Effect of strenuous exercise on serum lithium level in man.

The authors examined the effect of strenuous exercise on the serum lithium levels of four healthy, conditioned athletes who were stabilized on lithium carbonate for 7 days and who ran a 20-km race under hot, humid conditions. The subjects became substantially dehydrated during the race, and their serum lithium levels decreased, suggesting that sweat lithium loss may be substantial. (The sweat-to-serum ratio for lithium exceeded that for sodium by a factor of 4.

Running Out of Depression.

Besides being less expensive and offering beneficial physical side effects, running therapy seems to be an effective supplement to psychotherapy for treating depressed patients. Similar therapy in other endurance sports is described by Robert Brown, PhD, MD, on page 35.