What do I mean by the fire of depression? Well, first let’s take a minute to appreciate just how life-altering or deadly chronic inflammation can be. Later, we’ll discuss some solutions.
When you think about the word fire, what thoughts first come to mind? Perhaps negative thoughts about a bad past episode of getting burned. Maybe even a disastrous loss from a fire that you or a loved one experienced.
Or, maybe your first thought might be more positive. Fun memories of telling ghost stories and making shish kebabs or s’mores with family by a campfire. Or, how the warmth of the fireplace keeps you comfortable and provides a calming ambiance in the winter.
Fire can either be very purposeful and even life-saving, or it can be harmful and destructive. Just make sure to manage the fire responsibly so the house doesn’t burn down. Like the fireplace, we must manage or prevent chronic systemic inflammation.
What is inflammation?
To spare you a science lecture, I’ll try and keep it simple. Inflammation is “the body’s natural response to protect itself against harm”.
But, sometimes too much of a good thing is not so good. Or, in other words, when the body is signaled to be in a chronic state of inflammation, many things can go bad.
How might inflammation become deadly?
Inflammation in the body either helps and can be life-saving — for example, by preventing the spread of infection — or it can contribute to pain and cause harm and increase the likelihood of developing various chronic illnesses that are associated with chronic inflammation.
These chronic diseases also happen to be the biggest killers in the United States. Most commonly, heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and even cancer.
It doesn’t stop there, there’s plenty more! Diseases related to systemic chronic inflammation are the most significant cause of death in the world today.1
Now, what does this have to do with depression?
Let’s take a closer look at the food-mood link and the effects of chronic inflammation on the brain. This link is now largely explained by what some researchers call the “inflammatory theory of depression.”2 The exact mechanisms of the role of inflammation on depression are still being researched. However, chronic inflammation can alter the metabolism of monoamine neurotransmitters, like dopamine and serotonin.
This affects the amount of these neurotransmitters available for working nerve cells, which is likely to promote a depressed mood.
Further, it’s these neurotransmitters that some of the most common psychiatric medications (e.g. SSRI’s) aim to target and regulate. We must respect the role of diet in supporting the body to naturally regulate these important neurotransmitters.
So, how can you cool the fire of inflammation, and hopefully, reduce symptoms of depression?
Let’s not forget that depression is a complex disease and can be deeply rooted in or triggered by different circumstances for different people.
Furthermore, it must be noted that inflammation is not necessary to cause major depression, nor is it sufficient to cause depression in and of itself.
However, the important thing to understand is that chronic inflammation may be a contributing factor if you have clinical depression. Note that the foods that you eat on a daily basis may have either pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory effects. We must recognize this link more for improved mental health outcomes in the future.
In simpler terms, what can you do about it?
Alright, let’s talk solutions! Besides diet, other lifestyle factors can also impact inflammation. Think stress, sleep, alcohol, and many other factors that contribute to oxidative stress.
However, I’ll stay focused here on what I know best, diet and nutrition. Let’s save that other lifestyle stuff for another post.
Check out some of the resources linked below to find healthy diet models to learn more about. These are excellent models for general healthful eating and for good digestive health.
Granted, there are some people with certain, complex digestive disorders that might not do well making drastic changes and adopting these too fast. I discuss these conditions in greater detail in Foods for Thought.
However, for most of us, these are excellent diets to follow.
Make them work for you and you just might find some improvements in digestive health and mental well-being. In my opinion, some of the best dietary patterns to follow are listed below.
Find one that works for you. Stop fueling the fire and start cooling the fire of depression!
My Top Recommended Diets for Brain-Health
- Mediterranean diet
- Whole foods plant-based
- DASH eating plan
- Anti-inflammatory diet
- MIND diet – science is still new here, but this may some day be the ideal model for the future of brain health diets
Top 5 Dietary Steps to Fight Inflammation
- Eat more fruits and vegetables – especially dark leafy greens, also include orange, red, blue and purple types – more color, the better! Aim for ~5-10 servings per day.
- Eat more omega-3 sources regularly or daily – have fatty fish 2-3 times weekly and snack on, or add to meals – walnuts, flaxseed, chia seeds, hemp seeds
- Choose more extra virgin olive oil in place of processed oils, commonly found in highly processed food products
- Avoid or limit deep-fried foods and highly processed meats – for example, bologna, sausage, chorizo, pepperoni, etc.
- Eat less added sugars and make sure to eat a good variety of high fiber foods, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
In summary, find what works for you and roll with it! You may need to make some adjustments along the way.
The above diets might not work for everyone. But I do know they can work and make an improvement on physical health and likely even mental well-being, for most of us!
Thank you for stopping by today!
-Jason
References:
- Causes of Death Collaborators (GBD). Global, regional, and national age-sex-specific mortality for 282 causes of death in 195 countries and territories, 1980–2017: A systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017. Lancet 392, 1736–1788 (2018).
2. Galecki P and Talarowska M. Inflammatory theory of depression. Psychiatria Polska. 2018, 52(3):437-447.