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Carbohydrates: The Cause Of Major Depressive Disorders

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For over the past ten years, massive amounts of studies have gone into what we put into our bodies, especially food, and how it affects us in a physical way. However, many still don’t know that diet can have a large affect on our mental health and the reduction or increase of psychological stress. While diet alone can not cure a mental illness, food can still have a great affect on our emotions. Depressive disorders, for instance, often cause persistent feelings of sadness and worthlessness in it’s victim. This includes a lack of motivation, lack of quality of life and an onset of psychological distress. Major depressive disorder affects approximately 14.8 million American adults which is around 6.7 percent of the US population, age …show more content…

Simple carbohydrates (Sweetened beverages, white bread, white rice) raise the sugar in the bloodstream, releasing a quick boost of energy. The effect of an excessive intake of simple sugars on the brain has shown to be similar to that of drug abuse. While carbohydrates can improve feeling of happiness, the outcome is almost worse than how the person was feeling before. Those who constantly consume sugars may experience fatigue, dizziness, insomnia, and, of course, depression after the crash. Complex carbohydrates, however, release glucose in a slow and steady way, being a constant source of fuel for the brain. Complex carbohydrates are food that we would consider”healthier” like oats, beans, dark leafy greens (spinach and broccoli), whole-wheat products and soy substitutes. These complex carbohydrates are high in folic acid and vitamin B, which aid in the production of neurotransmitters. Deficiencies in folate and vitamin B have been linked to higher rates of depressive disorder. Abundance of these substances, however, lack any negative …show more content…

There were more than 20,000 participants in this study, with only 18% eating three portions of vegetables a day and 35% eating two. Only 11% of all 20,000 participants ate the recommended five servings a day of vegetables. In relation to psychological distress, those 11% showed lower signs of depression than every other participant. The 18% who ate three portions had higher signs than the 11%, but lower than the 35%. They found a correlation between vegetable consumption (which hold complex carbohydrates) and psychological health, in that those who ate more vegetables tended to be less depressed. (Unfortunately there was no studies for fruit, but because fruit and vegetable hold the same complex carbohydrates we can assume the results would be the same for a fruit

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