Amanda Pittas: Clinical Nutritionist

Balancing lifestyle with nutrition, for a happier, healthier life!

Mental Health Wellness

For such a long time our mental health has been focused on what happens in the brain and not so much around our gut health. The research is now bringing to light that many mood and neurodegenerative disorders are a knock-on effect from inflammatory conditions and oxidative stress brought about by stressful lifestyles and poor eating habits. Meaning our lifestyle and the food we eat is creating an imbalance of free radicals (unstable cells) in the body leading to cell and tissue damage, thus creating mental health overwhelm.

What Has Food Got to Do with Mental Health?

Did you know that our gastrointestinal tract (GI) includes approximately 500 million nerve endings that allow messages via the vagus nerve to be delivered to different systems in our body, including our endocrine, immune and neural systems. This is what we call the “Gut Brain Axis” and it can influence our perception of the world and alter our behaviour. 

Nutritional deficiencies impact our neurological health and mood. Some of your more typical nutrient deficiencies are related to either insufficient nutrients we are obtaining from our diet or poor nutrient absorption of these vitamins and minerals either due to genetics or other nutritional co-factors. Some of the most frequent deficiencies I come across as a Clinical Nutritionist are: B vitamins, zinc, magnesium, iron and lastly essential fatty acids. 

As a nation we are either not eating enough of the right nutrients to support our mental health or we are just not absorbing these nutrients because our gut health is compromised. Chronic stress has a powerful effect on our bodies, including our gut integrity. This is because chronic emotional and physical stress sets off a chain of events in the body that lead to systemic inflammation, hence causing havoc in our (GIT) gastrointestinal tract and microflora (bacteria in the gut). 

A key factor that plays a role in supporting our emotional and physical stress is good gut health. This includes a good diversity of good microflora. We achieve this by supporting our gut with a diversity of gut loving foods and either eliminating or at least reducing those foods that don’t support our gut health. 

If you have been feeling the effects of stress and eating poor lately, you might like to consider now is the time to start looking after your gut heath. I have a 6-Day Gut Healing Meal Plan or 6 Day Gut Healing Meal Plan for Vegetarians to get you started. Each plan incorporates a full shopping list, meal prep guide and delicious recipes that take all the hassle out of cooking so you can focus on yourself and feeling well.

What’s Sugar Got to Do with Mental Health?

I’ve just explained that we need to nourish our good bacteria in our guts so that we feel the benefits in mental health. That means our good bacteria in the gut like to eat particular foods that help them thrive, whilst the bad bacteria in our gut like to eat all the not so good foods we like to eat too.

Now we have all heard of sugar and in this particular instance I’m talking about fructose. Fructose is actually naturally found in fruit, honey, agave and most root veggies, but more often than not it’s commonly added to processed foods in the form of high-fructose corn syrup. Although I just mentioned fruit, please do not refrain from fruit because it contains fructose. Fruit also contains lots of goodness, including antioxidants and fibre which have their benefits. In some cases, people may have a fructose malabsorption issue, and this can lead to symptoms of gas, bloating, abdominal pain and even diarrhea. If you suffer from these symptoms, then you might like to contact me to have a chat and see how I can help with these symptoms. 

 Anyway, in this article I’m more concerned with the processed foods and the high-fructose corn syrup we eat in our cakes, biscuits and pastries. In particular this type of sugar is associated with lower tryptophan levels that may play a role in the development of mental health disorders. So, what is tryptophan you say! Well It’s an essential amino acid that creates niacin (vitamin B3) which is essential in creating the neurotransmitter serotonin, a natural mood stabiliser.  Fun fact: Did you know that up to 90% of the body’s serotonin levels are stored in the gut with only 10% stored in the brain. Hence the reason why we need to nourish our gut so that we will just feel a whole lot better mentally!

What Foods to Eat for Gut and Mental Health?

Growing up with free range chickens in the backyard was a blessing in hindsight. It meant that my family had access to fast, fresh eggs every day. In fact, my grandfather insisted he eat an egg on toast every morning for breakfast for as long as I can remember. The protein in eggs is found to boost our levels of tryptophan which is important for the production of serotonin. 

Other great sources of tryptophan are salmon which also include good levels of omega-3 fatty acids known for heart and brain health as well. If you’re vegan, great sources of omega-3s and tryptophan are pumpkin seeds and walnuts. 

Spinach wasn’t just good for Popeye The Sailor Man and his muscles; spinach is another great source of tryptophan as well as iron amongst other nutrients. 

Fermented foods are another good source of food that create happy hormones in the gut and our head. Some research shows that certain probiotics, Lactobacillus species improve stress resilience and anxiety. So, by eating  a wide range of probiotic foods such as sauerkraut, yoghurt, miso and kefir you can help improve your mood. 

Now you can’t just eat probiotics and be done with it, you have to feed the good gut bugs so that they thrive. This is where prebiotics come into play. The best-known prebiotic foods are garlic, leeks, onions and legumes. Beware though, some of these foods are high on the FODMAP list! FODMAPs are a collection of short-chain carbohydrates (sugars) that aren’t absorbed properly in the gut and can commonly trigger symptoms of gas, tummy pain and bloating. Again, if you’re having trouble and experiencing unpleasant symptoms, give me a call to chat about what we can do about it. But for the most part, small portions of these foods are fine.

At the end of the day the key is to eat different kinds of prebiotic and probiotic foods. In fact, eating an array of foods helps us to consume a variety of these important foods that help introduce new strains of good bacteria as well as nutrients that these bacteria need to survive. A probiotic capsule can benefit you in the short term, but in the long run it’s not going to help because you’re continuing to take the same brand (or strain) of probiotics all the time and that’s not variety. 

An imbalance gut microbiome is associated with many diseases, including mental health. Likewise, mental health illness can cause inflammation which can affect the natural ecosystem in our gut. So, the take-away message is, stress less and reduce the processed foods that contribute to gut dysbiosis and eat a variety of fruits, veggies, protein, legumes, nuts and seeds as well as wholegrains to increase your stress resilience. 

Don’t forget, if you’re really serious about gut health you can purchase Nutritional Balance’s 6- Day Gut Healing Meal Plan or  6 Day Gut Healing Meal Plan for Vegetarians. 

Supporting optimal health is the key to achieving a balanced lifestyle and continued wellbeing. Need a little more guidance on balancing your gut? Contact me at Nutritional Balance and see how I can help you!

Related articles: 

How to Reduce Your Body’s Pain and Inflammation

Balancing That Gut Feeling

Is Stress (Cortisol) Stopping You From Losing Weight?

Disclaimer

The information provided in this blog is intended for your general knowledge only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for specific medical conditions. None of Nutritional Balance services shall be used to diagnose or treat any health problem or disease. We cannot and do not provide medical advice. You should seek prompt medical care for any specific health issues and consult your physician before altering your diet. The information provided in this blog should not be used in place of a consultation with your physician or other health care provider. We do not recommend the self-management of health problems. Should you have any healthcare-related questions, please consult your physician or other health care provider promptly. You should never disregard medical advice or delay in seeking it because of the information provided in this plan.