Compound or practice · Supplement
Lithium (Low-Dose)
A trace element sold at microdoses for mood — intriguing epidemiology, almost no supplement-dose trial data.
- Overall grade
- Grade D
- Last revised
- 1
- graded outcome
- 0
- references listed
A structured monograph in Prometheus's bundled library. Its grades are the monograph's own reading of the evidence, not a peer-reviewed review.
1 at grade D — 1 graded row
What is known
Each outcome with its grade (how strong the evidence is, A to D), the size of the effect where the entry records one, and how often studies agree.
- Mood (supplement dose)Evidence grade D
Minimal trial data
Unclearlow
What is uncertain
Read off the same rows as above. Nothing here is added that the entry does not itself record.
- Thin evidence: Mood (supplement dose) (grade D).
The evidence in words
What it is
Low-dose lithium (as orotate) is sold for mood and cognition, distinct from high-dose prescription lithium for bipolar disorder.
How it works
Lithium modulates neurotrophic and signaling pathways (GSK-3, BDNF); at trace doses the clinical relevance is unclear.
What the evidence shows
Ecological studies link higher lithium in drinking water to lower suicide rates, and there is neuroprotection interest, but controlled trials at supplement doses are essentially absent. Prescription lithium is a different, monitored therapy.
How to use it
Not established; supplement doses are far below therapeutic lithium.
Safety & interactions
Low supplement doses appear low-risk, but lithium has a narrow therapeutic window at prescription levels and interacts with kidney/thyroid function and several drugs.
Bottom line
Interesting epidemiology, negligible trial evidence at supplement doses. Not a substitute for psychiatric care; the prescription drug is a separate, monitored medicine.
How it is used
As the entry records it, from the studies it summarises. Not a recommendation for you — doses that suit a trial population may not suit you.
- Not established
- Supplement doses far below therapeutic lithium.
Related reading
Entries that share this one's tags or conditions.
- Lithium (Low-Dose) for Mood (supplement dose)Evidence grade D — Minimal trial dataEvidence grade D
- Lithium (Low-Dose): dosage and how to take itSupplement doses far below therapeutic lithium.Evidence grade D
- Lithium (Low-Dose): side effects, safety & interactionsLow supplement doses appear low-risk, but lithium has a narrow therapeutic window at prescription levels and interacts wEvidence grade D
- Holy Basil (Tulsi)A gentle adaptogen with early evidence for stress, anxiety, and metabolic markers — promising, thin, low-risk.Evidence grade C
Sources
This entry lists no references of its own.
Last revised . A grade is this entry's reading of the evidence, not medical advice.