Page B4

THE SACRAnIEhTO BEE   Sunday, April 12, 1950

Linus Pauling Feels Vitamins
May Be Mental Ihess Cure

  By Dustin Harvey   cal) reaction rates, as deter- of vitamins, the manifesta
STANFORD (UPI)   mined by genetic constitu- tions of the mental illness
         - tion and diet, and by abnor- might never show them
Chemist Linus Pauling, the mal molecular concentra. selves."
0111~ man to win two Nobel tions  of  essential   sub-
PrjZeS, iS hard at work at the stances," he said.       Pauling said, vitamin treat ,-

age of 69 researching the              ment is preferable to other
                           methods because it involve:
possibility that vitamins can  "Significant improvments use of natural substances al
help cure mental illness.    in the mental health of many
Pauling, who won the 1954 persons mrgnt be achieved ready in the body.
                              "We know they are non

r
S

Nobel Prize in chemistry for by the Provision of the oPti. toxic," he said. Why not tr:
his work on the structure of mum molecular concentra. them and see if the patient S
the protein molecule and the tions of substances normally get along better?"
1962 Nobel Peace Prize for `present in the human body."  Pauling has become so en I-
championing  the   atomic  Pauling said his recent re- thusiastlc about vitamin S
test-ban treaty, has studied search has been a continu- that for the past four year S
the molecular basis of men- ante of studies on the bio- he has been taking larg e
tal illness for the past 15 chemistry of vitamins and on quantitites of vitamin C :,
T------        the vitamin needs of schizo- "which I think improves thl e
The use of massive doses phrenic% particularly their general health of almos it
of vitamins - primarily vi- need for vitamin C, or ascor- anybody,  helping protec :t
tamin B3, which also is bit acid.         against colds and generall:
known as niacin or nicotinic  He and his colleagues, giving them more energy.
                                   .-- ___                   . . . .

Y

acid - in the treatment o* working on a $i?,ooo annual   "I have asked the ques-
schizophrenia was started 18
years ago in Canada.    grant from the National In- tion: Would the person who
              stitutes of Mental Health, is taking twice the recom-
The technique generally is are analyzing massive doses mended amount of vitamin

called "megavitamin" ther- given 100 schizophrenics and C _ which is 46 to 66 milli.
apy, although Pauling has 166 "controls" - normal grams a day _ be in any
coined his own label of "or- people.           better health? My answer is
thomolecular psychiatry." It  Pauling said the research- yes, I think that he would.
usually is used along with ers were making "good,
other treatments for the              "I myself take 3,006 milli-
mentally ill.      steady progress" and their grams a day. I haven't had
          study indicated schizophren- any serious colds since I
A small but enthusiastic its had depleted levels of as- started, where I was always

group of doctors, mostly psY- corbic acid compared to the catchillg them before. Of
chiatrists, uses the vitamin control population.
treatment, but the vast bulk              course, this is not evidence.
of the psychiatric profession  "It may be that people But a lot of people have said
remains skeptical. Clinical who have the gene for schi- the same thing."
           zophrenia would get along  Pauling has not com-
studies are being made by all right on ordinary circum- pletely dropped the vigorous
several researchers in an ef- stances $9 he theorized, "but antiwar activities which won
fort to determine the tech. if they& also a little abnor. him his second Nobel Prize.
nique's real value.

Pauling  supported the ma1 in some other gene that  He has been active in the
          involves one or another of anti-Vietnam war movement
theory in a SCiel'dfiC paper these vitamins,  then this on the Stanford campus.
published two years am He extra abnormality may in. -
contended most mental ill-
ness is genetic in nature and crease the penetrance of the -
may result from low concen- gene for schizophrenia SO
            that they easily become

trations of vitamins and mentally 111.
other chemicals in the brain.   "If one could control this
eaii biliyr tt;t ~~sttstalpd$~ vitamin abnormality, which
caused by abnormal (chemi- might require large intakes,