December 22, 2009

Boost Your Serotonin Naturally

Sad but true, the holidays get most people down.  Instead
of feeling happy celebrating with family and friends,
they're pushed to the limits of their ability to cope both
at work and at home.

What most people don't realize is that there's a direct
connection between food and mood.

The wrong foods can have a powerful negative affect on how
you feel not only physically but psychologically as well. 

But the right foods can be a natural antidepressant.

And a MUCH safer alternative to dangerous, mind-altering
SSRI's.

Allow me to explain:

What NOT to do
==============

When you're stressed or depressed, a common thing to do is
reach for a high sugar, high starch snack. 

When you do this, insulin is released from your pancreas
into the bloodstream.  Insulin goes up.  The insulin helps
your cells absorb the excess sugar from your blood.

Your cells then release the amino acid tryptophan, which
travels to your brain where it's used to make the
neurotransmitter serotonin. 

In the right amounts, serotonin brightens your mood, makes
you feel calm, in control and able to handle stress.

**********
A side note:
Antidepressant's (SSRI's) "work" in a similar manner--by
increasing the amount of serotonin available to your cells.
But their side effects are frightening, and can include
suicidal thoughts, tremors, heart palpitations, memory
loss, hostility and hallucinations.

How about that...happy pills can make you angry and want
to kill yourself.

They can also cause the serious or even fatal serotonin
syndrome, characterized by fever, confusion, muscle
rigidity, and cardiac, liver, or kidney problems.
**********

Now, when too much serotonin is released, you get agitated
and nervous, and with too little, you feel lethargic,
hopeless and unable to sleep.

Sugary, starchy snacks cause a kind of "soar and crash"
reaction.  You might get a rush of serotonin and feel good
initially after eating, say, cookies, chips or candy.  But
once the sugar is gone, your cells stop releasing
tryptophan, serotonin production stops and you "crash and
burn"--feeling worse than you did before.

Plus if you eat too many starchy snacks, you might end up
with too MUCH serotonin, and feel edgy and irritated
instead of calm and collected.


Boost serotonin without drugs
======================

The best way to keep your serotonin level consistent and
your mood upbeat and positive is to eat foods that are
naturally rich in the amino acid tryptophan. 

Your body can't make its own serotonin--it must be made
from tryptophan. 

And it's much healthier to get your tryptophan from good,
natural sources instead of from eating sugary foods and
getting the "soar and crash" reaction I described earlier.

Tryptophan is present in such foods as fish, chicken,
turkey, bananas, eggs, nuts, avocados, milk, cheese and
legumes. 

Now, tryptophan is released during digestion, being
absorbed from the intestines into your cells and
bloodstream.  So it's essential to make sure your digestion
and nutrient absorption are as efficient as possible, so
you actually get the tryptophan your body is releasing.


The keys to getting the tryptophan
==========================

In order to maximize your nutrient absorption and make
your digestion smooth and thorough, it's important to eat
foods together that are compatible in your stomach and
don't result in overproduction of acid (and destruction of
nutrients).

It's also crucial to keep your population of intestinal
beneficial bacteria strong, since they too help aid
digestion and nutrient absorption. 

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