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

10/09/2026

More evidence that the food environment is not meeting the nutritional needs of our children's developing brains.

Over 80% of foods marketed to toddlers in the United States are ultraprocessed, while nearly half also fail to meet global nutritional guidelines, a new study found.

06/09/2026

🎙️ New podcast: The science that could change mental healthcare... if regulations would let it.

I recently sat down with Professor Grant Schofield to discuss three decades of research into nutrition, micronutrients, mental health, ADHD, trauma recovery, pregnancy, and emotional wellbeing.

As everyone who follows this page will know, the science is moving faster than the regulations. New Zealand's dietary supplement regulations remain largely anchored in legislation developed in the 1980s.

Under the current system, if research shows a nutrient is effective for preventing or treating a health condition, the regulatory response can actually make it harder for New Zealanders to access. That makes little sense when we're facing a mental health crisis and looking for safe, evidence-based options.

If you care about prevention, informed choice, nutritional approaches to health, and evidence-based policy, I encourage you to listen.

Most importantly, if you agree that regulations should reflect current science, please consider contacting your local MP and relevant Ministers. Policymakers need to hear that New Zealanders want regulations that support access to safe, evidence-based nutritional interventions rather than creating unnecessary barriers.

Here is that link: https://te-puna-toiora.github.io/micronutrient-access/ IT TAKES 3 MINUTES!

Here is a link to the podcast...

https://prekure.com/blog/lifestyle-health-science/nutrition/the-science-that-could-change-mental-healthcare-if-regulations-would-let-it/

Based on Prevention is Cure, Episode #50, featuring Prof. Grant Schofield Professor Julia Rucklidge has spent three decades proving that the right vitamins and minerals can transform mental health outcomes. The evidence is extraordinary. The system's resistance is equally so. There is a moment in th...

02/09/2026

Don't tell me. Tell your MP.

For years, many of you have shared your stories with me about how micronutrients have helped you or your family, or how difficult they've been to access because of cost, regulations, or a lack of support.

This time, instead of telling me, I'm asking you to tell your local MP.

Politicians hear statistics every day. What they remember are personal stories.

If you've ever:

✅ Benefited from micronutrients
✅ Struggled to access them
✅ Been unable to afford them
✅ Wanted to try them but couldn't because of funding or access barriers
..then your experience matters.

We've created a simple tool that identifies your local MP and generates an email you can personalise and send in about three minutes.

👉 https://te-puna-toiora.github.io/micronutrient-access/

Your email goes directly to your MP. It isn't posted publicly, and you can edit the message before sending it.

I'm also meeting with the CEO of Pharmac to discuss the recent decision to decline funding for micronutrients and possible pathways forward.

A quick reality check: in the last 24 hours, only 15 people have used the tool to contact their MP.

I know from the hundreds of emails and messages I receive that many more people have been affected than that.

If MPs and decision-makers don't hear from the people affected, they'll assume the current system is working.

Please don't assume someone else will do it.

Your story is the evidence they need to hear.

If this issue matters to you, take three minutes today and make your voice heard.

And if you know someone else with a story to tell, please share this post.

Julia Rucklidge

01/09/2026

Do you think micronutrients should be easier to access? Then your voice matters.

Many New Zealanders have told us they've struggled to access or fund micronutrient supplements they relied on or wanted to try them but couldn't because of funding and access barriers.

We've made it easy to share your experience with your local MP.

👉 https://te-puna-toiora.github.io/micronutrient-access/

In about 3 minutes, you can:
✅ Share your experience
✅ Select your electorate MP
✅ Generate an email to review and send from your own email account

This isn't just about Daily Essential Nutrients (DEN). It's about ensuring New Zealanders have reasonable access to safe, evidence-based nutritional options and that policymakers understand how current regulations affect real people.

We recently met with Todd Stephenson MP and Laura McClure MP, and Todd encouraged people affected by the current system to write to their local MP and share their experiences. This tool makes that process simple.

With an election approaching and growing momentum around improving access to nutrients and prevention-focused approaches to health, now is the time to make your voice heard.

If this issue matters to you, please take 3 minutes to contact your MP and share this post widely. The more personal stories MPs hear, the harder they are to ignore.

01/09/2026

We get asked frequently - WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP?

So we decided to make it super easy to contact your MP and let them know about the problem.

https://te-puna-toiora.github.io/micronutrient-access/

If you have been affected by difficulties accessing micronutrient supplements in New Zealand, there is now a simple way to make your experience heard.

Over the last 2 years, I have heard from countless people who have lost access to micronutrient supplements they previously relied on, found access increasingly difficult, or wanted to try an evidence-based formulation but have been unable to do so.

New Zealand's outdated supplement regulations continue to create barriers to accessing some micronutrient formulations. We have also recently seen Pharmac decline to consider funding Daily Essential Nutrients (DEN), despite its clinical advisory committee previously concluding there was sufficient evidence for it to be considered as a second-line treatment option for ADHD, because DEN is not registered as a medicine.

