anxiety and depression

[steflou]

I am not currently low carbing but am having alot of anxiety and depression. Could this be cured by doing a low carb diet? I also need to lose weight.:(

[Mitra]

Some people find that low carb diets help their anxiety or depression, but it really depends on the cause. Some find that avoiding specific foods is important for them, others find omega 3 (fish oil) helpful. I'm afraid it's just not possible to say that it will work, but it is possible :).

LaughingW might be able to give some more info on the food/serotonin connection.

[gitfiddle]

I would like to add that just making progress with weight loss, i.e. self-improvement, is a positive move that will lift my mood considerably.

[Karole]

I can remember being almost giddy some days when I was a newby on low carb. I don't feel like that now, altho I consider my self to be in high spirits most of the time anyway. But I really liked the way I felt the first few months in. --- It would be worth a try-- what could you lose---- except a few pounds?:D:D

[laughingW]

I lifted my anxiety and depression with a moderate-carb program, Potatoes Not Prozac, so I didn't try it low carb. Then I went lower carb for fat loss and here I am. All that depression stuff is such a thing of the past, it's like it happened to another person.

There are all kinds of depression and anxiety. If yours is the kind that is low serotonin from overeating sugars and white flours, then reducing those things can fix it.

There is some evidence that there is an adaptation period for your brain, and that super low carb like Atkins induction doesn't help your brain adapt as well as a more moderate program like PP dilettante.

[Vega]

For most people the best cure for anxiety and mild depression is a healthy diet and exercise. I also recommend yoga as a way to help battle stress and live a more peaceful and happy life. It's not only helps me physically but mentally too. But for some, exercise and diet won't help completely. Some people need a doctor's help to fight their depression especially when it is very severe.

[Frank Hagan]

There may be a connection with vitamin D (http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/depression.shtml) as well. One of the older therapies for depression and anxiety was to sunbathe, but the mechanism wasn't known. Some thought it "slowed the person down", "exposed them to nature" or that light itself brightened moods, but recent research into vitamin D shows there might be a link between it and depression.