Nutrition and mental he alth is an issue that a nutritional psychiatrist deals with today. It turns out that mental he alth is affected by phenomena that we would not have suspected earlier. One of them is nutrition, which is correlated with various mental disorders. Find out more about the relationship between nutrition and mental he alth!

Nutrition and mental he althis a correlation that is the goal of research into a new discipline, which is the nutritional psychiatrist. The prevalence of mental disorders is increasing year by year.The reasons for this tendency vary.Currently, the COVID-19 pandemic, which has lasted since 2022, is largely responsible for the increase in the incidence of various entities in the field of psychiatry. year.

The statistics are ruthless. The World He alth Organization (WHO) estimates thatdepressive disorders may be one of the most important he alth problems of mankind in 2030.For this reason, more and more scientists are studying what factors and phenomena favor the development of mental disorders . It turns out that mental problems are influenced by aspects that have not previously been considered, such as nutrition. What is the link between nutrition and mental he alth?

Nutrition and mental he alth: dependencies

Some relationships between nutrition and mental he alth are obvious.We are talking about eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia . The main symptoms of these diseases are:

  • drastic restriction of food intake
  • binge eating accompanied by attempts to avoid weight gain by, for example, provoking vomiting.

There are other relationships between nutrition and mental he alth that are not quite as clear cut.

One of the most common mental disorders is depression. It is typically associated withdepressed mood, anhedonia (lack or loss of the ability to feel pleasure), and loss of motivation.Depressed patients may also exhibit many abnormal eating behavior. Sometimes they losebody weight due to loss of appetite. Or, some people who struggle with depression stop paying attention to what they eat altogether. For example, those who previously placed a great emphasis on dieting, after being diagnosed with depression, start reaching for highly processed and readily available products whose nutritional value leaves much to be desired.

It has been known for many years thatexcessive body weight is a serious he alth problem worldwide.Overweight and obesity carry many different risks. They concern not only the circulatory system and the musculoskeletal system, but also mental he alth.

Patients with excess body weight are often the object of unpleasant comments due to their appearance. Some of them deal with it better or worse. Some people, however, are not resilient enough to withstand constant criticism from those around them. Then it comes to the point that these people do not want to leave the house or give up establishing interpersonal contacts. As a result, they also limit their motor activity, which may increase their excess body weight. In addition,social isolation may be a factor that increases the risk of various mental disordersincl. depressive disorders and anxiety disorders.

Diabetes is one of the complications of obesity . People with excess body weight struggle with type 2 diabetes and its occurrence may aggravate mental disorders. If this is the case, the risk of depressive disorders may be increased.

Read also:Recurrent depression - symptoms and treatment

Nutrition and mental he alth: how to treat?

There is a clear correlation between nutrition and mental he alth, which can be confirmed by the phenomena observed in people treated for mental disorders.The use of psychotropic drugs is associated with the occurrence of side effects.Some antidepressants can cause loss of appetite and weight loss. On the other hand, other antidepressants, along with some antipsychotic or mood stabilizing drugs, can lead to an increase in appetite, which results in weight gain.

Sometimes the influence of psychotropic drugs on appetite is very consciously used by doctors. As an example, we can mention patients with eating disorders who have coexisting sleep disorders or depressive disorders. In such a situation, one of the forms of help are antidepressants, which, among other things, improve the mood and stimulate the appetite.

Read also:A diet that makes you feel better and happy

Why nutrition affects he althmental?

Some of the relationship between nutrition and mental he alth can be taken as rather obvious.These other correlations, however, seem much more mysterious and difficult to understand . In recent years, scientists have been analyzing the relationship between the digestive system and the nervous system, the so-called the gut-brain axis. It is made up of numerous nerve cells that ultimately connect the digestive tract with the nervous system. Their activity is influenced by hormones, neurotransmitters, cells of the immune system, but also bacteria living in the digestive tract.

The composition of the gut microbiota depends on various factors, including on the form of childbirth, the way the baby is fed or the type of diet. Taking into account the fact thatintestinal microflora affects the activity of the central nervous system , and its composition depends on nutrition, another correlation between nutrition and mental he alth becomes clearly visible.

Proper nutrition is important at all times of life.It is especially important for the youngest , in whom a he althy and balanced diet affects their proper development. Malnutrition may lead to disturbances in the development of the central nervous system, which may have negative consequences in the future. In addition, in malnourished children, mental disorders such as depression, irritability and aggressive behavior are more frequent.

Read also:Lack of appetite - causes of eating disorders in children and adults

Nutritional psychiatry as an emerging discipline

Probiotics, prebiotics or postbiotics are commonly known by patients.These products have the ability to influence the composition of the intestinal microflora.Recently, psychobiotics, i.e. specific probiotics, the use of which in people with mental disorders may bring specific benefits, have been mentioned quite often. One of them is the production by beneficial bacteria of various neurotransmitters, e.g. serotonin or gamma-aminobutyric acid. Theories concerning the pathogenesis of depression include those that focus on abnormal amounts of neurotransmitters in the nervous system.

There is a link between nutrition and mental he alth.Numerous observations show that people exhibit poor eating habits due to fast lifestyles or other problems. Therefore, thenew branch of psychiatry - nutripsychiatry , in other words nutritional psychiatry, is developing more and more dynamically. Her interests include both direct correlations between nutrition and he althpsychological and looking for reasons why these dependencies are so important and so clear. For example, depression has been linked to inflammation in the body. Discovering further dependencies is a challenge for researchers.

Read more:

  • senile depression: symptoms, causes, treatment
  • Manic Depressive Psychosis: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment
  • All about appetite: Appetite disturbance, taste, loss of appetite

Bibliography:

  • Szczygieł K., Samochowiec J., The influence of nutrition on mental he alth in the opinion of a psychiatrist, Via Medica 2022
  • Material Mental He alth Foundation, Diet and mental he alth, on-line access: https://www.mentalhe alth.org.uk/a-to-z/d/diet-and-mental-he alth
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Category:

Psychology