Nutritional Blockbusters That Fight Depression
B vitamins. Believe it or not, a sweet potato or a spinach salad might help you beat the blues. Both are rich in folate and vitamin B6 or pyridoxine. Deficiencies in these two B vitamins, experts believe, can actually bring on the symptoms of depression. Vitamin B6 works by keeping your brain’s neurotransmitters in balance. These chemicals control whether you feel depressed, anxious, or on a steady keel.
Experts aren’t sure why folate fights the "blahs." But they do know low folate levels in your body can deepen depression, and high folate levels can help defeat it. You can find folate in most fruits and vegetables, especially spinach, asparagus, and avocados.
Eat chicken, liver, and other meats to feed your brain vitamin B6. Plant sources of the vitamin include navy beans, sweet potatoes, spinach, and bananas.
Depression can also signal a deficiency in thiamin, also known as vitamin B1. Stick with whole-wheat breads, meats, black beans, and watermelon to punch up your thiamin levels. These foods might help you feel more clearheaded and energetic.
Iron. Beating the blues might be as easy as eating iron-rich foods if you have iron-deficiency anemia. Over two billion people suffer from this condition and even more live with less-serious iron deficiency. A sour mood is a major symptom of a lack of iron. Other symptoms include pale skin, sluggishness, and trouble concentrating.
Iron-deficiency anemia often attacks pre-menopausal women, people who regularly take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and others at risk for chronic blood loss. It’s a good idea to visit your doctor if you suspect you’re anemic.
To get more iron in your diet, try meat for starters. The darker the cut, the more iron it has. If you’re a vegetarian, stick with legumes, fortified cereals, quinoa, kale, and other green leafy vegetables. And it’s a good idea to top these foods with a rich source of vitamin C, like lemon juice. The vitamin C will help your body absorb the iron.
Selenium. You probably heard selenium fights cancer, but you might not know the mineral banishes bad moods, too. People who don’t eat enough selenium-rich foods tend to be grumpier than people with a high dietary intake, according to recent research. Eat some high-test selenium foods — like seafood, poultry, mushrooms, sea vegetables, and wheat — and feel the effects for yourself.
Carbohydrates. If stress gets you down, a diet rich in carbohydrates might be just what the doctor ordered. Eating mostly carbohydrates during the day, suggests a recent European study, may make stressful situations more bearable for some people. The scientists fed people either a diet high in carbs and low in protein, or vice versa. Then the doctors put the subjects through a difficult mathematical task. The carbohydrate-rich diet worked to lower stress and depression in some of the subjects.
The carbohydrate diet appears to work by raising the level of tryptophan in your brain. Tryptophan is the amino acid your body needs to make serotonin, the "happy" neurotransmitter.
It’s important to remember not all carbohydrates are equal. Nutritionally speaking, carbohydrates from fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and cereals are best. They’ll save you from stress and boost your levels of vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
Omega-3 fatty acids. Don’t be offended if someone calls you a fathead. You’re in good company. Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Sir Isaac Newton, and Confucius can be called fatheads, too. That’s because fat makes up about 60 percent of the human brain. But you do have a choice over what type of fathead you want to be. You can keep your brain running smoothly with theright kinds of fats or you can gum up the works with too much of the wrong kind. It all depends on what you eat.
Sound fishy? As a matter of fact, it is. The essential fats found in seafood, called omega-3 fatty acids, play a major role in brain function. They may even boost your mood. You need them but can’t make them on your own. "Essential fatty acids only appear through your diet," says Dr. William Lands of the National Institutes of Health.
That means next time you’re feeling blue, dip into the deep blue sea for your dinner. New medical evidence suggests the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish — called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) — can help drive away depression.
© FCA Publishing
Excerpt from FC&A’s Eat And Heal.
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