“If you don’t think your anxiety, depression, sadness and stress impact your physical health, think again. All of these emotions trigger chemical reactions in your body, which can lead to inflammation and a weakened immune system. Learn how to cope, sweet friend. There will always be dark days.” — Kris Carr

Mental health is the major disease of our time.

Approximately 1 in 5 in the US and Canada will experience a mental health illness in any given year , and almost 7% of the population will have experienced a major depressive episode in the past year.

1 in 5.

 

When you think of how your diet affects your body, most people automatically go to the physical effects of eating unhealthy. The truth of the matter is that nutrition plays a key role in treating various anxiety and depression disorders. When people become stressed, some eat too much, some don’t eat enough, and some crave sugary foods like sweets and bread.

Keto specifically is used to treat a variety of disorders and diseases such as Epilepy, Diabetes, PCOS, Autism, High Cholesterol, High Blood Pressure, and Schizophrenia. It was actually originally developed to treat epilepsy! When you’re on a ketogenic diet, your body produces more GABA, a major neurotransmitter that helps the brain function properly. When GABA levels are low, you’re more at risk for anxiety and depression. When they’re high, it may help stave off depression.

This study looked at the ketogenic diet, depression, activity levels, and behavior of rats.Rats on a ketogenic diet displayed less behavioral despair — meaning they exhibited less hopelessness, and they were more active than the control group not eating keto.

In other words, the ketogenic group was less helpless and less hopeless.

They got up, moved around, and were active participants in their lives.Think about a time when you have been extremely sad or even depressed about something. There is often a quality of helplessness, or pervasiveness that no matter what you do, nothing will change the situation. You are lethargic, sleepy, and don’t want to do anything.

In the rats fed a ketogenic diet, they were less likely to be sedentary, and more likely to be move around. There is an important knock on effect here. There is such an abundance of information on the positive knock on effects of movement on health and specifically, depression.

Movement is one of the most under-utilized antidepressants out there. Study Credit

In closing, if you struggle with mental illness, try changing your diet and see how that affects your brain and how your brain works. It’s amazing what happens when we nourish our body.

As always, please make you sure you talk to your doctor before starting to self-treat your depression. If you or anyone you know needs help, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255. Confidential. 24/7

 

Do you struggle with depression? If so, have you tried eating keto? What else have you tired? Let me know!

Leave a comment below!

 

See also:

The Self Love Diet

What is Keto? – Beginning Your Journey

Why do Yoga?

Everything in Moderation

Personal-My Journey So Far