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Is our diet driving us crazy? - importance of a balanced diet for good brain health

Healthy & Natural Journal, Feb, 2001 by Carol Simontacchi

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The typical American diet also contains inadequate amounts of essential fatty acids. This type of deficiency can seriously (and rapidly) erode mental health. A fascinating article in one peer-reviewed journal noted that low levels of serum fats were associated with "malicious attitude toward others" in women and a "domineering, aggressive attitude toward others" in men. Low-fat diets have been causally inked with depression, memory loss and other cognitive and behavioral disorders. Unfortunately, low fat diets have been the ruling standard in the diet world for the last two decades.

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Ironically, numerous studies show that simply adding olive oil or other foods naturally high in fat to the diet and supplementing with oils such as salmon oil, DHA, or flaxseed oil can have an immediate, positive effect on the mood and ability to think. Fatty acids should be supplemented with B complex vitamins and zinc, as all three nutrients work synergistically in brain biochemistry.

The third step toward healing the brain is to avoid chemicals that poison it. It isn't enough to merely feed the brain; we must stop inflicting physical harm on the delicate nerve tissue. Some of the food chemicals that can inflict real damage to the brain include common food additives, such as monosodium glutamate (MSG) and aspartame, and flavor enhancers like sodium lactate.

Aspartame is particularly harmful when heated over 120 degrees, which can easily happen when soft drinks are improperly stored in warehouses in hot climates or when used in food preparation where heating is required (making Jell-O, for example). By-products of heated aspartame have been shown to cause mental symptoms typical of Gulf War Syndrome, including headaches, ear buzzing, dizziness, nausea, gastrointestinal disturbances, weakness, vertigo, chills, memory lapses, numbness and shooting pains in the extremities, behavioral disturbances and inflammation of the nerves.

MSG is similarly linked to behavioral disturbances, cognitive disorders and numerous other mental symptoms. Sodium lactate (commonly added to children's foods and snack items) has been linked to panic and anxiety disorders in susceptible individuals.

Unfortunately, only a few of the thousands of additives routinely added to processed foods have been tested for influences on the brain, so we really don't know what effects they may have. But one thing is certain: even if they do no harm, they certainly do no good. Erring on the safe side by eliminating potential toxins can only be beneficial.

Eliminating the craziness

We now know that our food may literally be driving us crazy. And we know that our brains can heal if we feed them natural foods and remove the chemical irritants. The real question, then, is, will we heal our brains?

That question may be the hardest one of all. Healing out brains may require turning our backs on the American food culture altogether and returning to the natural diet of our ancestors. It will mean avoiding our food icons and shunning the marketing images that we have come to love so dearly. It means eating real food instead of pseudo-food.

Is our diet driving us crazy? - importance of a balanced diet for good brain health

Healthy & Natural Journal, Feb, 2001 by Carol Simontacchi

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