How to deal with depression

How to deal with depression? Depression is not uncommon. Moreover, in Western countries it has become so commonplace that the name of the antidepressant, such as, Prozac, now is probably on everyone’s lips. There are many causes for depression, but perhaps you would be surprised to learn that one of them may be a reaction to food.

Depression visits from time to time any of us, but we usually associate it with some well-defined events. But many people suffer from depression, the causes of which are not as obvious. Its severity varies from mild melancholy to permanently aggrieve state, and in extreme cases, people are not able to feel joy or even do not living worthwhile. Depression is usually short-lived, and goes away when life circumstances change for the better. But other states are alarming and require not only careful attention, but sometimes even treatment.

Consumed food affects the processes in the brain. So picking products carefully you can deal with depression. Some products are uplifting, others are able to spoil one’s mood, suppressing positive emotions. By some irony, most products enhancing mood are not too good for health, but help to deal with depression. So when consuming foods it is advisable to , so that, when taking them, as in everything else, it is advisable to exercise restraint and caution.

Carbohydrates and Mood

When we eat foods that contain carbohydrates and sugar, the brain receives more tryptophan, amino acid that increase the mood. Tryptophan is found in protein foods, but it improves the absorption of carbohydrates in the brain vessels. Much tryptophan can be found in bananas, turkey meat, cheese and home dried dates.

Nerve impulses between nerve cells are transferred due to special substances called neurotransmitters.

Test for Detecting Depression

The first step to deal with depression is to find out if you have a depression. In order to find out Use this worksheet to determine whether you are predisposed to depression

• is it difficult for you to get out of bed in the morning?
• do you find it difficult to concentrate?
• did you suffer recently a bereavement or did you break your relations with beloved one?
• don’t you have strength to deal with the matter that has always attracted you?
• did you lose your appetite?
• are you drawn to the sweets?
• do you cry withoug reason?
• do you live in a country with little sunny days?
• do you think you have nothing to hope or life doesn’t have meaning?

If you answered “yes” to three or more questions, you may be experiencing depression.

Talk to your doctor and, if he will identify depression in you, seek further help from your doctor and dietitian.

How to deal with depression?

So, what are the best ways to deal with depression effectively?

Tryptophan is a precursor of serotonin, a neurotransmitter lack of which contributes to depression and distress. Antidepressants like Prozac increase the level of serotonin in the brain. This anti-depressant belongs to the drugs group called selective inhibitors of reutilization of serotonin. They suppress the process of re-use of serotonin in the brain, causing it to be present, thus providing a good mood.

Vitamin B6 is involved in the synthesis of serotonin. Including in your diet food products rich in vitamin B6, you are struggling with depression.

Being depressed, we strive to enjoy sweets such as ice cream, chocolate or cake with a purpose. Sweets affect the chemical processes in the brain and also can help deal with depression. This is what happens during dieting: you exclude  foods rich in carbohydrate from your diet, which inevitably leads to a growing attraction to them, desire to consume sweets becomes obsessive and you break the diet.

Deal with Depression: Dopamine

You also need to include lots of products helping to synthesize dopamine in your diet in order to deal with depression.

In lack of dopamine you feel depressed, and, on the contrary, its increased quantity enhances mood. Although dopamine in the strictest sense is not a neurotransmitter, it also contributes to transfering nerve impulses in the brain.

Dopamine is synthesized from tyrosine, one of the amino acids present in protein foods. Vitamins B12 and B9 are necessary for its emergence (often referred to as folic acid), as well as magnesium.

Products rich in tyrosine include: almonds, avocados, bananas, cottage cheese, beans, lima, peanut nuts (raw, not salted), pumpkin and sesame seeds. Much vitamin B12 is contained in fish, dairy products, and spirulina (though it is still not quite clear if human body is able to extract vitamin from it).

Vitamin B

Vitamin B1 (thiamine) is found in brewer’s yeast, brown rice, wheat germ and soybeans.

Vitamin B3 (niacin or niacinamide) is found in fish, eggs, brewer’s yeast, cereal grains and poultry.

Vitamin B6 is contained in the grains of millet, buckwheat, oats, and in crustaceans (shrimp, lobster) and mussels.

Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamin) is found in fish and dairy products.

Deal with Depression: Role of Zinc

It was also found that zinc helps to deal with depression.

