The World Health Organization reports that more than 300 million people suffer from depression. In the United States, over 16 million have been diagnosed with depression. That’s almost one in ten Americans- a staggering number.
When it comes to foods that can trigger depression, it’s important to keep in mind that these foods will not trigger depression in everyone. But they can trigger whatever illness you are most prone to. That is to say, these foods are stressors.
But what is a stressor? It is anything that places stress or strain on your system. Some stressors are good for us, like exercise and socialization. But too much of those are going to do harm.
But food stressors, while often pleasurable, do not help us to be healthy and well. They degrade our systems. Therefore, if you are prone to depression- these foods can put your needle into the red zone.
Soy
Soy has not been much of a problem until fairly recently. The soy craze has come to pass largely from the common belief that meats and fats are not good for you. That belief is misguided, but that’s another topic. We have been led to believe that soy is a perfect replacement for meat protein—and it would be a good one—if it were not processed incorrectly.
The soy that the Japanese eat is not the same soy we get here in the United States. Japanese soy is heavily fermented and does not contain the same endocrine mimickers that American soy has. The soy we get here is simply made wrong, and it’s certain to throw your hormones off balance and cause all manner of problems, including depression.
If you’re interested in plant-based protein, try beans and quinoa instead of soy.
Caffeine
If you’re hooked on caffeine, quitting is no small task. Getting through your morning routine can seem next to impossible if you’ve relied on coffee for more than a year. Coffee gives us a feeling of being energetic and can even trigger a sensation of euphoria. But these seemingly positive spikes come at a cost. They deplete us of energy and shorten the duration of our ability to function at peak levels. Worse, caffeine hinders the body’s ability to absorb important nutrients like vitamin D and B.
If you want to get off caffeine or choose a healthier vehicle for caffeine, try tea and dark chocolate. These have less caffeine and can help you avoid unpleasant withdrawals.
Starch & Processed Foods
For years, we’ve been told that so-called complex carbohydrates are good for you, but straight up sugars are bad for you. The truth is, bread and other starchy foods turn into sugar during digestion. So, if you eat a salad sandwich you might as well replace the bread with two big chocolate chip cookies.
Worse yet, is processed food. Almost all processed foods that come ready to eat are full of starches as well as table salt (not sea salt- that’s a necessary nutrient). We know, giving up all carbs is tough. But the fact is we are not meant to eat carbs of any kind. It’s sugar, and sugar is poison.
To replace starches, bread, and processed food you’re just going to have to develop a richer relationship with your kitchen. That’s right you have to cook more. Anything you eat that wasn’t prepared by you is certain to be processed and full of all kinds of nasty carbs and bad salt. It’s time to take a walk into your kitchen, have a seat, say you’re sorry, and make up.
Fructose & Sugars
We’ve established that sugar is like poison to your body. Think of what happens to sugar when you burn it. It turns into tar, then it turns into hard carbon. That’s what happens in your cells when your body tries to burn sugar as fuel. In the natural environment, sugar is rare. So, while the body runs better on ketones, it will burn sugar first if it can get it. In other words, your system saves the best for last. You probably didn’t know it was that smart, did you?
Sugar is also a drug, and like other drugs of abuse it can replace our natural sources of sustenance. Sugars glom onto our mitochondria, blocking ketone absorption, making us dependent and fat.
There’s only one replacement for sweets- abstinence.
If you’re prone to depression, you might notice a distinct shift in your emotional state after consuming these and similar foods. Start tracking your emotional state in relation to the food you eat. In time, you’ll begin to learn from experience that these foods are not your friends.
~ Health Scams Exposed
