How Vitamins and Minerals Affect Your Moods

  It’s not all in your mind

How Vitamins and Minerals Affect Your Moods
The first scientifically documented discovery to relate mental illness to diet occurred when it was found that pellagra (with its depression, diarrhea, and dementia) could be cured with niacin. After that, it was shown that supplementation with the whole B complex produced greater benefits
than niacin alone.
Evidence of biochemical causes for mental disturbances continues to mount. Experiments have shown that symptoms of mental illness can be switched off and on by altering vitamin levels in the body.
Dr. R. Shulman, reporting in the British Journal of Psychiatry, found that forty-eight out of fifty-nine psychiatric patients had folic-acid deficiencies.

Even normal, happy people can become
depressed when made deficient in
niacin or folic acid.

Nutrients That Combat Depression, Anxiety, and Stress

Vitamin B1 (thiamine) Above-average amounts can help alleviate depression and anxiety attacks

Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) Aids in the proper production of natural antidepressants such as dopamine
and norepinephrine.

Pantothenic acid A natural tension-reliever.

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) Essential for combating stress.

Vitamin B12 (cobalamin) Helps relieve irritability, improve concentration, increase energy, and maintain a healthy nervous system.

Choline Sends nerve impulses to brain and produces a soothing effect.

Vitamin E (dry form) (alpha-tocopherol) Aids brain cells in getting needed oxygen.

Folic acid (folacin) Deficiencies have been found to be contributing factors in mental illness.

Zinc Promotes mental alertness and aids in proper brain function.

Magnesium The antistress mineral, necessary for proper nerve functioning

Manganese Helps reduce nervous irritability.

Niacin Vital to the proper function of the nervous system.

Calcium Alleviates tension, irritability, and promotes relaxation.

Tyrosine Helps increase the rate at which brain
neurons produce the antidepressants dopamine and norepinephrine.

Tryptophan Works with vitamin B6, niacin, and
magnesium to synthesize the brain chemical serotonin, a natural tranquilizer.

Phenylalanine Necessary for the brain’s release of
the antidepressants dopamine and norepinephrine.

Other Drugs Can Add to Your Problem

Alcohol is a nerve depressant. If you take tranquilizers and a drink, the combination
of the two can cause a severe depression—or even death.

If you take a sedative with an antihistamine (such as any found in over-thecounter
cold preparations) you might find yourself experiencing tremors and
mental confusion.
Oral contraceptives deplete the body of B6, B12, folic acid, and vitamin
C. If you’re on the pill and depressed, it is not surprising. Your need for B6,
necessary for normal tryptophan metabolism, is fifty to a hundred times a
non-pill-user’s requirement.

                                   DRUGS AND MEDICATIONS THAT YOU MIGHT
                                                        NOT THINK WOULD
                                               CAUSE DEPRESSION—BUT CAN

The following list is not all-inclusive, but all mentioned deplete the body—in varying degrees—of important mood-regulating nutrients. So if you’re taking medication to get well and feeling down,
there’s a good chance that it’s not all in your mind!

• Adrenocorticoids
• Arthritis medicines
• Antihistamines
• Antihypertensives
• Baclofen
• Barbiturates
• Beta-blockers (Inderal™)
• Diuretics
• Estrogens
• Fluorides
• Indomethacin (Indocin™)
• Isoniazid (INH, Nydrazid™)
• Laxatives, lubricants
• Meprednisone (Betapar™)
• Methotrexate (Mexate®)
• Nitrofurantoin (Furadantin®, Macrodantin®)
• Oral contraceptives
• Penicillamine (Cuprimine™)
• Penicillin (all forms)
• Phenytoin (Dilantin™)
• Potassium supplements
• Prednisone
• Procainamide
• Propoxyphene (Darvon™)
• Pyrimethamine (Daraprim™)
• Tetracyclines
• Trimethobenzamide (Tigan®)