I have learned so much today and am armed with an array of further research that should keep us in blog posts til about Christmas! Assuming I can find the time to actually read it all!
Today has been a food day though so I just had to tell you about it.
My Sufferer is a fussy eater. In fact, he is in a league of his own with his fussiness! No just certain foods but flavours, textures, levels of ripeness, methods of cooking... you name it. It's annoying and often embarrassing - my 31 year old partner requires more thought when planning food than any one of our 3 children! Today's hardship was apparently the wrong flavour gravy to go with the lovely roast my aunt had prepared.
Is this a depression thing or is he just incredibly fussy?
I have no idea. However, I have learned that there are foods that Sufferers should be eating and not just for general health reasons but because they actively help with mood. These include:
- Brown rice
- Brewer's yeast
- Whole grain oats
- Cabbage
- Raw cacao
- Brazil nuts
- Dark molasses
- Walnuts
- Flaxseed
- Oily fish (salmon/tuna)
- Bananas
The crux of it seems to be boosting B vitamins, selenium and Omega-3 fatty acids. For lots more info, take a look here.
This is only part of the picture though. Apparently there are a whole host of drugs - prescription and non-prescription - which reduce your body's levels of these vitamins and minerals.
On top of that, Sufferers should avoid caffeine, smoking and foods high on fat and/sugar. My partner drinks lots of Coke, eats sweets by the tonne and would happily live on McDonald's which might explain something.
He might be happy to learn that chocolate is on the menu for its ability to increase endorphin levels but not the yummy milk choccie that is also rammed with sugar!
Have your Sufferers identified foods that affect them? Have you noticed any patterns? I'm going to see what we can do between us to test this theory. Don't expect anything too scientific bit I will report back.
Good luck!
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Three years ago my partner and I made the commitment to go Primal. He'd been diagnosed pre-diabetic, and I knew it wouldn't work if he did it alone. It was going to have to be both of us. About two months into it I was able to have my medication doses lowered, and I have only bounced off hypomania a half dozen times in those years. That's fantastic, for me. When I fall off the wagon, and have bread, wheat, sugar, and so on, I generally pay for it with mood instability for several days afterward. It reminds me of why we don't do that anymore. I hope you and your Sufferer continue research into supplements and foods that can help alleviate things.
ReplyDeleteDoes he have some type of sensory integration disorder as well as depression? My husband is sensitive to the texture of certain foods (i.e. Give him anything that is lumpy and he'll gag. He also tends to like things plain(ish) until he discovered Sriarcha sauce.
ReplyDeleteAnyway- as far as noticing mood flux, I was really careful with what I ate, very simple food and lots of vegetables. Rice, chicken, black beans. Then I grabbed a quick burger and was SO grumpy/foggy.
I do not love that you mentioned no caffeine. I practically live on coffee. Total addict. It is just SO comforting.