There is a strong link between zinc and depression. Patients suffering from depression due to lack of zink are quite common. Postpartum depression is also associated with zinc deficiency, reservoirs of which are transferred from mother to fetus in apporximately a day before childbirth. Zinc is essential for growth and development of infant’s immune system. Replenishment of zinc in the mother’s body after birth of child helps to prevent depression.

To test whether there is sufficient zinc in your body, you can answer a short questionnaire. If you decide to increase the level of zinc in the bod watch that the dosage of its consumption doesn’t exceed 50 mg per day, regardless of th source (including multivitamin supplements). However, first consult your dietitian.

Much zinc is found in oysters, endive salad, sprouts of alfalfa, seaweed, brown rice, asparagus, mushrooms, turkey meat and radish.

Lots of folic acid is contained in bovine liver, soy flour, green vegetables (especially in broccoli), eggs and brown rice. Sunflower seeds, green leafy vegetables, wheat germ, soybeans, mackerel, swordfish and cod are rich in magnesium.

Check if your body has sufficient zink. Check how much zinc you have by answering the following questions:

• Do you have white spots on nails?
• Do you feel hunger rare?
• Do you have pale skin?
• Do you have stretch marks on your stomach and back?
• Do you have oily and possibly acne skin?
• Do you often catch cold?

If you answered “yes” to two or more questions, you may not have enough zinc, and should include foods containing it in your daily menu. You can have a more precise measure for contents of zink in your body by examining a hair sheared from your nape.  Almost every nutritionist can perform this simple and relatively inexpensive analysis for you.

Deal with Depression: Nutrients

There is a relationship between the amount of some vitamins (especially B vitamins), and depression. People suffering from depression may be characterized by lower levels of blood plasma, and many of them noted that enrichment of their diet with foods rich in vitamins B had a beneficial effect on the symptoms. In terms of confrontation depression most effective are vitamin B3, vitamin B6 and zinc. Include in your daily menu fish rich in vitamin B6; you will see how it will affect your mood and help deal with depression.

Deal with Depression: Food Allergy

Many patients ask for help in struggling with depression. It often turns out that the reason of depression lies in the of food allergies or intolerance for foods; it is much easier to deal with the problem then. Symptoms appear as dark circles under eyes, skin disorders, insomnia, irritability and anxiety.

Responsible products may be detected with a simple blood test. However, in most cases, it is simply enough to remove from the diet one or several of most probable allergens. In our experience, it gives great results.

The most common allergens in Europe are wheat, dairy products and citrus fruits, while in the U.S. the dominant allergen is corn. – 97). In addition, many dishes from fast food, dyes and food additivesthe are also considered allergenic. In rare cases, an allergy to celery or tomatoes was discovered .

The most notable example for relationship of allergy to depression is an allergy to gluten, due to which celiac disease is developing. ). If people are suffering from this type of allergy would not limit consumption of gluten-containing foods the probability of depression will rise.

TIP

Even our grandmothers knew how useful it is to eat an apple each, this holds true up till our times. Apples contain pectin, promoting removal of lead from the digestive tract; it is especially important for those who live in cities with high pollution exhaust.

Though many of our patients suffering from depression, achieved excellent results, eliminating from their diets specific foods, it is advisable to consult a doctor, especially if the depression is persistent for a long time.

Tips to Deal with Depression

When blood circulates poorly, it reduces the level of oxygen and nutrients necessary for the brain. To avoid it you need to stand up and warm up vigorously.

You can also improve blood circulation by including in your diet foods rich in antioxidants from the so-called “Famous Five” (vitamins A, C and E, as well as trace elements selenium and zinc) which are present in fresh fruits and vegetables as well as in fish and cereals. Also, you need to add iron, necessary for formation of red blood cells which carry nutrients in the blood. Offal (especially liver) as well as apricots and raisins are also good source of iron.

Regulating level of blood sugar helps deal with depression, since it is one of the factors that contribute to depression. Consuming foods that promote evenly release of carbohydrates throughout the day, you can avoid spikes in blood sugar levels and deal with depression effectively. Eat more foods containing complex carbohydrates (all grains and vegetables), combined with a small amount of protein (meat, dairy products, nuts and seeds). These measure will allow you to maintain a balance of blood sugar throughout the day.

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