Jennifer Matthews: Simply, putting on makeup can be difficult for Kendall Minter. She has multiple sclerosis, a disease that causes double vision, numbness in her hand, and also depression.
Kendall Minter: I just get stuck in this cycle of doubt and just sadness, and I don't want to do anything about it.
Jennifer Matthews: Kendall's antidepressant doesn't work as well as she'd like, so everyday, as part of a clinical trial, she also takes six grams of fish oil.
Lynne Shinto: The fish oils, just with MS, look promising.
Jennifer Matthews: Dr. Shinto says, people with MS have high levels of inflammation in their blood, which could cause depression. In a pilot study, she gave fish oil to MS patients to see if it could decrease those levels.
Lynne Shinto: We gave them fish oils for three months, and we looked at the same marker three months later, and we see that the levels decrease.
Jennifer Matthews: This graph shows how their inflammation levels dropped by about 50%.
Lynne Shinto: Then, what we did was we took them off the fish oil for three months, and we looked at the same marker and we see that the levels go back up, which is what we expect if they're not taking the fish oil.
Jennifer Matthews: Now, Dr. Shinto and colleagues are conducting another study to find out if the fish oil reduces depression and other symptoms of MS.
Kendall is excited about the new study.
Kendall Minter: I thought it couldn't hurt, so if it helps, then it's a bonus.
Jennifer Matthews: She hopes it will also be a bonus for the up to 60% of MS patients who suffer depression. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.
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