(14-05-13) How to beat depression without prescription drugs

by Ethan A. Huff, staff writer

(NaturalNews) If you suffer from frequent bouts of anxiety or depression, but
are leery about the safety and effectiveness of taking antidepressant drugs --
and rightfully so, because these chemical "panaceas" do not even work (http:
//www.naturalnews.com) -- then the following information is for you. Contrary
to popular opinion, most cases of what is commonly diagnosed as depression are
fully treatable through simply dietary and lifestyle changes, none of which
involve medicating yourself with mind-altering pharmaceuticals.

In his book The Depression Cure, clinical psychologist Dr. Steve Ilardi, Ph.
D., outlines six specific ways to treat depression naturally without the use of
chemical drugs. Each of these six approaches aims to address the root causes of
most cases of depression, these being lack of fulfilling relationships,
nutrient deficiency, and inadequate exercise. By implementing what he calls the
Therapeutic Lifestyle Change approach, or TLC, Dr. Ilardi says virtually all of
his depression patients experienced dramatic improvements, including those that
had previously tried drugs and other conventional approaches.

"TLC addresses the modern depression epidemic at is source: the fact that
human beings were never designed for the poorly nourished, sedentary, indoor,
sleep-deprived, socially isolated, frenzied pace of twenty-first-century life,"
explains Dr. Ilardi in the introduction to his book. "The program provides a
long-overdue, common-sense remedy for a contemporary American lifestyle that's
drifted dangerously off course" (http://thedepressioncurebook.com/excerpt.
html).

Eliminate your doldrum through diet, exercise, and relationships
Drawing from many of the concepts delineated in Dr. Ilardi's book, this
article will highlight some practical steps you can begin taking today to
overcome your depression and take back your life. With the exception of certain
extreme and somewhat rare forms of depression that involve severe chemical
imbalances, most people who suffer from depression symptoms, whether they be
regular feelings of sadness and despair or the occasional "off" days, can
benefit from following these simple steps.

1) Eat more foods high in omega-3 fatty acids. Mainstream medicine typically
overlooks or ignores the role that food and nutrition play in mental health.
But many conventional doctors are beginning to wake up to the fact that omega-3
fatty acids, for instance, which are found in fatty fish, hemp seeds and oil,
chia seeds, walnuts, grass-fed meats and butter, and pastured eggs, play a
significant role in modulating brain chemistry. Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), two of the primary omega-3s in fish oil, just so
happen to be major structural components of the brain.

As explained in a 2005 study published in the journal Drugs, DHA is a critical
component of neuronal membranes in the brain, which means this particular omega-
3 directly affects the way brain neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin
are produced and used. EPA is similar in that, together with DHA, it regulates
biochemical changes in the brain. And low levels of these and other omega-3s,
it turns out, are directly associated with depression, schizophrenia, and
various other mental illnesses (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15907142).

2) Get more exercise and stop eating junk food. It may seem cliche, but simply
moving your body more can help trigger the production of "happy" chemicals in
the brain, and thus improve your mood in a noticeable way. The goal here is to
get that blood flowing at least once a day, whether it be through taking a
walk, jogging in place, stretching, going to the gym, or even just cleaning out
your closet or garage -- whatever it takes to keep your body in motion rather
than in a prolonged sedentary position will help cleanse those negative
thoughts that drag you down and lift your spirits (http://www.health.harvard.
edu).

To go along with this, make sure you are eating clean, organically-grown foods
that are free of pesticides, artificial chemicals, genetically-modified
organisms (GMOs), refined sugars, and processed flours, as these additives tend
to throw off brain chemistry. It is also beneficial to cut out excess coffee
and alcohol consumption, as these foods can lead to drastic highs and lows that
may exacerbate depression symptoms.

3) Spend more time with loved ones, develop new friendships. Many people in
modern society limp along through life isolated from one another, which can
consciously and subconsciously lead to feelings of loneliness and sadness.
Whether you realize it or not, you need meaningful human connections and an
outlet to both give and receive love. Developing real friendships, for
instance, can make all the difference in alleviating feelings of despair and
hopelessness.

Though this might be easier said than done, forcing yourself to engage
socially with other people, even when you feel like retreating into hibernation
and solitude, will provide opportunities for you to open up about your own life
and become involved in the lives of others. Engaging socially in this way will
help shift some of the focus away from yourself and your own problems, and
allow for the cultivation of mutually-beneficial relationships in which
depression will have a much harder time flourishing.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com

http://www.thedailymind.com

http://www.naturalnews.com/020611_depression_nutrition.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk

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In evidenza

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Per coloro che hanno problemi di salute si consiglia di consultare sempre il proprio medico curante.