Mental Health and Nutrition

The more we learn about mental health and nutrition, the more fascinated I am by the connection between what we eat and how we are feeling. Furthermore, our feelings are intertwined not only with our thoughts, but also with the neurotransmitters and physical pathways in our brain. Good mental health is the result of a happy combination of nutrition and lifestyle choices which I explore in this blog.

Mental Health and the gut

Not only is 70% of our immune system found in our gut, the gut is also home to our enteric nervous system, sometimes referred to as the ‘second brain’. We are still only beginning to understand how the ‘gut-brain’ axis works, but there is a clear relationship between mental health and gut health.

Gut microbiota influences depressive and anxiety-like behaviour and changing the gut bacteria with specific probiotics can change this behaviour. For example, several of my clients have noticed a significant improvement in their mental health and quality of sleep when they take a probiotic called Lactobacillus Rhamnosus GG.

In addition, more than 90% of serotonin – a key happiness neurotransmitter – is made in the gut. Did you know that diet can also affect this and that the more diverse healthy bacteria there is in your gut, the more likely you are to produce serotonin?

To increase gut health, make sure to eat lots of probiotic fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha and kefir. These can all increase healthy bacteria and they often work through the vagus nerve. When you have your probiotics, remember to eat prebiotic food because this is what probiotics feed on and proliferate from!

Mental Health and the food we eat

The brain, like many other organs in the body including the heart or the stomach and like other organs, needs good nutrients to function properly and protect it from oxidative stress. Vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants nourish the brain, while processed food with few nutrients impairs brain function and causes mood disorders and mental illnesses.

Our brain is vitally linked to the rest of our bodies – from our digestive system and thyroid to our emotions and food sensitivities. We need to protect and support our brain’s structure and functions with nutrients such as magnesium, omega-3 fatty acids, phosphatidylcholine, green tea, and curcumin. B vitamins and herbs such as Ginkgo biloba can help to support oxygenation and the use of glucose in the brain as well.

Salmon, sardines, mackerel, and trout are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and can also help with depression: omega-3 fatty acids are essential fats that make up the external membrane of the brain’s neurons and they are often missing in people with depression.

You might like to try some of the recipes I have on my website, including:

• Salmon pate
• Summer mackerel salad
• Bone broth
• Salmon marinated in Middle Eastern spices
• Moroccan broad bean dip

Mental Health and the Vagus Nerve

As one of the connectors between the brain and the gastrointestinal tract, the vagus nerve sends information about the state of the inner organs to the brain (the brain–gut axis) and can be used to treat psychiatric and gastrointestinal disorders. It has been said that the vagus nerve acts as a neural highway for chemicals make in the gut to get to the brain.

‘Vagus’ means ‘wanderer’ in Latin and, like its name, the vagus nerve wanders round the body as the most important of the cranial nerves that travel from the brain to the rest of the body. The vagus nerve reaches the largest number of organs in our body and is responsible for the correct functioning of the digestive tract, respiration, and heart rate.

The vegas nerve is the primary nerve of the parasymptathetic nervous system (rest and digest) and deep breathing prompts it to reduce stress responses, to lower heart rate and blood pressure. The amazing thing about this is that it allows the body to start to heal itself! You can read more about the vagus nerve from Lucy Norcliffe-Kaufmann, Associate Professor of Neurology at NYU-Langone.

Read more about mental health and the vegas nerve in my blog ‘Beating the Winter Blues.’

Mental Health and rest and relaxation

One of the best ways to calm our body and mind is to take control of our breathing. Instead of erratic, shallow, or forced breathing that indicates stress or anxiety, we need slow and relaxed breathing for optimal health. When your diaphragm is fully activated it ensures the effective working of our lymphatic system.

Deep breathing is also very important for reducing stress because it stimulates the vagus nerve. Improving lung health can greatly improve mental and physical health. Research suggests six exhalations a minute can trigger a “relaxation response” in the brain and body and thus have a beneficial impact on the brain–gut axis.

As a HeartMath coach, I have seen how HeartMath can promote excellent patterns of slow deep breathing that can help balance emotions, calm an overactive mind and replenish energy levels. You can find out more on my website here.

As a Wellbeing Life Coach, I have the skills to guide you in ‘Changing your state of mind’ which supports re-directing your neuropathways. For example, if you feel nervous before giving a talk, there are exercises you can do to bring your mind back into a calm state.

If you would like to read around on this topic, I recommend the following books for further reading:

• Felice Jacka, Brain Changer: The Good Mental Health Diet.
• David Perlmutter Grain Brain and Brain Maker
• Datis Kharrazian Why isn’t my brain working?
• Kimberley Wilson How to Build a Healthy Brain: Reduce stress, anxiety and depression and future-proof your brain. (This book contains a helpful chart with lists of brain-healthy lifestyle tips that you can tick off each day, available to download online).

With every blessing,

Emma

Emma Maitland-Carew – Registered Nutritional Therapist

Dip.ION, mBANT, CHNC Registered Practitioner,

Metabolic Balance® Coach, HeartMath Coach, Accredited Wellbeing Coach.