Inositol Powder

Inositol Powder

Psychiatric conditions
Patients suffering from clinical depression generally have decreased levels of inositol in their cerebrospinal fluid.

Some preliminary results of studies on inositol supplements show promising results for people suffering from problems such as bulimia, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and unipolar and bipolar depression.

Myo-inositol has been found in a single double-blind study to significantly reduce the symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with effectiveness equal to SSRIs and virtually without side-effects. In a double-blind, controlled trial, myo-inositol was superior to fluvoxamine for decreasing the number of panic attacks and had fewer side effects. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study of depressed patients showed that a high dose of inositol (12 grams daily) resulted in significant improvement of symptoms, with no changes noted in liver, kidney, or hematological function.

Other conditions
D-chiro-inositol (DCI) has been found in two double-blind studies to be an effective treatment for many of the clinical hallmarks of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), including insulin resistance, hyperandrogenism, and oligo-amenorrhea. The impetuses for these studies were the observed defects in DCI metabolism in PCOS and the implication of DCI in insulin signal transduction.

Animal studies suggest inositol reduces the severity of the osmotic demyelination syndrome if given prior to rapid correction of chronic hyponatraemia. Further study is required prior to its application in humans for this indication.

Studies from in vitro experiments, animal studies, and limited clinical experiences, claim that inositol may be used effectively against some types of cancer, in particular, when used in combination with phytic acid.