Natural Anti-Depressants

Natural Anti-Depressants

Of the $319.9 billion dollars spent at the pharmacy in the US in 2011, over 264,000,000 prescriptions for anti-depressants alone were filled.  Unsurprisingly, that same year, anti-depressants topped the chart as the most prescribed class of medication.  These startling statistics compiled by IMS Health, the increasing obesity rate, and the rampant stress and anxiety driving society all indicate that depression is an epidemic plaguing our society.  This dis-ease is spreading exponentially and soon emotional health, not physical or metal health, will move into the forefront of health industry trends.  

In response to the feelings of personal angst and inner turmoil, mindfulness practices such as yoga and meditation are growing in popularity.  Additionally, more clinical research and studies are backing the benefits these practices bring when integrated into daily living.  While these tools are highly impactful and life changing, the lack of emphasis placed on nutrition as a fundamental key to combating depression is alarming.  The truth is that food is the starting point and foundation for cultivating a positive mental outlook and sustaining emotional balance and stability.

Food is mood – it is that simple.  Toxins, bacteria and metabolic waste can all have a negative impact on the brain and the functions of the body.  The chemical reactions that take place within cells, aka the metabolism, regulate neurotransmitters, hormones, energy production, and detoxification.

In simpler terms, this means our metabolism is in charge of mental activity, messages sent from the brain, hormone levels, mood and emotions, energy levels, and the body’s ability to flush waste and toxicity.  Metabolic processes are dependent upon what goes into the mouth, either helping or hindering the reactions.  Proper ingestion of vitamins, minerals, amino acids and enzymes support the reactions, while toxins and artificial ingredients inhibit them.  How are we to live from an emotionally centered state when we are fueling our body with artificial ingredients, preservative and chemicals?

“Food is the most powerful drug on the planet, and real whole fresh food can turn on thousands of healing genes and hundreds of healing hormones and molecules that create health within days or weeks. In fact, what you put on your fork is more powerful than anything you can find in a prescription bottle.”  – Dr. Mark Hyman

The past few decades, as our society has advanced technologically, we have lost connection with our body, our community, and with nature.  The human body is perceived as a machine as opposed to an incredible miracle in need of proper attention and nurturance.  Media and the food industry joined forces to brain wash us into believing “really living” hindered upon consumption of mass produced, chemically altered food.  Eating home cooked meals made of whole foods grown in the Earth meant living in deprivation.  Our lifestyles and priorities became centered around convenience and indulgence.

Not surprisingly, the shift to artificial foods as nourishment for the body coincided with artificial markers as nourishment the soul.  Suddenly self-worth and happiness became measured and determined by material possessions, status and achievements… all “things” that lack true substance.  Lost in the transition was a connection with nature, a connection with self, and the prioritization of health and relationships.  What happened to valuing things that do not come with a price tag, a fancy title, or rewarded by a trophy?

As the saying goes: you are what you eat.  Polluting the body with chemicals, artificial ingredients and highly processed foods will produce lethargy, mood swings, insomnia, and brain fog.  The downward spiral will manifest into stress, anxiety, and inner and outer chaos.  On the contrary, fueling the body with nutrient dense foods from the earth produces a strong body, a clear mind, and a positive, happy spirit.  As the body accesses the inherent intelligence in the food, nature’s intelligence also becomes the driving force for the choices made in daily living. Nurturing ourselves with nature’s gift creates communion with source energy, inner and outer connection, and a flow with the process of life.

Just as nature and the guiding force our planet is a magical process, our bodies are a natural wonder.  It only makes sense to stay connected with this process by supporting the physical vessel with what nature provides.  We are all miracles, a direct extension of nature, and a deviation from this in any form will create exactly this: a deviation.  Only when we change our behavior and commit to making positive, healthy food choices will we step off the roller coaster of emotional highs and lows to experience true emotional freedom.