I wonder if mental illness is not diet related, or a neurotransmitter deficiancy myself.
Studies have suggested (sorry didnt read these studies myself), bipolars are high in glutamate, and low in acetylcholine, and schizophrenics are high in acetylcholine, and low in glutamate. Both those neurotransmitter systems relate to memory and conciousness.
Glutamate lowering drugs are disassociatives, like ketamine and PCP. Choline lowering drugs are delirients like datura. Bipolars treated with choline respond as effeciently as they do with anti-psychotics (did read these studies) 30% of people are low in choline (choline is in eggs and meat). There have been several studies on bipolar and choline, and the link seems completely plausible, when you consider what choline lowering drugs do, and that people in society are generally low in choline.
There are no studies that I know of that attempt to rectify the balance in schizophrenics with glutamine supplementation, but thats something that really should be tried.
I personally have no idea about your prostaglandin deficiency theory, and sorry to use this as a chance to share the theory Ive considered, but thought u might be interested.
The other unpopular theory worth considering with mental illness is that of psychic conflict, that emotional pressures in the persons mind, or particularly world, or world veiw cause the person to experience things in metaphor, in an attempt to re-organise the mind (roughly).
This is the model that Jung proposed, and there have been a few cases of schizophrenics being successfully cured using this model (trying to understand what the delusions and hallicinations mean, being in a supportive, safe and comforting enviroment).
I think there is some merit in this concept, as there is clearly metaphorical content in mentally ill peoples ideas and experiences, much like that in dreams. Youd need to be blind not to see that these delusions and hallicinations arent random. They fall into clear symbolic patterns. And there is also a high degree of emotional disatifaction and trauma in mentally ill peoples lives.
I tend to beleive that a combination of these two factors (diet/lifetysle, and emotions) could resolve/cure mental illness - ie a tailored eating pattern, excercise, and corrections to the conditions which the person lives in, and context for their emotions.
At the very least, these are two links - dietary neurotransmitters levels and underlying emotions behind mental illness that are underexplored and considered.
Why is it that rather than assume a person has issues they need context for, we assume something is radically broken? Children 'hallucinate'. 60% of people hear voices, usually there own name. Traditional people have long talked to their anscestors. These experiences are perfectly within normal experiences, they are just under-recognised in our materialistic, scientific, and emotionally stoic society. (and the stoicism of our society probably doesnt help "mentally ill" people at all IMO)
Anyway, in my mind, the current accepted theories of mental illness, are so unfounded, so unevidenced, so counter intuitive, so poor at giving treatment, and quite inhumane either way, that I personally veiw them as pure primitive superstition, that is the result of a society in strong denial.
