What Hoffer Had to Offer
What is now called "orthomolecular psychiatry" largely originated in Canada. Linus pauling invented the term "orthomolecular" because he thought that the best approach to disease was to study the molecules. However, he was influenced by prior Canadian work which pointed towards a molecular pathology. The work of Hoffer & Osmond, who favored "a new approach", was known to Pauling. Pauling worked at Stanford University in the United States. Hoffer & Osmond blamed schizophrenia on a toxic factor in the blood. This factor was an amine. Further work supporting this theory came from the Canadians McGeer & McGeer and from Wada. Another Canadian, Greiner, together with Nicolson, favored melanosis. Melanosis was an abnormal accumulation of neuromelanin. Gilka blamed schizophrenia on tryptophan.
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This Canadian flag clipart is from the CIA website, which I have used to get the flags for various countries. This is not a secret website, but is for the benefit of the public. Dr. Paul Averback started in Cambridge, England. In 1980 he moved to Montreal, Canada. Similarly Eccles moved from England to Australia. Averback reported "lesions of the nucleus ansae peduncularis in neurosychiatric disease". He studied Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, and Huntington's chorea.
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Shown here is Dr. Abram Hoffer, who was born in 1917. Hoffer is from Saskatchawan. Hoffer is very controversial. He has studied pellagra, which is a vitamin deficiency disease (a shortage of niacin) with psychiatric symptoms. Hoffer balmed schizophrenia on the "M-substance", an idea he appears to have gotten from a brilliant 1952 paper by Osmond & Smythies. The Osmond/Smythies paper was published in Journal of Mental Science, a brilliant British psychiatry magazine. It still exists, but under a different name. Hoffer & Osmond both proposed using a methyl acceptor as a treatment for schizophrenia. The rationale was that the M-substance, similar to mescaline, was heavily methylated.
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Shown here is an old book by Hoffer & Osmond. Humphrey Osmond was a British psychiatrist who spent time in Canada working with Hoffer. His views are very similar to Hoffer. Both Hoffer and Osmond are still alive, although both are old.
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Here is another book from the Alibris website, which sells these books. Hoffer was a friend of Linus Pauling. Hoffer has similar views to Pauling. Hoffer recommends niacin to lower cholesterol, although the dosage is high. He also recommends niacin for mental health.
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Here is another clipart from Alibris. This book has an introduction by Linus Pauling.
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Although Canada is a huge country, the population is relatively small. Therefore the Canadians have a right to be proud of their medical research. Hoffer has been extremely controversial, however. Hoffer endorsed the views of Linus Pauling of the US. However, Hoffer did not place as much emphasis on vitamin C. Hoffer was more interested in the endogenous psychotogen, which he sometimes called "taraxein". The name "taraxein" was invented in New Orleans by Dr. Robert Heath.
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Shown here is the 2-dimensional chemical structure of mescaline, which was studied by Stockings (1940), Hoffer, Osmond, Smythies, Shulgin (United States) and others. Stockings, Hoffer, Osmond, and Smythies thought that a mescaline-like substance caused schizophrenia. This was first suggested by Stockings in 1940, but was expanded on in 1952 by Osmond & Smythies.
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Shown here is the rhinencephalon, which contains the septum. The septum was implicated in schizophrenia by the Canadian scientist Dr. Paul Averback. Averback started his career in England, but moved to Montreal in 1981. Averback also implicated the NAP (nucleus ansae peduncularis). Averback reported massive bloating and death of neurons in these areas. This is consistent with work done in the fifties by Dr. Robert Heath. Heath reported abnormal depth EEG recordings in schizophrenia in the septal area. He blamed this on a toxic factor.
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Shown here with an award is Dr. Paul Groff of Ottawa. He is an expert on mood disorders. The photo came from the NARSAD website.
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This book was written by Abram Hoffer and Humphrey Osmond when they were both working together in Canada. Osmond later moved. The book is outstanding. They both favor the "taraxein" theory of schizophrenia, where "taraxein" is an unknown hallucinogen similar to mescaline. However, "taraxein" is endogenous.
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