What elements of diet contribute to chemical depression, or alleviation of it?

Answer 1

High carbohydrate meals raise serotonin, which may help alleviate depression. Fatty or protein rich meals tend to lower serotonin.

Answer 2

I found that sugar levels where affecting my depression so it's a good idea to avoid refined sugar. A good healthy balanced diet will help little and often is the key to eating healthily lots of fruit and veg a little meat, fish and dairy and keep a diary of what you eat and when you feel low and review it every so often so you will be able to see if say eating eggs makes you feel depressed you can then chose to eat eggs a lot less often. Bear in mind it takes different amounts of time for different elements to affect you so you might feel bad directly after eating something cut it out and still feel bad because what is affecting you was from the meal before. some people have mild food intolerance's which show up in their mood and remember intolerance's can change and also by eating foods that make you bad a lot less often your body may get a chance to recover and the food may affect you less. everyone is an individual so if someone tells you that peas always make them depressed it doesn't mean it will make you depressed.
caffeine and alcohol tend to be bad for depression and watch what you drink too fizzy drinks as a rule are bad for you because of the large quantities of sugar in them and the sugar free versions contain a lot of E numbers and other artificial chemicals which can and do affect peoples moods.

Answer 3

I've read several studies that have linked a deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids to depression and other mood disorders. Our modern diets are too high in Omega 6's and too low in Omega 3's. The ideal ratio is 4:1 but many people have ratios between 20:1 to 50:1. Omega-3's have also been found to help prevent such things as heart disease, some cancers and inflammatory conditions. Fatty fish, flaxseeds and flaxseed oil and walnuts are highest in them. You can also take fish oil capsules.

Answer 4

Probably everything you like to eat...but seriously - too much sugar, too much refined products, too much enriched products, caffeine, alcohol etc. I too am looking for an answer as to a proper diet to alleviate my depression. Good Luck.

Answer 5

A lack of seratonin