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Review
. 2024 Nov 5;17(11):1486.
doi: 10.3390/ph17111486.

Trace Lithium for Suicide Prevention and Dementia Prevention: A Qualitative Review

Takeshi Terao  1 , Hirofumi Hirakawa  1 , Masaaki Muronaga  1 , Toshihiko Izumi  1 , Kentaro Kohno  1
Affiliations
Review

Trace Lithium for Suicide Prevention and Dementia Prevention: A Qualitative Review

Takeshi Terao et al. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). .

Abstract

Background: Anti-manic effects of lithium and the nature of trace element in lithium were first observed in 1949. In this review, we explore the potential effects of trace lithium in the prevention of suicide and dementia. Methods: This is a qualitative and non-systematic review. Results: While most studies to date have been cross-sectional, limiting the establishment of causal relationships, the potential benefits of trace lithium for suicide prevention and dementia prevention are notable, especially in the absence of radical treatments for suicide and dementia. Furthermore, trace lithium appears to lack many of the adverse effects associated with so-called therapeutic lithium levels. Conclusions: The present findings suggest that trace lithium may be associated with lower suicide rates and reduced dementia rates. Probably, trace lithium may inhibit testosterone and thereby mitigate aggression and impulsivity and decrease suicide. Also, trace lithium may inhibit GSK-3β and thereby lower amyloid β and tau hyperphosphorylation and inhibit pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL 6 and IL 8 and thereby mitigate inflammation, whereas trace lithium may promote BDNF and neurogenesis in the general population.

Keywords: dementia; lithium; suicide prevention; trace elements.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The effects of lithium from trace levels to therapeutic levels. Trace lithium levels primarily produce anti-aggressive/anti-impulsive effects, contributing to anti-suicidal outcomes, while therapeutic levels of lithium add mood-stabilizing effects. The threshold for anti-aggressive/anti-impulsive effects may occur at 0.0008 mEq/L as a threshold, or the effect could follow a dose–response pattern (linear or non-linear).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Lithium against testosterone, aggression/impulsivity, and suicide. Trace lithium may inhibit testosterone, which may decrease aggression and impulsivity, leading to suicide prevention.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The mechanisms of trace lithium for dementia prevention. (A): lithium inhibition, (B): lithium promotion. Low-lithium may inhibit Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3β (GSK-3β) and pro-inflammatory cytokine (IL-6, IL-8, etc.) and promote Brain-derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and neurogenesis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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