57/10/1482

Well you said it before I could. The first thing I thought when I was the title to your post was is that how I know two people who died of kidney failure due to lithium poisoning---one in their 40's and one in their 50's? Lithium is very toxic.

This is an interview with Dr.Manji on the CABF[Child and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation]site. Discussing Bipolar and Lithium's beneficial properties.

Interview with Husseini, Manji M.D..

"Speaking of lithium, your research has uncovered some of its intriguing beneficial properties. Can you highlight the most important ones?"

Manji: "We did MRI scans and MRS spectroscopy and then put them on lithium in a blinded fashion for 4-6 weeks. Then we did the scans again. We found that almost every single person taking lithium had an increase in N-acetylaspartic acid (NAA) [an amino acid that is viewed as a marker of neuronal health]. And the actual amount of gray matter was going up when they were treated chronically with lithium."
~
"What lithium seems to be doing is turning on the signaling pathways that produce growth factors in the brain, such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and where you have atrophy, turning on this pathway seems to be capable of reversing it. And that is a remarkable finding."

Considering that lithium has been used for the past fifty years or so to treat depression, if it does prolong lifespan, we should soon see the results in the human population.

And then what will we prescribe?

Great. I am on 2,500 mg right now. I can't wait for the blood work to be done tomorrow and find out my levels are too high.

As for the Nematodes, wasn't there a time in history where people thought leeches were awesome and the cure for everything?

I know that when I'm depressed I sure as hell don't want some doctor prescribing me something that is going to make my life longer. Especially if I'm going to still be depressed taking the f@$King drug!

I know that when I'm depressed I sure as hell don't want some doctor prescribing me something that is going to make my life longer. Especially if I'm going to still be depressed taking the f@$King drug!