Food for Thought: How Diet Affects Mental Health

Pictured here is my delicious Vegan Taco Bowl! Recipe coming soon…

If you are reading this, you are probably already conscious and aware of how your diet affects your physical well-being… You are probably also aware of the detriments that poor mental health has on our human population… I’d like to bridge the gap here in this post… and offer up my knowledge and support in how you can improve your mental state simply by changing what you put in your mouth. 

It has been widely demonstrated that a healthy mind is correlated with a healthy body. An overall positive mood greatly improves immune function, cardiovascular health, and body composition. So what foods make us feel happier and which are contributing to the ever increasing rise of mental illness? 

A review in the journal of Nutritional Neuroscience found that a,”Higher consumption of vegetables may cut the odds of developing depression by as much as 62 percent.” They advocate that a diet high in fruits and vegetables is a much less invasive, natural, and therapeutic method of supporting a healthy brain. So how could this be? Let me break it down for you…

First off, I just want to elicit that I am practitioner of holistic health, thus I believe and teach that the mind, body, and spirit are all intricately connected. Every symptom we experience, either physical or emotional, plays into one another. With that said, on the purely physical plane of understanding depression and the dietary impacts, here’s the science behind it: 

From a completely chemical perspective, depression results from a neurotransmitter imbalance in the brain. Specifically, the class of neurotransmitters called monoamines. The two major monamines at play in depressive episodes include dopamine and serotonin. Levels of these neurotransmitters are controlled by the enzyme monoamine oxidase (MAO), which breaks down excessive amounts. Individuals with depression seem to have highly elevated levels of MAO, resulting in low levels of dopamine and serotonin circulating their brain. 

So it seems like an easy solution… Simply block the enzyme MAO, and the resulting effect will be more serotonin and dopamine… Well, evidently that is exactly what antidepressants do. Unfortunately, they come along with a host of unwanted side effects, including brain hemorrhaging. So, can we manipulate MAO naturally? The answer is yes.

It turns out that a wide variety of plant foods and spices actually contain specific phytonutrients that inhibit the enzyme. Some of these super foods include: apples, berries, grapes, onions, green tea, cloves, oregano, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Additionally, high levels of fruits and vegetables will increase your antioxidant intake, which can profoundly decrease free radical damage linked to psychiatric disorders. 

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There are so many benefits to incorporating more whole plant foods into your daily diet. I suggest just adding some more color on to your plate… have fun trying new recipes and see how overtime, your brain benefits too. 

I hope you enjoyed this post! Leave a comment with any thoughts or questions! xo 

References

“Chapter 12: How Not to Die from Suicidal Depression.” How Not to Die, by Michael Greger and Gene Stone, Pan Books Ltd, 2017.