Inuit only ate meat right? Wrong, the Inuit have an extensive variety of plant foods as well, documented in this wonderful ethnography...
Newest Reads
Melissa McEwen
This blog is about the intersection between evolutionary biology and food. But also about practical applications, sustainable agriculture, and general tasty things. I originally started eating this way to heal from chronic health problems and...it worked!
Connect
Comments
Evolutionary Psychiatry and thoughts on love & cooking
I'd like to point the compass to an excellent new blog that I've been reading called Evolutionary Psychiatry. The hot topics in paleo health are diseases like heart disease or diabetes. While this are alarmingly common, the elephant in the room is that mental disorders are just as much of a threat to modern human health. The World Health organization estimates that in twenty years depression will be the world's biggest health burden. Unfortunately, depression has more of a stigma than most other diseases of civilization and...that's saying a lot considering the hatred directed towards people who have more fat on them. Treatment and causes also remain somewhat of a mystery, with many patients opting for expensive methods that remain acceptable despite lack of scientific evidence for their effectiveness. And depression only one of many serious mental health problems that are on the rise.
Dr. Emily Deans of Evolutionary Psychiatry explores these problems with an eye towards evolutionary solutions. The posts are rich with fascinating questions and scientific data, so I definitely recommend checking it out.
My own perspective is that I definitely think that depression is a disease of civilization caused by at least partially by poor social ties, miserable and un-engaging working and living environments, lack of movement, and a highly inflammatory diet. Unfortunately, the paleo diet can only fix the dietary causes, but that can definitely provide a boost. During high school and early on in college there were days when I struggled to rouse myself from bed or shut myself in my room crying. This no longer happens. It stopped happening around the time I got control of my stomach issues and there is a definitely connection between some stomach disorders and depression. I'm often reluctant to blog about problems like this because unlike, let's say GERD, having such a problem tends to warp people's view of you as a person no matter how common those problems are.
Diet might not solve them completely, but it's a little worrying that most mental health professionals either don't address diet at all or advocate a low-fat diet. It's low-hanging fruit that can make a huge difference. Another good blog about food and depression is Rebuild from Depression.
I'm grateful for my process, but would definitely would still like to improve my mood and ability to be resilient, but unfortunately I have found that grass-fed lamb tenderloin doesn't fix broken relationships*, especially if just reminds me of how that used to be his favorite meal and how our food choices had once melded with another's in seamless unbroken domesticity that seemed so permanent at the time. But then I remember that I made that same exact meal for the boyfriend before that and it makes the whole thing a little less romantic, but at least that means perhaps there will be more to enjoy roasted rosemary lamb with black pepper yogurt sauce.
*Ice cream might, but further studies need to be done. It seems like the effect is more about a sugar-induced mirage of happiness than actually mending relationships.
- huntgatherlove:
- Tags:
- Melissa's blog
- Login to post comments
Post to Twitter
Comments
I agree with your
I agree with your perspective, when you conceive depression and anxiety as a brand of our modern age. Furthermore it’s EXTREMELY worrying how most therapists just seem to wantonly prescribe dangerous drugs because it’s the easier route to keeping their patients happily controlled. The problem is how this approach only hides the symptoms, rather than using them as a way to ascertain the actual causes of discomfort – that’s where all efforts should be focused.
I’ve been considering adoption a paleo diet myself, and I’m certainly glad I came across your blog; I really like how you link to so many relevant resources and blogs.
This is a really important
This is a really important message and I thank you for writing about it and connecting us with relevant blogs.
I suffered from depression all through my teenage years and into my 20's - the doctors had the hardest time trying to find the right med concoction to alleviate the depression. It was horrible. At the same time I was following a super low-fat diet (keeping my fat grams between 15-30 / day!!!), eating mostly carbs and not taking any fish oil or vitamin D. I wish I could go back in time and know what I know now about nutrition and mood disorders. I am 100% positive that gluten intolerance manifests in mood in many people - myself included.
I hope that this message spreads and people start to understand that not only physical but mental ailments can be alleviated by nutrition.
Great post!
Very interesting topic. I
Very interesting topic. I learned the hard way earlier this year that a clean diet is not enough if one is stressed out. (My liver begun to manufacture glucose like crazy.)
On the other hand being even more strict with the diet, particularly with things like coffee, chocolate and other potential adrenal stressors, helped me put a positive spiral in place.
A proper diet works like an über-remedy on the physical side of things (just as pharmaceutical drugs are supposed to work, but never quite do). This gives the person a window of opportunity to address mental stressors more effectively.
