In today’s fast-paced world, many people continue to face challenges with their mental health despite taking multiple psychiatric medications. I hear these statements at work every day. “I feel exhausted, irritable, anxious, depressed, or can’t concentrate.”
While the primary approach to mainstream psychiatry treatment is symptom management, often positive outcomes can be short-lived and may come with uncomfortable side effects. Moreover, some research indicates that some individuals with major depression don’t respond well to medications.
Could it be there are overlooked factors that may be sabotaging your mental wellness? Maybe it’s time to try something different—a functional approach called nutritional psychiatry. This approach looks for the root causes of mental health concerns and helps you make changes in your nutrition and lifestyle that may help you achieve long-lasting mental wellness.
What is Nutritional Psychiatry?
Nutritional psychiatry is a component of functional medicine. It addresses the whole person and their nutrition and lifestyle habits. This includes looking at nutritional deficiencies, inflammation, environmental toxins, gut health, hormonal function, and lifestyle habits.
Dr. Jeffery Bland, the founder of the Institute of Functional Medicine, established the term functional medicine. It looks at the causes of disease instead of just treating symptoms. It considers genetics, environmental, and behavioral elements that can affect a person’s health.
Functional medicine and nutritional psychiatry seek to restore balance and promote general well-being by viewing the body as a whole system. Changes in each of these areas may be able to restore balance and optimize brain function. This approach can lead to sustainable improvements in mental health rather than temporary relief.
Whole Person Care and Nutritional Psychiatry
The first place practitioners of nutritional psychiatry start to look is the gut, or gastrointestinal tract (GI tract). Our GI tract has a huge impact on how we feel. Not just physically, but mentally too.
For example, did you know that more than 80% of serotonin is made in our gut? What is serotonin? It’s that “feel good” hormone that helps you feel calm and happy. Our GI tract also produces other natural substances that help combat anxiety and other hormones that communicate with our brain and help control our emotions and feelings.
Keeping our digestive system healthy is so very important and yet over 60% of Americans have reported having digestive issues. Honestly, digestive issues are no surprise, as most clients I’ve seen in practice with psychiatric issues suffer from digestive problems.
In addition to gut health, some environmental toxins such as Bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates, found in plastics, may rob the body of zinc. This important mineral plays a vital role in our nervous system, gut health, and the development of neurotransmitters (brain chemicals).
Good nutrition is vital for stable and healthy moods. The International Society for Nutritional Psychiatry Research (ISNR) Position Statement acknowledges that “nutrition has a place in mainstream psychiatry,” which is reassuring.
Nutritional psychiatry offers a refreshing and effective approach to mental wellness. Unlike traditional psychiatry, which often relies on a “one-size-fits-all” model, nutritional psychiatry provides a personalized whole-health approach.
As functional and nutritional mental health professionals, we can help people develop healthy lifestyle patterns and empower them to take an active role in their mental health.
Root Cause Mental Health
A nutritional approach to mental wellness can dig into the root causes of many of your issues. By digging deep we can help support your whole body by reducing inflammation, calming your nervous system, supporting good digestion, and, most of all, helping your body achieve a state of balance.
Dr. Leslie Korn’s book Nutrition Essentials for Mental Health mentions that our body is like a car. Just like a car engine that needs the right fuel to run better, the body’s engine (the brain and the digestive system) requires the right fuel for peak performance.
Just like a car that needs a good lube to reduce friction, our brain needs good lube, such as fish oil, to help nerve cells fire and communicate well with each other. Our GI tract also needs healthy nutrients so that our brain can get the signals it needs to support our moods and emotions.
For example, when we consume unhealthy fats, like trans fats found in products such as commercial baked goods and stick margarine, our brains may become slow, tough, and rigid.
On the other hand, probiotics, found in yogurt and fermented foods like kefir and kimchi, help our GI tract absorb nutrients and support the communication system between our gut and our brain.
While eating a colorful, nutrient-rich, organic whole food diet is very important, our body’s ability to absorb what we eat is foundational to wellness. For example, if we cannot adequately digest our food (fuel), our body and brain will not get enough of the nutrients.
Through advanced lab tests and in-depth evaluations, I can help you by connecting the dots of different factors–biological, nutritional, and environmental—that may be contributing to poor mental health.
The concept of nutritional psychiatry includes whole-person care and lifestyle adjustments. It is both fascinating and groundbreaking. I believe this method offers a glimmer of hope for assisting patients in achieving sustained mental wellness.
Food for Thought
So, I have some questions I want you to think about.
- Are you tired of trying multiple psychotropic medications and treatments to improve your emotional well-being but are not working or causing side effects?
- Are you seeking a proactive and holistic approach to mental health?
- Do you want to work with a practitioner who thinks like a mechanic, looks under the hood and figures out what is going on to fix the problem?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, functional psychiatry may be a good fit for you. Click HERE to schedule a consultation. Please Note: Individual consultations are available to residents living in Oregon and Arizona currently.
Disclaimer: This information is being provided to you for educational and informational purposes only. It is being provided to you to educate you about wellness and as a self-help tool for your own use. It is not medical or psychological advice. Please do not stop psychiatric medications or any current medications abruptly as this may cause serious physical and emotional reactions. If your goal is to wean off psychiatric medications, please see your healthcare provider for further guidance.
