Top Foods that Help Prevent Depression

Sadly, depression isn’t as rare or obscure as many people have come to believe. This is partially due to the our society's negative view of mental health originating as far back as the Middle Ages, spanning all the way through the radical transformation in the mental health community that was earmarked by the closing of state asylums nationwide by the 1980s. By leaving treatment up to the community and by inspiring a more accepting view of those who suffer from mental illness, the number of people who are seeking treatment for some form of mental illness has increased drastically. With a more open attitude towards mental illness, many patients have been able to receive help who, prior to the latter part of the 20th century, would have been ashamed to discuss these issues even with their family doctor whom they may have had a pretty healthy patient-doctor relationship.

There are also certain natural foods that are full of components that encourage the production of neurotransmitters like serotonin. Serotonin works in the brain by helping to relay messages from one region of the brain to the other. Serotonin works on brain cells that are responsible for things like mood, sexual desire and performance, regulating sleep, controlling appetite, learning and long-term memory, maintaining and regulating body temperature, and regulating healthy social behavior.

A change in your diet can give your body the energy and materials it needs to pick back up on the production and healthy utilization of serotonin. Coping with depression does not mandate that you take medications, and this list is an opportunity to look into natural remedies that can help decrease the chances of having a temporary imbalance result in a life-long disease. It is important to note here that if you or someone you know is suffering from clinical depression, or has been depressed for a long period of time without a plausible cause, whoever it may be needs to seek medical help immediately! Depression can be a deadly disease in some cases, especially if it is left untreated. Take a look and try your way through these 15 foods that really can make you, and keep you, happy:

Dark Chocolate
You most likely knew about this one, since there are very few people who don’t feel immediately happier when they eat chocolate. To maximize the depression fighting effect chocolate has on your mood, it needs a high cocoa content of 60% or more. While the texture, taste and smell alone will cheer you up, the happiness-inducing element that you can only see on a microscopic level is called phenylethylamine.  This chemical encourages your body to produce anadamine, which is a neurotransmitter that makes you happier and targets the same brain area as THC. That may be the reason it’s so easy to get addicted to chocolate and so hard to resist it. However, giving in to the temptation of just gorging yourself on a whole block of chocolate is counterproductive on your path to happiness through food. Too much sugar lowers your serotonin levels, which can make you depressed.  Luckily, you don’t need an entire block even though you’d have to eat more than that to reach the optimal amount of anadamine. Research is not quite clear on why the low levels of anadamine in chocolate still works but their suspicion is that the other chemical components in chocolate can uphold the anadamine levels for a longer time.

========================================================================

Avocado

Sometimes, avocadoes seem like they’re hanging somewhere between incredibly healthy and absolutely damaging to your body fat. Eighty-five percent of the calories found in an avocado are fat, however there is a big difference between the fat you’ll find in a hamburger and the fat in an avocado. Avocadoes are full of healthy fats, one type is called oleic acid that makes up more than half of the fat content of the fruit. Oleic acids, despite being fats, are helpful when you’re trying to lose weight. Besides the aforementioned healthy fats, avocadoes are high in potassium, B vitamins, and vitamin E. They’re also the highest food source of the anti-depression serotonin based tryptophan, which means that the avocado can keep up with the lowest doses of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI’s). If you add avocados to your regular diet, you can avoid ever needing SSRI's. Please remember that you should never substitute a prescribed medication with something else without consulting your physician first, even if it’s a natural product

========================================================================

Strawberries

There really shouldn’t be any additional reason needed to enjoy strawberries, they’re sweet, they look like hearts and taste delicious in all kinds of desserts or just as they are. Strawberries are beneficial to your cardiovascular system, which is the motor of your mind and body that keeps it running smoothly. A clean cardiovascular system keeps the blood flowing and helps kick depression to the side.

========================================================================

Chili Peppers

If you’re wondering why cultures all over the world enjoy using an ingredient that provokes your tongues pain receptors then this might be the reason why. Chilies don’t only burn you, they burn diseases right before it gets a chance to settle in your body. They contain various vitamins, such as:  vitamin C, B6 and B1. Their vitamin C content in chilies are so high that 100 grams of chili has 240% vitamin C in it. The University of Tasmania published a research paper in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in July 2006, advocating the use of chilies in keeping your blood sugar levels low and thinning your blood while boosting your circulation. For your mental health, this means no mood swings, no unnecessary stress from high blood pressure and reduced chances of getting depression.  If you do fall prey to the occasional feeling of stress while eating chilies, you don’t have to worry about the possible damages it could have on your body. Chilies contain antioxidants that bind free radicals, which are theorized to cause damage to your cells and are a factor in the aging process. Another effect of chilies is that they help the release of endorphins, which are the neurotransmitters responsible for pleasure and aid against depression. This is why chilies are often named as foods that are profitable for your bedroom activities because they literally spice up your life.

Lables:

• depression help
• help for depression
• food to help depression
• foods that help with depression list
• Strawberries
• Avocado
• Dark Chocolate