I'm going to subscribe to that Ev Psych blog. Thanks for the heads up.
This is a new favorite topic
This is a new favorite topic of mine, happy to see it supported. I'm now two months in to embracing a Paleo diet, emphasis on the fats, and am already feeling measurable results in ADHD, Depression, Anxiety and Addictive tendencies. I've struggled most of my life (on a ultra low-fat diet), but it was when I chose a vegan diet that these problems consumed me to a point of difficulty functioning within normal standards. It was like living in a foggy jar, never able to fully connect. It wasn't until changing my diet that I'd considered or thought possible a life not being controlled by these things.
There's a new feeling of satisfaction and contentment, clarity and balance that continues to strengthen each day.
Of course, it takes more than just diet. I've also: cut out TV; quite driving, opting for bicycling or walking; and quite my job (as an executive) in order to become a full time homemaker for my family.
Less distraction, more connection and more fat is leading a path to happiness.
As Ron Hoggan points out in
As Ron Hoggan points out in this article:
http://gluten-free.org/hoggan/depr.txt
There is a tremendous volume of information that ties depressive illness to gluten intolerance.
It is also connected to casein.
People getting results from a low-carb diet are, of course, reducing gluten consumption.
I had anxiety/depression all
I had anxiety/depression all my life, and it had gotten especially bad in recent years. To be honest, it'd been to the point where I just didn't feel much of anything anymore. Self-medicating helped, but in the end made it worse. It's definitely not a good route.
Not having health insurance from the time I was 15 didn't help, but when I got health insurance again, I went onto an anti-depressant (and by golly, it did help, though at the cost of things like fogginess and anorgasmia. Anorgasmia is pretty discouraging).
Either way, a high-fat, reduced carb diet made a world of difference, and got me to a point where I felt I could handle going off medication. Took an entire month to get over withdrawals (which are also pretty crappy), but I did it, and I've never been better.
I wish I had considered a high-fat diet before. I wish I'd've known it would help. To be honest, I thought it was just something that I'd have to live with my entire life. I thought that I'd always have panic attacks on a daily basis, and that I was just a person who couldn't feel much emotionally.
I have to admit, I still have some problems with dealing with emotions, but I think a lot of that can be attributed to having not felt them for years. Plus, I've never been good with social ties.
I'm glad other people too have seen good things come about from diet changes.
Thanks for sharing. There is
Thanks for sharing. There is lots I could say but I will just note that this certainly doesn't warp my view of you and I hope others feel the same.
I would also second the Julia Ross recommendation. At least check her out. You may find some of her recommendations helpful. I know my ex-fiancé, a dedicated WAPer, thought some of her stuff was greatly responsible for many of the positive changes in her life in this area.
but at least that means perhaps there will be more to enjoy roasted rosemary lamb with black pepper yogurt sauce.
Whoa! I could use a good chef, LOL!
Kudos for this post. I know
Kudos for this post. I know from experience how difficult it can be to talk about stuff like this to people you don't know personally.
I've been undergoing treatment for mental illness for three years now. I've seen half a dozen doctors and therapists and have been on more medications than I could list. Not once was I advised to look into my diet to help my condition. They just threw pills at me.
But now, I'm off the drugs and am in the process of healing myself with a good diet. I completely agree with you in that proper nutrition can really help mental issues like depression.
Good point about the stomach issues too. I've always though my digestive issues were related to my mental illness. It's great to see someone else pointing out that connection.
Over roughly 3-4 years, the
Over roughly 3-4 years, the beginning of which was marked by a transition to low-fat, grain-centric eating, my mood got worse and worse to the point where I had absolutely no feelings of pleasure (anhedonia), flat affect, trouble concentrating on anything, and I was practically "doping" myself with carbohydrates. Switching to high-fat "paleo" eating fixed up a bunch of metabolic/digestive issues I was dealing with too, sure, but its most welcome effect was ridding me of my depression and all the related ailments. No need for therapy or anything.. my (pessimistic/realistic) views about life haven't changed but they no longer make me suicidal. Definitely an underemphasized to paleo eating.. "- Improved mental health" should definitely go along with other benefits like weight loss, stable energy levels, etc.
Great to hear eating paleo helped with you those issues as well.
(There's a book on diet-based approach to curing mood problems, "The Mood Cure" by Julia Ross (http://www.moodcure.com/), wherein she advocates a fairly paleoish diet with good fat, protein, etc. Also advocates amino acid supplementation as at least an initial part of the treatment, which I was iffy about--solely changing the diet worked out for me.)