Inositol Benefits For Your Brain, Anxiety and Health

It can be hard to narrow down the best Inositol benefits for mental health because there are so many.

Famous for a broad range of mental effects, people use Inositol for depression, panic, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, and various other imbalances. Inositol also is used as a general mood lifter.

It has this in common with compounds in the B vitamin family, which are popularly known as stress busters and gentle mood relaxers. While it was previously classified as part of the B vitamin family and called Vitamin B8, Inositiol is actually a pseudovitamin sugar alcohol that is related to glucose.

The benefits of Inositol may have powerful clinical applications for many severe disorders, especially when taken together with the brain supplement Choline. Research on using Inositiol for conditions such as depression, OCD, and panic disorder has been promising and is still ongoing.

Read on to find out the effects of Inositol and how supplementing with this naturally produced nutrient may improve your overall mental health, as well as some common stacks and dosages.

Inositol

Nutrient Supplement

Brain Health

Mood

Weight Loss

How It Works:

• Supports brain & liver health
• Involved in mood regulation & nerve signalling
• Improves insulin sensitivity for PCOS, fertility & weight loss

Dosage:

Between 500 mg - 18 g per day

Safety:

Rated Possibly Safe

Top Inositol Products* ❯

View User Ratings* ❯

Inositol Mechanism of Action

The key to understanding Inositol benefits starts in the cells. Inositol, a carbohydrate derived from glucose, fortifies the integrity of cells by aiding in the synthesis of a variety of other compounds.

It has a special relationship with calcium, accessing stores of calcium in the brain, which in turn activates the release of neurotransmitters. One of these is serotonin, the hormone which famously generates good mood, peacefulness, and pleasure.

Inositol is known to heighten the activity of Serotonin in the brain and help with the metabolization of fats. Inositol benefits are a vital component of mood and emotional balance, and help to promote a stable mental environment when taken as a part of a nootropic supplementation program.

Inositol also assists in communication between nerves, gene expression, and signal transduction for insulin. All of these functions result in greater neurogenesis, the formation of new neurons, better signaling, and generally higher cognitive function. This action translates into sharper, clearer thoughts, and a pervasive sense of well-being.

Inositol Benefits for the Mind

People use this supplement for serious conditions like severe panic, schizophrenia, PTSD, bipolar disorder, and autism. Scientific research has shown that Inositiol may be effective for improving OCD, panic disorder, and depression.

One crossover study had patients with OCD take inositol or a placebo for 6 weeks, and then switched and had them take the opposite treatment for another 6 weeks. The patients had significant improvement in their Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale scores while they were taking the inositiol versus when they took the placebo. This trial had a robust methodology but a limited sample size (13 patients) and more research is needed on a larger scale.

In on study, taking Inositiol seems to be able to significantly reduce the severity and rate of panic attacks and the severity of agoraphobia over four weeks of treatment. Some research even suggests that inositol may be as effective as fluvoxamine (Luvox) for the treatment of panic disorders, however large-scale long-term studies are still needed to confirm these results.

The Inositol benefits for depression are promising but limited. One research study found that the  overall improvement in scores on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale was significantly greater for depressed patients given inositol than for placebo patients after 4 weeks.

Another study had similar results, with inositol patients having better scores than placebo patients during the trial period. After cessation of treatment though, they found that half of the patients who had has positive responses to inositol relapsed rapidly after discontinuation of inositol, whereas no patients who responded to placebo relapsed rapidly after cessation of the placebo. More research is needed to fully determine the effect of Inositol on depression.

Inositol is also taken for everyday mood imbalances and relieving stress and anxious thoughts. Many people include Inositol as a part of a daily vitamin regimen to ward off anxious feelings long before they arrive. When known stress triggers cannot be avoided, such as an intense workday, a school exam, or public speaking, Inositol may be taken to soothe nerves in advance and make days more productive and manageable.

Inositol can provide a lasting sense of strong, clear mental energy, granting easy access to thoughts and memories, and the confidence to express these thoughts to others.

Some of the more interesting Inositol benefits relate to heavy exercise. Many athletes take an Inositol supplement just prior to participating in sports. The compound is thought to heighten mental acuity and focus, as well as supporting increased fat metabolism to aid in weight loss.

The Natural Medicines database has rated Inositol as Possibly Effective for improving OCD, panic disorder, lithium-induced side effects, polycystic ovary syndrome, and respiratory distress syndrome. More research is still needed to fully determine the Inositol benefits on conditions like depression, as the research has been limited and at times contradictory. At this time the FDA has not approved Inositol as a drug to prevent or treat any conditions. Inositol is available as a dietary supplement only.

Inositol and Choline Stacks for Better Results

To amplify Inositol benefits, many people combine it with the important vitamin-like nutrient Choline.

Choline is the direct pre-cursor to Acetylcholine, the vital neurotransmitter known to improve memory, logical and verbal reasoning, and reaction to sensory stimuli.

Choline supplements like Alpha GPC or CDP Choline have been studied for and are taken for a broad range of cognitive imbalance, including serious conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.

Choline and Inositiol supplements work together synergistically, boosting overall cognitive function and brain longevity, while regulating mood and fighting stress. It is such a potent combo that many manufacturers package the two compounds together in a nootropic stack. For example, the Twinlab’s Choline Cocktail product contains these and other brain nutrients.

How Much Inositol to Take Every Day

Proper dosage is dependent on many different factors including age, weight, sex, and the reason for taking a supplement. It is recommended that you speak with your doctor to determine the best dosage for your personal needs.

One of the best parts of Inositol supplementation is the near total lack of side effects associated with its use. For most users, as long as you stay within the very broad recommendations for dosage, there should be no noticeable side effects. At extreme doses, some nausea may occur, but this is rare.

Typical dosage starts at 500 mg per day, which is considered a good baseline dose for general cognitive enhancement. For most people, this amount may be increased up to a few grams with no issues. For more severe deficiencies, Inositol can be taken in much larger amounts and is still considered quite safe.

For example, when used for acute panic disorder or obsessive compulsive disorder, dosages may be up to as much as 18 grams per day. While it is always recommended that you speak with a doctor before beginning any new supplements, in cases like these, it is imperative that you speak with your doctor first before beginning supplementation. Otherwise, great Inositol benefits including clear thoughts and calm mood can be enjoyed freely without fear of side effects.

Rate This Article

(16 votes, average: 3.75 out of 5, rated)