Craving Carbs and Feeling Depressed? :: Emotional and Mental Health

> Emotional and Mental Health > Depression and Anxiety

Craving Carbs and Feeling Depressed?
by author Natasha Turner, ND

Chromium is a simple, affordable, and safe alternative treatment for depression, reports Dr. John P. Docherty, a neuropsychopharmacology expert at Comprehensive Neuroscience, Inc., one of the largest companies in the US that conducts clinical trials on the central nervous system.

Treatment for depression is typically through the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) medications like Prozac or Zoloft. But these drugs often have side effects, including sexual dysfunction, increased appetite, intensified carbohydrate carvings, and/or weight gain.

According to Docherty, in a study reported at the 2004 National Institutes of Mental Health, patients with atypical depression responded favourably to treatment with chromium picolinate, a mineral closely involved in healthy blood sugar balance and insulin response.

Mastering Mood Swings

Docherty studied 113 patients who were given 600 mcg of chromium picolinate daily for eight weeks. During this time, their mood swings, carbohydrate cravings, fatigue, and the perception of weight gain markedly improved. Those with the strongest carbohydrate cravings experienced the most significant improvement in symptoms with chromium supplementation.

Other researchers have found chromium polynicotinate to be effective in the treatment of depression, important information for Canadians, as chromium picolinate is not available for sale in Canada because conflicting evidence suggests it might harm DNA.

The Happy Hormone

Relief from depressive symptoms and carbohydrate cravings may occur with chromium treatment because it acts on insulin to influence serotonin activity in the brain. Serotonin is our “happy hormone,” involved in mood, memory, food cravings, appetite regulation, and healthy sleep patterns. Not surprisingly, as serotonin levels decline, the incidence of depression and cravings for carbohydrates naturally increase.

After release of their findings, Docherty and his team of researchers further recommended that mental health professionals recognize carbohydrate cravings as a possible sign of a more serious underlying medical condition like atypical depression.

It is probably safe to conclude that most depressed patients with carbohydrate cravings and weight gain should receive chromium supplements. Good nutrition and plenty of exercise can also promote successful treatment of depression.

Recognizing depression is the first necessary step to recovery. Like most things in life, an awareness of the problem must occur before a solution can be found. A multi-faceted treatment approach should be built on trust that recovery is possible with proper treatment. As depression begins to heal, you may count your good days, but eventually, all your days will be good.

Signs of Depression

Depression symptoms may be experienced repeatedly over a few days, weeks, or months at a time and can include:

changing sleep patterns–oversleeping or insomnia
weight gain or loss
loss of appetite or increased cravings for carbohydrates or sugar
repeated negative thoughts
increased use of alcohol or drugs
failing to find enjoyment in previously enjoyable activities
loss of motivation and withdrawal from friends and family
poor concentration–an inability to watch TV or read
mood swings
some individuals may also experience heightened anxiety
chronic low energy
sensitivity to rejection or paranoia
poor memory

The most common form of depression, atypical depression, appears with mood swings, weight gain, carbohydrate cravings, fatigue, lethargy, and increased sensitivity to rejection.

Three-Step Action Plan

1. Stay active: Aerobic exercise has documented benefits in the treatment and prevention of depression. It reduces anxiety, improves mental clarity, and is most beneficial if consistently completed at a minimum of 24 hours to a maximum 48 hours apart.

2. Eat right: Strictly avoid sugar, caffeine, alcohol, and foods that can cause allergies or sensitivities (such as wheat) because of their negative impact on brain chemistry. Depression is known to increase stress hormones in the body. Because skipping a meal is also a physical stress on the body that can exacerbate anxiety or depression symptoms, maintain stable blood sugar by eating a combination of lean protein, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates every three to four hours. For example, an apple with a handful of almonds is a good snack choice while salmon, brown rice, and steamed or stir-fried vegetables create an excellent meal.

3. Boost your nutrients: Daily supplementation with 4 to 6 grams of fish oil, particularly those higher in eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), has been documented as beneficial for depression and anxiety. Increasing serotonin with 50 to 400 mg of 5-HTP each day may also be effective.

Natasha Turner, ND, practises in Toronto, ON and specializes in hormonal issues, weight loss, preventive health, and digestive complaints. truestarhealth.com.

Source: alive #284, June 2006

The Healing Power of SAMe
One of the most exciting and promising nutritional supplements to come to market this year is S-adenosyl-methionine, (SAMe.

Beating the Blues
It's always tempting to recommend successful holistic remedies to your friends--in the case of depression, it's absolutely necessary.

