Mood Change Medicine
Inflammation
St. John’s Wort: Getting its Benefits without the Drawbacks
St. John’s wort may fight depression by modulating cortisol, calming stress, extinguishing inflammation, boosting neurogenesis and neuroplasticity, increasing tryptophan and normalizing melatonin. But there are more powerful ways to heal depression that do all those things and more. Continue reading
5-HTP: Are antidepressants effective, and if so why?
5-HTP might be as effective as SSRI antidepressants like Prozac. But that might not be saying much. Most (if not all) of the benefits of SSRIs “are due to the placebo effect,” a re-analysis of FDA studies found. Antidepressants and 5-HTP may work in ways that don’t involve boosting serotonin. Continue reading
Low Tryptophan = Low Serotonin. Does Low Serotonin = Depression?
There’s a major controversy over whether or not depression is caused by low tryptophan and it’s consequence—low serotonin. Some researchers assert that there’s no support for the hypothesis that depression is caused by lowered serotonin. What does the science say about the causes of depression . . . Continue reading
Cannabinoids: Depression & Inflammation
Compounds in cannabis have anti-inflammatory properties which might lead one to reach for cannabis products high in the anti-inflammatory constituents. But those using cannabinoids for anxiety and depression run the risk of making things worse. Continue reading
Natural Melatonin vs. Supplements: Which is Superior for Sleep?
Melatonin is a sleep-promoting hormone that is naturally produced and secreted by the pineal gland in the brain. The impact of naturally-occurring melatonin on our bodies is broad, profound, and not completely understood. Continue reading
Exercise Better than Drugs for Lifting Mood
The most common antidepressant drugs got bottom-of-the barrel results in a landmark systematic review comparing the drugs’ effect on depression with that of the talk-therapy CBT and a range of exercise modalities, according to data published by the prestigious British Medical Journal in February 2024. Continue reading
Foods that Stress and Depress—Foods that Promote Well-being
A 2017 randomized controlled trial of 67 depressed patients asked the question: “If I improve my diet, will my mental health improve?” Half of them received nutrition counseling, and for them the answer was yes. Not true for the other half, who got social support sessions instead of nutrition counseling. Continue reading
Gut-Brain Axis: Director of Mental Health?
There’s burgeoning evidence that the various bacterial species inhabiting our gut have an important influence on our psychological health. Based on their antidepressant and anxiolytic effects, these beneficial bacteria that inhabit our GI tract have been dubbed “psychobiotics”. Continue reading
INSOMNIA’S UNBIDDEN BEDFELLOWS: Breaking the Vicious Cycle of Insomnia, Anxiety & Depression
Find out how to defeat the vicious cycle by resetting the biological clock with Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia and how to short-circuit stress and inflammation with biofeedback, hypnosis and talk therapy. Continue reading
INSOMNIA’S UNBIDDEN BEDFELLOWS: Anxiety & Depression
Insomnia, depression and anxiety share common causes and often occur together. All 3 feed a vicious cycle worsening each condition. Stress is the common thread tying insomnia, circadian disruption, anxiety and depression together. Stress ignites a firestorm of inflammation suppressing levels of the sleep-hormone melatonin and elevating the stress-hormone cortisol.
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