Do you think the right healthy foods affect schizophrenia and depression?

Question

Have you had personal experience of this?

leopardlady - i am curious about your statement that people with heart problems may not act right. I get cold shivers through my heart region unrelated to draughts, cold temperature etc. The doctors don't know what it is. In what way do they not act right?

Answer 1

B12 helps tons of things especially depression.

Answer 2

I'm a psyc major, and there is such a thing as reversible schizophrenia. It can sometimes be linked to vit. b12 deficiency or other health problems. Not always, but sometimes.

I know someone years ago who suffered some affects of schizophrenia, and got a vitamin b shot from their general practitioner--the affects they suffered for so long disappeared within 1/2 hr after the shot; it also helped the depression. This person did not respond favorably to any of the meds they took, in fact, the meds for this particular person made them much worse than they were. My friend had to find other ways to get help.

Healthy eating, exercise, vitamin/mineral supplements can help tremendously for some with mental disorders. Won't hurt to try it. You can safely take up to %300 of vit. b complex with no side affects, any more than that may be problematic.

If you can get a good work up from your general practitioner, including hormone levels, complete blood work up, complete physical that will help. Sometimes physical ailments may be the cause of something that appears mental. People with heart problems/blockage (and other things) may not act right, and a psychiatrist only looks at the symptoms of the mental condition, not the whole body.

Answer 3

From The Cochrane Collaberation website (a credible research source):

Schizophrenia is a serious, chronic and relapsing mental illness with a worldwide lifetime prevalence of approximately 1%. Early research suggests dietary supplementation with essential fatty acids (EFAs) may have a positive effect on the symptoms of schizophrenia. We systematically reviewed the effects of EFA supplementation for those suffering from schizophrenia. We included six studies involving 353 people. Results show one particular type of EFA, ethyl eicosapentaenoic acid (an omega-3 EFA) may have a positive effect on mental state but, at the moment, results are inconclusive due to the limited number of studies and lack of usable data within these studies.

Answer 4

I don't think so. If right healthy foods have an effect in schizophrenia and depression though, it would be very very little. Especially in schizophrenia. Both illnesses are caused by chemical imbalance in the brain. This is usually genetic so even if you eat all the healthy food in the world, if you're bound to acquire schizophrenia or depression, there's little or nothing at all, that your food can do about it. The best thing to do is get therapy and be prescribed the proper medications, if necessary.

Answer 5

A little, to the extent that mental health is affected by physical health in general.

Some mental health disorders are directly related to physical illness; but not usually.

There are no "magic diets" that can cure schizophrenia or depression.

There are a lot of theories and so on, but I have never seen any of them work in real life--I have worked in mental health since 1987.

Answer 6

Bananas and sprouts contain tryptophan which produces Seratonin, the feel-good hormone. So yes, the right healthy foods do affect depression. I don't know much about schizophrenia however. I hope the links below help though.

Answer 7

Feeling sad is all Mom needs to cook your favorite foods. Then you are happy again. In the full psychosis of schizo the brain has separated from the body and most of life is run by the lower brain or medulla. Mom's cooking is not the answer but it is nice to have a nice Mom right.

Answer 8

Having a healthy body will definitely aid you in having a healthier mind, but it is by no means a cure all. Meds are still often necessary, and needless to say, drugs and alcohol will make the mental disturbances exponentially worse. It isn't just one thing, it is a combination of things that can help one recover from mental illness: diet, exercise, medicines, and therapy.

Answer 9

I, and I'm not a professional, don't think that the right diet can totally reverse schizophrenia, bi-polar, etc. It would be wise, though, to avoid excess junk food and to get the basics that are being recommened - Vitamin D, B Vitamins, Fish Oils, Probiotics.

Answer 10

Absolutely. Different researchers have different ideas regarding specific foods, especially for depression, but the common theme appears to be that it's important to avoid over-processed foods (instant foods, fast food), sugar and caffeine. There's actually a group called Food Addicts Anonymous that deals not with weight issues but with avoiding the foods that trigger various psychiatric/psychological problems.