Put the Ho Ho Ho Back into Your Holidays
Depression is sometimes a component of the Christmas season for a variety of reasons. Typical responses to the emotional overload of the holiday rush are overeating, overdrinking and generally overdoing.

Coping with Grief
Death and the resulting period of grief are natural processes. The survivor will get over it. Time heals all wound.

Antidepressants
Antidepressant medications are the first line of defence used by most medical doctors and psychiatrists for treating depression. Newer medications are advertised as "improved," with "fewer risks and side effects.

Free From Demons!
One Man's Success Over Mental Illness Mental illness really is a misnome.

Winter Blues
While most depression lifted as they resumed normal routines, some have persistent symptoms that require intervention. Mild to moderate depression is not incapacitating and usually improves after three to six weeks.

Fear and Depression-And the Power to Overcome
My small herb importing company saw a sudden surge in business during that critical time. Our sales in relaxing herbal teas such as valerian and balm mint quadrupled, and nature's antidepressant, St John's wort, catapulted to sales levels we had never seen before.

Are You Overdue For A Brain Lube?
The consumption of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids-the beneficial fat found in fish and fish oil-can reduce the symptoms of, and even prevent, a variety of psychiatric illnesses including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression, severa.

The Heartfelt Life
New in the medical profession thought about the connection between emotion and heart disease until recently. There was no mention of heart function and relationships with ourselves, our loved ones or the world around us.

Addiction by Prescription
The medical establishment's drug approach to normal fluctuations of mind and emotion is seriously flawed.

Depression and Immunity
Regulating or balancing immune function may be the best defence against depression. The sad fact is that one in five of us will suffer depression at some time in our lives.

Drug-Free Treatments for Depression
Over the course of a lifetime, up to 12 percent of men and 20 percent of fen will suffer from a depressive illness. It is a highly recurrent illness where 80 percent of patients who have had one depressive episode will experience another one. Depression, when it hits, can be crippling to the individual and to the supporting family members.

Beat the Blues
Higher fish consumption is associated with a decreased risk of depression, postpartum depression, and suicidal thought.

When is it Depression?
Over the years, prescriptions for antidepressants have multiplied. According to Statistics Canada 10 percent of the population age 18 to 24, nine percent age 25 to 44, 6.

Mood Boosters
Some people are almost always in a good mood. They're happy, even-tempered, and always see the bright side of situations. They don't take themselves too seriously and they love to laugh. Keeping on the sunny side of life seems to come naturally..

The ABCs of Hypothyroidism
Thyroid hormones affect every cell in the body. In hypothyroidism, the amount of hormone secreted by the thyroid gland does not meet the body's demands.

Down with Depression
Depression is the most common psychiatric ailment in Western society. Depression affects around 1.4 million people in Canada at any given time and is the second leading cause of long-term disability among workers.

Anxiety
Often starting with a gnawing feeling in the pit of your stomach, anxiety is a natural warning signal, part of our built-in "fight or flight or stress response.

Alleviating Anxiety
Anxiety is a funny thing. If relaxed enough, you may, when faced with stress, become sharper, brighter, and better able to tackle the stress you fac.

Swallowing Emotions
From the mind/body perspective, physical illnesses may be expressions of basic psychological wounds, developing out of the emotional defences we construct to avoid feeling pain.

Sunshine For the Mind
Maybe it's one of those cloudy grey days. Or maybe it's just hard to get motivated for the same old routine. Perhaps you're feeling trapped in your job or a relationship that's seen better days.

What Do I Do With All These Feelings?
With Christmas having come and gone, many of us may be suffering from a post-holiday hangover-not just from the drinking, but from the spending, the eating, the partying and the dealings with family, too. So what exactly do we do to not get depressed and discouraged?The key lies in the ability to process our emotions..

Emotional Homeopathy
Homeopathic remedies can assist people who want to work on their emotional, mental and spiritual growth and development. The remedies can help people who strive to achieve a more positive mindset and a feeling of well being. Negative moods, thoughts and actions can bring about imbalances.

Look for Balance and Feel Balanced!
Research has catapulted emotional health to the forefront of wellness. The consensus now is that mental health is the new frontier for peak performance and quality of life, while stress and depression its nemesis.

Dosing the Doldrums
It was the New Year and the fifth cloudy day in a row when I finally decided to give up looking for outdoor activities that demanded sunny weather. Instead, I called a good friend to suggest we hit the latest blockbuster movie.

Moving Beyond Worry, Stress, and Fear
Nearly 2,000 years ago Epictetus, the Roman slave who became a Greek philosopher, wrote, "We are disturbed not by what happens to us, but by our thoughts about what happens.

