What a unique concept! Usually we equate drugs with psychiatry, not food. This article will address the question, What is Nutritional Psychiatry? and show how diet (and supplements) and mental health are connected. According to Cavaye (2018) in The Conversation article, Why nutritional psychiatry is the future of mental health treatment, mentions that nutritionists have long seen a link between poor mental health and nutritional deficiencies.
Antidepressants are prescribed to try to help with poor mental health but many people shy away from them because of the social stigma. And they often don’t help young people, or can cause young people to feel suicidal. And antidepressants might create dependency and sometimes unpleasant side effects. For some, they don’t work or they have to try different types to see any relief.
Psychiatrists have recently started calling for nutritional approaches to mental health. As Cavaye says, it is now known that inflammation in the brain leads to cell death. And it is also now widely known that certain nutrients like magnesium, omega-3 fatty acids, probiotics, vitamins and minerals that are essential help relieve inflammation and are also helpful for mood, relieve anxiety and depression and improve mental capacity.
Drew Ramsey, MD, a psychiatrist, author, and farmer, is a huge proponent of nutritional psychiatry. He has launched an eCourse titled Eat to Beat Depression on his website. He’s the doctor who started the Kale craze a few years ago. His