When we recently met with Todd Stephenson MP and Laura McClure MP about these issues, Todd encouraged people affected by the current system to write to their local electorate MP and copy him in.

So we have created a simple form to make that easier.

It takes about 3 minutes. You tell us about your experience and select your electorate MP, and the form prepares the email for you to review and send from your own email account.

This is not only for people affected by DEN. It is also for anyone who has experienced barriers accessing micronutrient supplements, would like to try them but cannot access them, or believes New Zealanders should have better access to safe, evidence-based nutritional options without needing a prescription to manage their own health.

If this issue matters to you, please take a few minutes to tell your MP why.

Share share share! This is an election year so we want prevention and nutrition centre stage. Let the politicians know that this matters to you!

We have some momentum right now - vitamin D has been reclassfied and I have heard more nutrient changes are on the way. This is the time to keep the pressure on.

https://te-puna-toiora.github.io/micronutrient-access/

28/08/2026

Well, some good news I wasn't expecting this today after the bad news yesterday on DEN funding.

Some might remember that about a year ago I submitted an application asking Medsafe to increase the general sale limit for vitamin D to 3,000 IU (75 mcg). They declined but then sought consultation earlier this year on moving it to 2000IUs.

Today they've announced an increase from 1,000 IU to 2,000 IU for general sale. WOW!

After two years of discussion, consultation, submissions, and evidence reviews, we have seen an actual change to the regulations. I was starting to wonder if anything was ever going to change.

This decision is a reminder that we can evoke change. Evidence can be reviewed. Existing assumptions can be challenged. Regulations can evolve.

I've recently resubmitted an application relating to low-dose lithium, and there are other nutrient classifications that deserve reconsideration as well, including B12 and zinc.

I have more hope further changes are ahead.

One step at a time, perhaps our Dietary Supplement Regulations will begin to better reflect 21st-century nutritional science.

26/08/2026

Today, Pharmac declined my application for funding consideration of Daily Essential Nutrients (DEN) and this will be announced today.

The reason? DEN is not registered as a medicine.

This decision highlights what I see as a fundamental problem in New Zealand's regulatory and funding system. Therapeutic nutrients continue to be expected to follow pathways designed for pharmaceutical drugs, despite having very different risk profiles.

What makes this particularly difficult to understand is that an expert committee previously concluded there was sufficient evidence for DEN to be considered a second-line treatment option for ADHD. Yet despite recognition of the evidence, funding cannot even be considered because DEN does not fit within the existing pharmaceutical framework.

This is not simply a regulatory issue. It is an access issue.

Families who have found nutritional treatment helpful for their children are often paying hundreds of dollars a month out of pocket. For many, that is simply not sustainable. As a result, access is determined by financial circumstances rather than need.

New Zealand generally supports the principle that regulation should be proportionate to risk. Yet therapeutic nutrients with strong safety profiles continue to be treated as though they should meet the same regulatory requirements as pharmaceutical medicines before funding can even be considered.

This is not just about Daily Essential Nutrients. It is about whether our health, regulatory, and funding systems are capable of accommodating safe, evidence-based nutritional interventions.

The question is no longer whether there is evidence. The question is why is it so hard for New Zealand's regulatory and funding systems to respond to it.

And in an election year, I find myself wondering: why is so little attention being paid to prevention, nutrition, and equitable access to low-risk interventions that may improve the lives of thousands of New Zealanders and their families?

ADHD NZ Anna Elders ADHD Wellbeing Stay Well Pharmacy

26/08/2026

I recently watched Maree Buscke's interview with Laura McClure, where they discussed New Zealand's outdated supplement regulations and the growing body of research linking nutrition and mental health.
I was particularly encouraged by Laura's comments. She described the work my lab has been doing in nutritional psychiatry as "incredible" and expressed surprise that many of New Zealand's supplement regulations are based on limits established decades ago. She also noted that updating these regulations would represent a relatively small regulatory change and mentioned receiving a supportive email from David Seymour on the matter. Most encouraging of all was her statement that ACT would be "following this up."

As someone who has spent years researching nutrition and mental health, it is heartening to hear politicians engaging seriously with the science and recognising that our regulations no longer reflect current evidence.

As many of my followers will know, I've personally written to David Seymour, Simeon Brown, Casey Costello, etc, etc, engaged with Medsafe, met with countless politicians, the most recent were 2 members of ACT, Laura McClure and ACT MP Todd Stephenson, and raised these concerns with representatives from ACT, Labour, National, and NZ First over the past two years.

Which leaves me with one simple question:

If updating New Zealand's supplement regulations is such a small and straightforward change, why hasn't it happened?

There appears to be broad recognition that the current framework is outdated. There is growing scientific evidence supporting the role of nutrition in health and wellbeing. There is consumer demand. And there seems to be political interest.

So what is preventing action?

I genuinely appreciate Laura McClure, Todd Stephenson, David Seymour, and others who have taken the time to listen and engage with this issue. But after years of conversations, I think many New Zealanders would like to see progress move from discussion to implementation.

It's time our regulations reflected modern science rather than last century's assumptions.

22/08/2026