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mood health

Hormones vary in their

intensity and effects with

time. Consequently, men and

women experience depression

at different times in their lives. Men and

women also differ in their experience of

mood disorders and their response to

antidepressants. Males tend to display

more discernable symptoms of depression,

including anger and restlessness whereas

women tend to suffer the disease in relative

silence. Societal attitudes towards these

diseases have been slow to change. In

the US, South America, Africa and Asia,

many people still attach a moral stigma to

mental illness. This mindset can seriously

undermine the allocation of sufficient

resources and attention to the need for

treatment and a better popular and scientific

understanding and diagnosis of these

conditions. It has only been a few decades

since the mentally ill were routinely packed

off to dismal state-run institutions that did

little more than deeply sedate them and

provide minimal care and attention.

An Increasing Incidence of Cognitive DiseaseNot unlike type 2 diabetes, many cancers

and cardiovascular diseases, most mood

and cognitive disorders are preventable;

we cannot put the blame on any specific

pathogen or genetic abnormality. The

answer to the question of why these

disorders are proliferating is simple: we are

the enemy! Behavioural and environmental

factors such as chronic stress, poor

diet, lack of exercise, hormones and

antibiotics, along with other chemicals

in our foods and pharmaceuticals, and

other endocrine-system-altering chemicals

in our drinking water, polluted air, the

breakdown of supportive social institutions,

substance and alcohol abuse, and poverty

all aggravate both mood and cognitive

Mood HealtH and Cognitive disordersa guide to natural PreventionMood disorders and conditions of impaired or diminished cognition affect more than one in every four persons in the developed world. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, four out of the 10 leading causes of disability in the US and other developed countries are mental disorders. The principal clinical manifestations of mood disorders include personality change, depression, agitation, aggression, addiction and anxiety. The major cognitive disorders are dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, both of which are increasing at an unprecedented rate worldwide. In moderate to serious cases, these afflictions are every bit as debilitating as cancer or heart disease. In fact, in the UK, 92% of hospital consultations for mood disorders require hospital admission; women constitute about 60% of these patients.

disease. In fact, the same lifestyle factors

that are responsible for the general decline

in the physical health of the average

American or European appear to be closely

correlated with the growing number of

people suffering from depression, bipolar

disorders, chronic debilitating anxiety and

Alzheimer’s disease. In fact, the rate of

increase of Alzheimer’s disease correlates

roughly to the increased prevalence of

diabetes and obesity in the population

during the past 10–15 years. A growing

body of compelling peer-reviewed evidence

points to certain nutritional deficiencies and

imbalances as salient factors in both mood

and cognitive disorders. Diet and sedentary

lifestyle clearly play a significant role in

both mental and physical disease.

The current emphasis on pharmaceutical

drugs as the preferred treatment option

has failed both society and those afflicted

with these disorders. If it is true, and

evidence supports this assumption,

that factors such as diet, environment,

sedentary lifestyle and self-destructive

habits such as smoking and binge drinking

are instrumental in causing or, at the very

least, exacerbating mood and cognitive

disease, it is unlikely that the answer lies in

new pharmaceutical agents or treatments.

After four decades of research, no truly

efficacious pharmaceutical treatment

for Alzheimer’s disease or dementia has

been developed — and we are only now

beginning to understand the biochemical

modalities that characterize the brain of a

typical Alzheimer’s sufferer. Drugs do exist

that are somewhat effective in treating the

more severe symptoms of depression,

anxiety and bipolar disease; yet, these

are all short-term solutions whose side-

effects are often as disruptive as the

disease they are meant to treat. Lithium,

for example, commonly prescribed to treat

bipolar disorder, must be taken in such

high doses that it causes severe adverse

effects that include a dulled personality,

flat lifeless emotions, memory loss,

tremors or obesity. Consequently, the

patients often refuse to take this and other

medications or risk drug toxicity if the

dose is not carefully monitored.

Given the enormous expense of care

facilities equipped to deal with a patient

suffering from such debilitating symptoms

and the lack of public financial assistance,

the burden is falling on their families.

Doubly troubling is that this is happening

at the very time when the children have

gone off to work or university and mum

and dad were looking forward to the stage

in their lives wherein they could finally

enjoy the fruits of their careers. Instead,

the spectre of bankruptcy looms, as well

as a fear that they themselves will soon

begin to experience the ominous early

symptoms of Alzheimer’s or dementia.

Preventive Lifestyle ModificationsThere may be another approach to the

prevention and treatment of depression,

anxiety, bipolar disorders, Alzheimer’s

disease and dementia worth seriously

considering; one that eschews drugs in

favour of some relatively simple lifestyle

modifications and a greater emphasis on

talk or psychotherapy. We know that strong

correlations have been observed between

some of our daily behaviours and lifestyle

choices and the increase in the incidence

of both cognitive and mood disorders.

Nutrition There are two essential components to a

nutritional strategy. The first is to observe

some general dietary guidelines and

the second is to consider some specific

nutrients that may have an impact on

mood and cognition. The connection

between diet and mood and cognitive

disorders and the putative neuroprotective

properties of various nutrients has been

well established.

