Nutrients to help with depression
At the time of this writing, we are neck-deep in quarantine. Out of money, out of routine, sleep patterns off and a chronic low-grade cortisol lift from watching too much news media.
Depression is typically addressed with cognitive self speak, gratitude journaling and setting short term manageable goals so we stay in the moment and look to the glass half full.
BUT sometimes, enough circumstances are the straw that breaks the camel's back and we need to add nutrients that help lift us. Below are just a few of my top "go-to's" when stuff is hitting the fan as such:
1. Fish Oil: In a nutshell, "Fish oil supplements can help against depression, but they have to contain the right type of fish oil. Researchers at the New York State Psychiatric Institute drew this conclusion after doing a meta-study where they reanalyzed data they collected from 15 trials in which nearly a thousand people suffering from depression had been given fish oil."
Source: J Clin Psychiatry. 2011 Dec;72(12):1577-84.
2. Thiamine (if not all B-vitamins): "50 mg thiamine – alias vitamin B1 – improved the mood of the student subjects. In 2012 Chinese epidemiologists published a study with similar results to those of the experiment done in the nineties. The Chinese suggest that a diet containing relatively large amounts of thiamine reduces the likelihood of depression."
Source: J Nutr. 2013 Jan;143(1):53-8.
3. Magnesium: "Daily supplementation with 250 mg elemental magnesium can help relieve mild depression. American researchers at the University of Vermont write about this in PLoS One. According to the Americans, the effect of extra magnesium is visible after just two weeks."
Source: PLoS One. 2017 Jun 27;12(6):e0180067.
BONUS: Did you know?
4. Intensive weight training helps fight depression: "People suffering from depression feel better if they do weight training, researchers at Harvard Medical School discovered in the 1990s. The heavier the weights they used, the greater the effect the strength training had on the level of depression."
Source: J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 1997 Jan;52(1):M27-35.
The bottom line is with the right nutrients, regular hard workouts and the use of cognitive self speak like the gratitude journal will give you an edge while locked up as we await the passing of COVID-19.
Personally I use the following:
Omega 3 - 3-4 caps w/ breakfast.
Total Defense by ATP (6 caps) each morning with breakfast - delivering the B-complex and that much more which clearly are very hard to attain with a basic diet.
SynerMag by ATP- (typically 4 caps after dinner) given our soil depletion of Mg and other elements- no matter how much you visit the salad bar. .things just aren't what they used to be.
Now go pump iron hard. Let's make stuck at home a blessing.
Who loves ya?
"Coach Mike"