Don't Worry-Be Thankful
Everyone worries. Will I get the promotion? Will I sell my house? Will my daughter make the hockey team? Do I worry too much? All these thoughts can overwhelm us and affect our quality of life.

Got Guilt?
You know guilt: it’s that uneasy feeling you get when you think you’ve done something wrong. But did you know that guilt can be either positive or positively toxic? Many people who suffer from toxic guilt don’t have a clue that guilt is the problem. Could you be one of them?

Postpartum Survival Strategies
In some traditional cultures, women take the first 30 days after the birth of a baby to recover from pregnancy and childbirth and learn how to care for their new baby. However, in many modern cultures women are expected to bounce back and return to managing their jobs and households almost immediately.

Exercise for a Positive Mind Set
Regular exercise may be one of the best ways to enhance powerful mood-lifting brain chemicals that may work as natural antidepressants. It enhances overall brain function and helps to alleviate depression, one of the most common disorders of our time.

Food and Mood
The relationship between food and mood is mediated by both psychological and physiological factors. It is clear that food can influence mood while mood can influence food choices. It is a complex relationship and based on taste, experience, expectations, culture, stressors, and nutritional status.

Take the Pressure Off
Many people believe their only recourse during anxiety attacks is conventional medication. In fact, homeopathic remedies treat emotional imbalances without drug side effects and chemicals, and yet do not interfere if medications are needed.

Sugar, Obesity, and Depression
In a study of adults with fructose intolerance, reducing dietary fructose resulted in a 65-percent reduction in depression scores in only four weeks. There is mounting evidence that obesity and depression share a close relationship. Regular exercise can make a world of difference for the depressed.

Ho, Ho, Ho...Hardly
As many as 5 percent of us deal with seasonal affective disorder (SAD) in winter, when the days get shorter and we are literally getting less light in our lives-and to our brains. Fortunately, there are natural ways to boost your mood and help you enjoy the holidays and weather the January slump that sometimes follows.

Move Your Mood

Active Healing

Hope for Mental Illness
I have evaluated and treated hundreds of patients struggling to overcome the challenges of mental illness. In the majority of cases, the addition of complementary treatments has improved their quality of life and treatment outcomes.

Dealing with Depression
Depression is much more than simply a case of the blues. It is a medical condition that can range from mild to severe, with a significant impact on quality of life.

Diagnosis: Depression
In my opinion, all cancer patients are heroes. Fate has given them a difficult road to travel. Cancer rivets them-and us, if they are our loved ones-to an emotional merry-go-round. Some cancer patients succumb to grief and suffer from depression. However, there are things they can do to face and manage the challenges on the journey ahead.

High Anxiety
Your heart is racing and your palms sweat. Perhaps you're worried about that big speech you have to give or you're rushing to meet a demanding work deadline. There may be another much likelier-yet far less understood-explanation.

Worrying Ourselves to Death
Have you ever tried counting your worries? While drafting this article I managed to squeeze in worries about my gobbled-down breakfast, my half-baked plans for the rest of the day, and what I can do to ease pain in various aching body parts-to name but a few ever-nagging worries.

Packrats and Clutterbugs
You walk through the front door and immediately encounter the clutter-a stack of unopened mail sitting on the hall table, along with a tangled heap of gloves, scarves, hats, keys, maps, umbrellas, and shopping bags.

A Story of Survival Love
Deeply in love, Sara and I married 17 years ago. Three years later, Sara was diagnosed with mild depression, and over the next few years she was re-diagnosed several times with ever more serious conditions.

Remember Rhodiola
A herb that was widely used by ancient Nordic seafarers is still being used by monks of the Himalayas. The therapeutic properties of this Arctic herb, rhodiola (Rhodiola rosea), have also been impressing modern researchers.

Mud is Not a Four-letter Word
Mud has a dirty reputation. Soil, mud, dirt-they're words associated with the unpleasant side of life. We say someone has a soiled reputation. When someone is in trouble, his name is mud. When people are speaking unfavourably of each other, they're dishing dirt.

St. John's Wort
After suffering from depression for years, Kelly Martin finally decided enough was enough. He dragged himself to his doctor's office, and 10 minutes later the Calgary business manager walked away with a prescription for antidepressants.

Caregiver's Thrive Guide
Relieving stress helps you stay healthy as a caregiver—because if you’re not taking good care of yourself, you can’t take good care of others.

Beat Winter Blues
SAD is characterized by fall and winter depression, excessive sleep (hypersomnia), increased appetite with carbohydrate cravings, and weight gain, which alternates with normal moods and behaviour in the spring and summer.