Effects of a nutritional supplement on weight gain after initiation of atypical antipsychotic medication in Early Psychosis patients.

The aim of this project is to see if daily 2g oral capsule dose of Omega 3 supplement will improve the participants ability to minimise any possible weight gain that may occur when taking antipsychotic medication. The oral capsules will be taken once daily when the participants take there medically prescribed medication. To meet the 2g dose amount participants are required to take 4 oral capsule daily (at one time) as each capsule only contains 500mg of active ingredient. We are proposing that the use of this dose Omega 3 will reduce the participants appetite and help with any possible rapid weight gain. Currently this is a new field of research and no one has tested this idea with young people who are taking antipsychotic medications for the first time. The evidence does show that many young people who start antipsychotic medications gain weight and then stop taking the medication, placing them at greater risk of getting sick again. Weight gain on antipsychotic medications is usually the most rapid during the start of treatment and in the first few weeks of starting medication. This study aims to test if using a product that is widely available with little known side effects can assist with minimising any possible weight gain that may occur on antipsychotic medications. The nutritional supplement has been widely researched in other areas of health and has been shown to improve mood. No known side effects of the nutritional supplemnt has been documented. The nutritional supplement is widely available in stores and without prescription. Each person will be asked to participate for 14 weeks in total. The first group (participants are randomly assigned to either group 1 or 2) will start on the active ingredient for 6 weeks then go onto the placebo for 8 weeks (allowing a 2 week wash out period post active ingredient). The second group will start on the placebo for 8 weeks (which is 6 weeks on placebo and then 2 weeks wash out ahead of starting the active tablets - just for consistency in the length of the trial (total 14 weeks for both groups) and then start the active ingredients for the remaining 6 weeks. Every two weeks either the nutritional supplement or the placebo will be provided by the treating doctor.