Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that affects adolescents and young adults. About 2.4 million people in the United States suffer from schizophrenia, which is usually treated with psychosuppressive drugs. Schizophrenia is one of the most mysterious and patient-afflicted disorders, so any effort that can give a glimmer of hope for avoiding schizophrenia is great, said Mingjie An, the study’s lead author. He has worked in Vienna and currently works for the Center for Research on the Health of Older Young People in Melbourne, Australia. One hypothesis suggests that people with schizophrenia are unable to process fatty acids properly, leading to brain cell damage. Researchers speculate that the fatty acids in deep-sea fish oil may help brain cells repair and stabilize. A preliminary Austrian study of 81 patients suggests that deep-sea fish oil capsules may be able to keep some young people with signs of mental illness from developing outright schizophrenia. The study provides additional evidence that serious mental illness may be preventable through intervention. The researchers are working on a larger study in eight cities and hope to get the same results. The findings are published in the February issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, published Monday. The new study looked at 81 people, ranging in age from 13 to 25, who had precursors to psychosis, including severe sleep deprivation or drowsiness, suspicion of others, the belief that someone was putting ideas into their head or the belief that they had magical powers. The researchers selected 41 people to take deep-sea fish oil pills daily for three months. The other patients were given a placebo. After a year of monitoring, two of the 41 patients taking the fish oil — or about 5 percent — had developed psychosis or had lost touch with reality altogether. In the control group, 11 of the 40, or about 28 percent, developed psychosis. Predictably, the findings could lead psychiatrists to recommend that some patients take deep-sea fish oil, which has known benefits and few risks, said Wozniak of Harvard Medical School.