At some moment or another, everyone feels a bit down; melancholy, groom or despair…whatever you name it. The connections between Depression and diet are twofold. On the one hand, some foods may generate depression; on the other hand, when we feel low we tend to crave foods that will make things even worse. Food allergies, nutritional insufficiencies, and biochemical imbalances may all cause symptoms of depression.

In the UK, 20 percent of people suffer from depression of some type in the path of their lifetime, and one in 20 experience clinical depression. Globally, more than 264 million people of all ages suffer from depression. Even more worryingly, it has been reported that 2 percent of children under 12 experience depression and that as many as 5 percent of teenagers also suffer from this debilitating disorder.

Depression is frequently the result of an undesirable or traumatic event. The list of these standard causes is endless, and people’s responses to these circumstances are equally varied in intensity and duration. This condition is referred to as “reactive” depression and is usually a natural response to some external stress or tension. However, it becomes a matter of greater concern when recovering from an unpleasant experience lingers on and the depression continues for months or years instead of days and weeks.

Signs and symptoms of depression differ from individual to individual and can range from fatigue to insomnia, from feelings of worthlessness to irritability and fury. Often, depression is associated with physical discomforts and pains, as well as digestive issues, including diarrhea, constipation, and indigestion. In many cases, there is no obvious external cause of depression. However, there may be other triggers.
Depression can take many shapes and it is the various expressions that may give us indications as to the underlying cause, which may in turn point to a nutritional solution.

No get up and go?

Apathy and lack of motivation are signals that suggest the brain’s depression may be due to long-term stress. Stress can drain the body’s reserves of the adrenal gland and hormones, adrenaline (epinephrine) and noradrenaline (norepinephrine), and low levels of these hormones are associated with depression. This is where the amino acid Tyrosine comes in. Tyrosine is found in foods including wheat germ, ricotta, cottage cheese, yogurt, and milk.

Tyrosine is one of the amino acids that can travel the blood-brain barrier. This barrier is the body’s special protective mechanism for preventing any unwanted chemicals from reaching precious brain tissue.
Once in the brain, tyrosine is converted into noradrenaline, and it is this vital stress-busting chemical that can improve moods and lift depression.
It is important to note that tyrosine-rich foods need vitamin B3, vitamin C, copper, and most importantly folic acid for the tyrosine to be converted to mood-enhancing noradrenaline. Interestingly, nature provides good supplies of these co-factors in tyrosine-rich foods, such as milk, yogurt, cheese, and wheat. Nevertheless, it is a good idea to have plenty of other folic acid-rich foods as well in the diet just to make sure. Brewer’s yeast and green leafy vegetables are especially good sources of folic acid.
So, if depression is characterized by a lack of drive, apathy, and no get-up-and-go, then a diet rich in tyrosine foods, together with the sources of the cofactor vitamins and minerals will supply the key nutrients needed for the brain to think more quickly and clearly.

Feeling down?

Anxiety, insomnia, sadness, gloom, and despair are symptoms familiar to many sufferers of depression. This may be related to insufficient levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin, which is known to lift depression, ease tension, and encourage sleep.
Serotonin is created from the amino acid tryptophan which we get from our food. Tryptophan is another amino acid that can traverse the blood-brain barrier and this is boosted by sweet foods and refined carbohydrates. This is why many people who are depressed desire sweets and eat lots of carbohydrates. It is far more useful to eat tryptophan-rich foods such as eggs, cottage cheese, oats, and turkey.
As with tyrosine, tryptophan-rich foods require other nutrients to produce mood-lifting serotonin. Vitamin B6, folic acid, and magnesium as well as complex carbohydrates are the essential nutrients here. So it is necessary to complement tryptophan-rich foods with brown rice, rye bread, and wholemeal pasta to get the full effect of the nutrients in them. Add to this wheatgerm and bananas to supply the most important co-factor, vitamin B6.
It is interesting to note that many modern antidepressant pills, including Prozac, work on the principle of keeping serotonin circulating in the brain to relieve depression. Foods that contain tryptophan, on the other hand, actually encourage the production of serotonin and therefore have a similar effect to these drugs.

Tips, if you experience depression: