Julia Rucklidge - Mental Health & Nutrition Research: Te Puna Toiora

11/11/2025

And another no to changing the current paradigm....

For those of you interested in the final outcome from the government in regards to DENs, the link is below:
https://selectcommittees.parliament.nz/view/SelectCommitteeReport/ea9ae78e-25e0-4e5a-7b28-08de12a2143d

08/11/2025

I have been intending to write a post for some time now, but unfortunately, none of my updates are positive.

A few months ago, I submitted an application to the Medicines Classification Committee to have lithium under 3 milligrams and Vitamin D under 3,000 IUs considered natural health ingredients. Although the decision was made at the end of July, the outcome was only recently released, and regrettably, the answer was negative.

The decision can be accessed through the link provided below, but in essence, the committee deemed it too risky for the population to purchase these nutrients without a prescription from a licensed prescriber. Consequently, Daily Essential Nutrients will continue to be unavailable for sale in New Zealand in the near future due to the minimal lithium content.

Hopefully, it is apparent how unreasonable these decisions are, as these nutrients are essential and can be naturally obtained. They claim that there's too much risk of toxicity but at these levels that risk is tiny. Indeed if you were to take lithium at that dose it would be completely undetectable in your blood. I can say that confidently because we've tested it.

Medsafe seems determined to restrict them because they may offer health benefits, and as soon as any therapeutic benefit is identified, they fall under the medicine category and cannot be included in non-prescription products.

Ultimately, this situation necessitates change, but I am uncertain about how to effect that change.

The bind is clear in that I couldn't write the application highlighting the benefits to a population to have a small amount of lithium in a supplement because if I did that then MCC would claim it was therapeutic. It just points to the long overdue need to regulate supplements in a different way in this country so that people can have the power to make decisions about their own health.

If anyone is inspired to write to the MCC, they are open to receiving objections in the next few days: committees@health.govt.nz

This submission (PDF, 219KB, 16 pages) proposes changes to the classification of lithium to introduce a recommended daily dose of 3 mg:

04/10/2025

Thank you for putting on such a fantastic conference with brilliant talks spanning microbiome, vagus nerve, nutrition and ADHD, mindfulness, ketogenic diet and resilience.

02/10/2025

What an awesome morning spent at the Doctors kitchen with Rupy. Can't wait for our conversation to go live.

27/09/2025

In NUTRIMUM, newborns ended up with fewer complications than even the newborns of women who didn’t have depression at all.

26/09/2025

Great summary on Mad in America on the findings from NUTRIMUM.

In NUTRIMUM, newborns ended up with fewer complications than even the newborns of women who didn’t have depression at all.

08/09/2025

If kids with ADHD stick with taking micronutrients for 4 months, two thirds have a substantial treatment response, with not just improvement in ADHD symptoms but in regulation of emotions as well. This is good news as it replicates an overseas study that showed very similar outcomes. And side effects are minimal, indeed kids grow on micronutrients! Link below for lay public review of the findings and link to open access article. Well done to Adarsh Chand for publishing this work as an honours student. ADHD NZ ADHD Kids Care - Support Group For Parents

Twenty weeks of micronutrient supplementation could support maintenance and continual improvement of ADHD symptoms. This study supports micronutrients as an alternative treatment for ADHD, especially considering their safety profile.

27/08/2025

A lay person summary of our research showing the protective effects of micronutrients during pregnancy in preventing the development of post partum depression. Implications for mums struggling with depression during pregnancy are substantial. And previous research has documented that they were safe for the developing infant.

Mothers who took micronutrients antenatally were monitored for symptoms of depression during pregnancy.

26/08/2025

So so proud of Maddie Mitchell, another graduate of my lab, who got her Masters of Science today. Simultaneously, she published her honours degree that showed the protective effect of nutrients in pregnancy for prevention of postpartum depression. Read her blog here: https://share.google/wTbTNXdLKpm53is4S

14/08/2025

⭐️ WE ARE LOOKING FOR PARTICIPANTS for the NOURISH OCD Trial 2.0⭐️

Is OCD getting in the way of your life?
Are you 18 years old or older?
Are you interested in whether what you eat impacts your OCD symptoms?

