84.
Mental Illness
Linked to Modern Diet
Mental illness is reaching epidemic levels. The World Health Organization claims that mental health problems “are fast becoming the number-one health issue of the 21st century”. Clinical depression is the biggest international health threat after heart disease. At the same time, there is a growing dissatisfaction with the drug treatments available. In the UK, the number of prescriptions for antidepressants has more than doubled in 10 years, with 80% of GPs admitting they over-prescribe drugs such as Prozac because of the lack of alternative forms of treatment.
While medical science pins mental health problems on a combination of factors, including age, genetics and environmental influence, research reveals there might be a link between the modern diet and mental health problems.
In the last section, we have seen how a dentist, Dr. Weston A. Price traveled round the world studying cultures still eating their traditional foods, and compared their health with those members of the same culture eating western foods. Those continuing to eat traditional diets enjoyed excellent physical and emotional health. But those who had changed to a western diet high in white flour, sugar, and canned goods suffered from a range of physical and mental health problems and were prone to infectious diseases. This huge deterioration occurred after just one generation of exposure to processed foods. Our food affects not only the body but mind as well.
While medical science pins mental health problems on a combination of factors, including age, genetics and environmental influence, research reveals there might be a link between the modern diet and mental health problems.
In the last section, we have seen how a dentist, Dr. Weston A. Price traveled round the world studying cultures still eating their traditional foods, and compared their health with those members of the same culture eating western foods. Those continuing to eat traditional diets enjoyed excellent physical and emotional health. But those who had changed to a western diet high in white flour, sugar, and canned goods suffered from a range of physical and mental health problems and were prone to infectious diseases. This huge deterioration occurred after just one generation of exposure to processed foods. Our food affects not only the body but mind as well.
“The fast-food hamburger has been brilliantly engineered to offer a succulent and tasty first bite, a bite that in fact would be impossible to enjoy if the eater could accurately picture the feedlot and slaughterhouse and the workers behind it or knew anything about the 'artificial grill flavor' that made the first bite so convincing. This is a hamburger to hurry through, no question.
To eat slowly, then, also means to eat deliberately, in the original sense of the word: 'from freedom' instead of compulsion. ”
~ Michael Pollan
A recent study in the UK by food campaigners, ‘Sustain and the Mental Health Foundation’ has also linked the increasing incidence of mental ill-health to changes in our diet. They say the last 50 years have witnessed significant changes in the way food is produced. In a nutshell, modern food production has altered the balance of key nutrients we consume, and this may hold the key to preventing (or at least delaying) mental health problems, including depression and Alzheimer’s disease.
For example, chickens reach their slaughter weight twice as fast as they did 30 years ago, increasing the saturated fat content from 2% to 22%. The diet they are fed has also altered the balance of vital omega-3 and -6 fatty acids in chickens, which has a negative impact on our brain functioning.
For example, chickens reach their slaughter weight twice as fast as they did 30 years ago, increasing the saturated fat content from 2% to 22%. The diet they are fed has also altered the balance of vital omega-3 and -6 fatty acids in chickens, which has a negative impact on our brain functioning.
Increase in Autism Linked to Modern Diet
Autism is another mental problem that has reached epidemic proportions. Bernard Rimland, PhD, founding director of the Autism Research Institute, estimates that there are now a minimum of 250,000 autistic children in America, a 10 to 15-fold increase in the past 50 or so years. Dr. Rimland has publicly stated that the current childhood vaccine programs are one of the major causes for the current epidemic of autism.
Dr. Mary Megson, a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, agrees. She suggests that autism may be caused by inserting a G-alpha protein defect, the pertussis toxin found in the D.P.T. vaccine, into genetically at-risk children. This depletes the children of their existing supply of vitamin A.
She has treated over 2,000 children for autism by adding natural vitamin A (milk fat is a good source) to their diet. The majority of Dr. Megson’s subjects come out of the autistic spectrum within six months — some within weeks, she says. She has seen children making eye contact for the first time in their lives after just three days of treatment.
Dr. Mary Megson, a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, agrees. She suggests that autism may be caused by inserting a G-alpha protein defect, the pertussis toxin found in the D.P.T. vaccine, into genetically at-risk children. This depletes the children of their existing supply of vitamin A.
She has treated over 2,000 children for autism by adding natural vitamin A (milk fat is a good source) to their diet. The majority of Dr. Megson’s subjects come out of the autistic spectrum within six months — some within weeks, she says. She has seen children making eye contact for the first time in their lives after just three days of treatment.
Soda Consumption Linked to Teen Violence, Study Finds
By Jonathan Benson for Natural News, 26 Oct 2011
A new study has found that teenagers who consume high amounts of sugary soda appear to be more prone towards violence than teenagers who consume less or no sugary soda. The more soda a teenager consumes, in other words, the more likely he or she is to show violent aggression towards classmates, a significant other, and even family members.
David Hemenway, a professor at Harvard University’s School of Public, and his colleagues instructed a group of 1,878 public school students from inner-city Boston to fill out questionnaires about how much soda they had consumed in the previous seven days. The questionnaires also asked the students how often they carried weapons, consumed alcohol, smoked, and had a violent interaction with another person.
The students, who ranged in age between 14 and 18, also answered other background questions about how often they ate meals with their families, and their race. After compiling the data and accounting for other outside factors, the research team discovered that soda intake was directly proportional to violence levels.
“What we found was that there was a strong relationship between how many soft drinks that these inner-city kids consumed and how violent they were, not only in violence against peers but also violence in dating relationships, against siblings,” said Hemenway. “It was shocking to us when we saw how clear the relationship was.”
The results showed that students who drank one or no cans of sugary soda a week were nearly half as likely as students who drank 14 cans a week to carry a gun or knife to school. The one or no soda group was also about half as likely to commit violence against a partner, or show violent aggression against peers, compared to the high-consumption group.
A new study has found that teenagers who consume high amounts of sugary soda appear to be more prone towards violence than teenagers who consume less or no sugary soda. The more soda a teenager consumes, in other words, the more likely he or she is to show violent aggression towards classmates, a significant other, and even family members.
David Hemenway, a professor at Harvard University’s School of Public, and his colleagues instructed a group of 1,878 public school students from inner-city Boston to fill out questionnaires about how much soda they had consumed in the previous seven days. The questionnaires also asked the students how often they carried weapons, consumed alcohol, smoked, and had a violent interaction with another person.
The students, who ranged in age between 14 and 18, also answered other background questions about how often they ate meals with their families, and their race. After compiling the data and accounting for other outside factors, the research team discovered that soda intake was directly proportional to violence levels.
“What we found was that there was a strong relationship between how many soft drinks that these inner-city kids consumed and how violent they were, not only in violence against peers but also violence in dating relationships, against siblings,” said Hemenway. “It was shocking to us when we saw how clear the relationship was.”
The results showed that students who drank one or no cans of sugary soda a week were nearly half as likely as students who drank 14 cans a week to carry a gun or knife to school. The one or no soda group was also about half as likely to commit violence against a partner, or show violent aggression against peers, compared to the high-consumption group.