General Guidelines• Practice mild caloric restriction. Reduce

the total number of carbohydrate calories

consumed by about 10% without

compromising general nutrition.

• Limit meat consumption to one meal

per week and only consume organic,

hormone- and antibiotic-free meat if you

must consume it at all.

• Make green leafy vegetables your first

priority and only eat meats, grains, nuts

and other foods after eating at least one

portion of green leafy veggies every day.

• Eliminate all foods and beverages that

contain High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)

and limit the consumption of all sugars

to no more than 20 g/day. For sugar

substitutes, consider stevia or xylitol, but

not aspartame, sorbitol or saccharin.

• Avoid all fast food franchises unless you

are certain that the food offered is free

from chemical additives, extra salt, extra

sugar and trans fats.

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www.nutraceuticalmag.comMay/June 2010

• Limit your consumption of all animal

fats and dairy products to no more than

200 g/week.

• Consume primarily low glycaemic index

foods for energy needs. Examples

include fruit, vegetables, wholemeal

bread, beans, brown rice and nuts.

• Drink alcoholic beverages in moderation.

Red wine is better than spirits but

excessive alcohol is toxic … regardless

of the source.

Specific Mood Health Foods • Omega-3 oils are supported by a

compelling body of scientific evidence.

A vegetable source of omega-3 is far

preferable to fish oil as the source.

Biotivia’s Green Omega-3 is one such

supplement that contains as much

DHA and EPA as fish oil without the

risk of heavy metals, pesticides,

agricultural chemicals and other marine

contaminants. Fish oil capsules can

become rancid in a matter of a few

weeks whereas Green Omega-3 has a

shelf-life of more than 2 years.

• Red wine has been shown to contain a

wide spectrum of beneficial polyphenols

and other antioxidants and has been

associated with the so-called French

Paradox. Consumption should be limited

to 2–3 glasses per day. To obtain sufficient

amounts of the compound resveratrol, a

sirtuin activator, it is necessary to take a

good quality supplement.

• Make green tea your beverage of choice

for hydration during the day. Make a

concentrated blend of green tea and

cinnamon and store it in the fridge. Then,

when you feel like a drink, blend it down to

suit your taste with hot or cold filtered water.

• Get one gram of calcium daily, preferably

from veggie sources such as spinach,

sprouts, grains and nuts.

• It is now generally accepted that most

people are deficient in vitamin D, which

is carried in the bloodstream to the liver

and converted into the prohormone,

calcidiol. If at least 30% of your body

is not exposed to 30 minutes of direct

sunlight every day, you should consider

taking a vitamin D supplement. As daily

doses of more than 50,000 units can

be toxic, a reasonable dose comprises

15,000 units per day. It is very difficult to

obtain adequate amounts of this vitamin

from food alone and vitamin D deficiency

is closely correlated with increased rates

of certain cancers, neurological diseases

and various other illnesses.

An Extraordinary New Supplement By now, almost everyone has heard of

resveratrol, the so-called miracle molecule.

What is not so well known is that this

phytoalexin — found in grape skins, peanuts

and, in much higher concentrations, in

the Chinese Giant Knotweed plant — may

modulate certain pathways and biological

processes that exert neuroprotective

effects. Resveratrol is a potent anti-

inflammatory, antioxidant and epigenetic

agent, which is why this compound is being

investigated by researchers and physicians

as a possible therapy to at least slow the

progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Chronic

inflammation is a by-product of cytotoxicity,

one of the modalities that appears to

characterize the brains of Alzheimer’s

patients. Several epidemiological studies

indicate that the moderate consumption of

wine is associated with a lower incidence

of Alzheimer’s disease. These findings

demonstrate a proteasome-dependent

antiamyloidogenic activity of resveratrol and

suggest that this natural compound has

therapeutic potential in Alzheimer’s disease.

Your Brain on ResveratrolA peer-reviewed, double-blind human

clinical trial was recently published that

concluded that Biotivia’s Bioforte, as both

a single capsule and two-capsule dose,

increased brain blood flow in 24 students at

Northumbria University in the UK. This finding

elucidates a possible role for this nutrient in

the prevention and treatment of cognitive

diseases. Several other studies have clearly

demonstrated the in vivo neuroprotective

properties of the red wine-derived polyphenol,

resveratrol, strongly supporting the notion

that natural metabolites of resveratrol may

have biological activities. Furthermore, recent

findings have shed light on the potential

role of resveratrol in transcription- and

degradation-dependent antiamyloidogenic

mechanisms, suggesting that natural

metabolites or potent synthetic analogues of

resveratrol may have therapeutic potential in

Alzheimer’s disease.

mood health

For more informationJames BetzBiotivia Bioceuticals LLC1 River Place, Suite 1001New York, New York 10036, USA.Tel. +1 800 458 0993james@biotivia.comwww.biotivia.co.uk

After four decades of

research, no truly efficacious

pharmaceutical treatment

for Alzheimer’s disease or

dementia has been developed.