Manage Your Depression Now ~ 7 proven & effective strategies
This week I touch upon a sensitive topic of mental health issues that affect so many of us.
Hear about the statistics and discover the latest natural medicine recommendations on how to go about recovering form mental health disorders such as depression, naturally.
Compliment your standard treatment with these latest nutritional findings for better results.
It’s estimated that one in every five Australians will experience a mental health condition in their lifetime.
Mental illnesses are the third leading cause of disability burden in Australia, accounting for an estimated 27% of the total years lost due to disability.
About 4% of people will experience a major depressive episode in a 12-month period, with 5% of women and 3% of men affected.
Anxiety disorders were most common – 14%, followed by affective disorders – 6% (of which depression is 4%), and substance use disorders – 5% (of which 4% is alcohol related).
Mental illness is not a life sentence. Most people will recover fully, especially if they receive help early. Some people may require ongoing treatment to manage their illness.
Apart of seeking social and medical support, it is vital to seek a nutritional treatment as well.
Recent randomised controlled trial of dietary improvement for adults with major depression has demonstrated that changing the diet has a major positive impact on the mental processes.
The study tested patients with depression, divided them into 2 groups; one group was put on traditional Mediterranean diet, and was provided with cooking classes and recipes.
The second group received social support, and cancelling with no dietary changes.
The changes observed over 3 months were very significant in favour to patients who have adopted the Mediterranean diet, where one third of the patients recovered from depression, where’s the patients provided only with social support have demonstrated only slight improvement, nowhere near the group who adopted wholefood Mediterranean approach.
The results indicate that the dietary improvements may provide accessible treatment strategy for mental disorder.
Especially when combined with nutritional supplements and exercise, that we know has a therapeutic effect on brain function due to rising endorphines – a happy hormone.
Some of the other intervention apart of the diet and exercise to take into consideration are:
Adding nutritional supplements such as Fish Oil, zink, magnezium, B vitamins, Iron and Probiotics.
Brain functions are hugely related to gut function, this is now established knowledge in medical community that the digestion and especially gut inflammation and gut infections will have negative effect on brain health.
It is no wonder that by improving diet we also improve brain function, with a potential of clearing some major mental disorders.
These are the 7 steeps to improving brain functions holistically:
- Identify nutritional deficiencies and addressing it with supplementation
- Identify if there is a gut inflammation, leaky gut, microbiom imbalances and correcting it with probiotic supplementation and other natural treatments that strengthen the gut integrity.
- Exercise, sleep as much as you can and meditate for stress management
- Adopt brain optimising diet such as Mediterranean diet, with some of you may also have to be gluten free or dairy free, if required.
- Tests yourself for heavy metal toxicity via blood test and detoxify your body, if necessary.
- Optimise your cooking skills, so you can control your diet better.
- Seek social support; it is advisable that you seek counselling
and spend time with your friends and family. Do not isolate yourself, as positive social interaction will boost your recovery.
To learn more, book one on one consultation with me, or join me in one of my healthy cooking & nutritional workshops at Trupp Cooking School in South Yarra, Melbourne.