Mental Illness Caused By Food?
Mental Illness Caused By Food?
Recent reports estimate that one in four Americans suffer from mental illness at any given time. Teens, adults, children, and the elderly are all at risk of depression or other mental illnesses, regardless of race, ethnicity or income level. Those who think they are immune to mental illness are only fooling themselves, as it seems to be even more than previously thought.
Many things are thought to contribute to this phenomenon. Stress, chemical imbalances, family turmoil, heredity, ale events... many things are thought to play a role in mental illness. New studies done by international researchers have found one other piece of the puzzle to add to the list of factors involved in mental illness: the food we eat.
New studies show that modern diets are deficient in omega-3s, which are critical for brain development. Scientists are blaming factory farming practices, breakfast cereals, and the heavy use of sunflower oil for this dietary deficiency.
Two important forms of fatty acids are said to be necessary in our diet. The first is the omega-3s, which are most commonly found in meat such as cattle and chicken (animals that eat grass) and in vegetables like broccoli and cabbage. The second important fatty acid is omega-6s, which is found in cereals and in the meat of animals that eat cereals. Omega-3s and omega-6s are said to be the "building blocks" for the membranes that surround our neurons, and omega-3s are thought to be essential in this process by the scientific community. "Individuals that are omega-3 rich end up with neurons that run very fast...Those that have too much omega-6s are slow and sluggish..." said Professor Tom Sanders, of the Nutrition, Foods and Health Research Center at King's College London.
Scientists also believe that omega-3s are also important in making complex links with other neurons. The web of links between neurons is said to form the basis of our intelligence and the last three months of pregnancy and the first six weeks after birth are said to be critical for laying down these webs. This makes omega-3s a very important nutrient for pregnant women. In a study of 14, 500 families, the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children found that pregnant women who had diets low in omega-3s (also found in fish) and high in omega-os (cereals) had an increased risk of depression and their children were more likely to suffer behavior, intelligence and coordination problems. The Harvard University Medical School has found that the risk of suffering a heart attack is the greatest in people whose omega-3 levels are below 4% of the fatty acids found in red blood cells.
In times past, diets contained adequate balances of these fatty acids. Farmers have since begun feeding their CoWS grain rather than allowing them to naturally graze on grass. Intensive farming practices (factory farming) do not leave room for much grazing, and the bulk of the diets of livestock come from cereals that are high in omega-6s, and this has led to an imbalance. Additionally, consumption of fish, which are naturally high in omega-3s has decreased, and the use of sunflower oils in food manufacturing has increased, adding to the imbalance.
Scientists say that the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3s should be between 1:1 and 4:1. Typical American diets have ratios between 11:1 and 40:1, largely due to their very high meat and very low olive oil and fish content. Some scientists are recommending adding omega-3s to staple foods, but this causes many ethical concerns as it would require putting fish extracts into vegetarian foods. Others are suggesting the return to traditional, non-factory farming, but this is unlikely to happen due to costs.
The industrialization of our food supply has proven to be dangerous. Our food is altered genetically and has now been found to be nutritionally deficient due to industrial farming practices. Buying organic foods, natural foods, and grass-fed meat is one option, but the entire farming industry must change for our own survival and well-being.