We are looking for you!

In this WORLD FIRST research trial, we are looking into whether a 12-week whole foods diet is able to improve OCD symptoms.

Available to NZ-based participants only.

Please note a diagnosis of OCD is required, and sadly if you have diagnoses of ASD, a personality disorder, an eating disorder, schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders, bipolar disorder, or a substance abuse disorder, this will render you ineligible to take part.

If you're interested to take part, please click the link below to complete the eligibility form:
https://canterbury.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_2h6PmvbyerIiQGq

For any questions, you can email Sophia at sophiac.dawson@pg.canterbury.ac.nz as she’d love to hear from you.

The aim of the study is to explore whether a particular way of eating (a diet/dietary intervention) may be helpful for symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in New Zealand adults (aged 18+). We are also examining whether changes in diet may also lead to changes to markers of metabolic heal...

11/08/2025

It is with a heavy heart that I share this latest information about funding micronutrients in NZ. I haven't posted in a while on this topic as I have made no progress on changing the current impasse preventing easy access to micronutrients in NZ. It isn't because I and others haven't been writing, calling or visiting with those who could change this situation (employees of Ministry of Health, MPs etc).

While perhaps some are sympathetic, the system is too medically orientated to allow a non-medicine to be funded like a medicine.

The latest development is that the funding application I made in 2022 (and supported by hundreds of letters from the public) where Pharmac agreed Daily Essential Nutrients (DEN) should be considered as a second line form of treatment for ADHD but designated it as a low priority for funding, are now wanting to remove it from their list and decline it on the basis that "no company is willing to supply the medicine in New Zealand".

This is not true. Hardy Nutritionals is willing to apply to make DEN a medicine but medsafe won't accept their current GMP registered site of manufacturing. In other words, medsafe will only accept a pharmaceutical grade facility as being acceptable. This is not an option for the company to move their manufacturing at this time.

What can you do as a consumer or member of the public? I always think that change will happen from the grassroots. You can email: applicationfeedback@pharmac.govt.nz by 5pm on Tuesday 9 September 2025 if you have a reason why Pharmac should not progress declining the application for DEN to be funded.

There is no big company pushing Pharmac to fund this treatment.

There are simply those who have benefitted who could write and perhaps reverse this decision. Please help. Please write, please let Pharmac know what you think of this latest development trying to keep supplements away from being funded by tax payers.

This application isn’t being declined because DEN isn’t efficacious or there is evidence that it is harmful. It is being declined because it doesn’t fit into the pharma model.

Why is there so much resistance to change the status quo and to find a way forward rather than find reasons why nothing should be changed? After so many emails, letters, meetings and correspondence, never once has anyone said, let’s find a way to fix this problem.

I am sorry I can't share better news. Please share widely.

https://www.pharmac.govt.nz/news-and-resources/consultations-and-decisions/2025-08-proposal-to-decline-inactive-applications

Image created with help from co-pilot

30/07/2025

⭐️ WE ARE LOOKING FOR PARTICIPANTS for the NOURISH OCD Trial 2.0⭐️

Is OCD getting in the way of your life?
Are you 18 years old or older?
Are you interested in whether what you eat impacts your OCD symptoms?

We are looking for you!

In this WORLD FIRST research trial, we are looking into whether a 12-week whole foods diet is able to improve OCD symptoms.

Available to NZ-based participants only.

If you're interested to take part, please click the link below to complete the eligibility form:
https://canterbury.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_2h6PmvbyerIiQGq

For any questions, you can email Sophia at sophiac.dawson@pg.canterbury.ac.nz as she’d love to hear from you.

The aim of the study is to explore whether a particular way of eating (a diet/dietary intervention) may be helpful for symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in New Zealand adults (aged 18+). We are also examining whether changes in diet may also lead to changes to markers of metabolic heal...