Andrew Huberman· PhD
So lithium does increase BDNF, we'll talk about why that's important in the context of the neural circuits involved with bipolar disorder in a few minutes.
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The headline is broadly defensible, but the qualifications matter. Effect sizes vary by population, the strongest claims rest on shorter trials, and credible voices push back on how it's typically framed.
So lithium does increase BDNF, we'll talk about why that's important in the context of the neural circuits involved with bipolar disorder in a few minutes.
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lithium treatment will increase so-called BDNF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor. BDNF is often talked about in the context of neuroplasticity, the brain and nervous system's ability to change in response to experience. And indeed it does seem that ingesting lithium increases BDNF.
BDNF is what we call permissive for neuroplasticity. It doesn't create specific changes in the brain, meaning it's not going to make your memory better or your coordination better, or your emotional state better per se, what BDNF does is it permits the neurons, the nerve cells and their connections in the brain to be more likely to change if the proper environmental conditions are met.