Fish and Anti-Depressants

A study presented at the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology congress in Berlin showed an association between fish consumption and the effectiveness of serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs), a type of anti-depressant drug. They found that the higher the fish consumption, the better the response to the SSRI medication: those who ate fatty fish at least once a week had a 75% chance of responding to the SSRIs, whereas those who never ate fatty fish had only a 23% chance of responding. I find it interesting that fish consumption, which has been known to reduce the inflammatory burden on the body was associated with a better response. We also know that depression is associated with higher levels of inflammation. It seems that all people with depression should be steered toward an anti-inflammatory diet high in fish.