A low mood can get a good boost just from natural remedies. A healthy diet with antioxidant-rich foods is a start. But you can also try supplements like St. John's wort, a regular routine of meditation and yoga, as well as the Chinese practice of acupuncture. Here's a look at the alternatives:
Food Fixes
Dietary changes can alter the brain both chemically and structurally. If you're feeling blue, take a step toward recovery by ensuring that your diet includes the following:
Fish oil contains high levels of the omega-3 fatty acid DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), a deficiency in DHA has been linked to depression. When DHA is plentiful, your mood isn't the only thing that gets a boost—memory and learning are enhanced as well. Not a fish fan? Essential fatty acids are also found in a variety of seeds, nuts, oils, and leafy vegetables.
Antioxidant-rich foods can also serve to bolster mental health. Try to include apricots, broccoli, carrots, pumpkin, spinach, sweet potato, blueberries, kiwi, and oranges, among others.
Daily multivitamins are the final step in keeping your brain and body properly regulated. When selecting supplements, look for B vitamins, magnesium, folic acid, selenium, and the amino acids tyrosine and tryptophan. These brain boosters are important for curbing depression and anxiety due to their effects on the mood-regulating neurotransmitters serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine.
It is important to note that dietary supplements are exactly that—supplements. They do little good when used in lieu of healthy eating and exercise habits.
Herbal Anti-Depressants
St. John's wort is perhaps the most well-known herbal remedy for depression. It works by preventing the re-uptake of serotonin and norepinephrine; two brain chemicals that affect mood. A review of research on St. John's wort, published in the Annals of General Psychiatry in 2008, found it to be as helpful as mainstream anti-depressants.
Produced in the seeds of the African legume shrub Griffonia simplicifolia, 5-hydroxytryptophan, or 5-HTP, is sold as a supplement which may help alleviate depressive symptoms. This supplement works by increasing the brain's serotonin production, thereby stabilizing mood as well as eating and sleeping patterns. Like most unconventional remedies, the evidence for 5-HTP's safety and effectiveness is mixed. It is best absorbed when taken in combination with vitamin B6.
Extract of Rhodiola rosea root, or SHR-5, is another alternative to mainstream treatment. It is marketed primarily as an energy and mental performance booster, but may also improve mood by reducing stress levels. SHR-5 is a good alternative to St. John's wort for those taking blood-thinners.
Taking more than one anti-depressant at a time is dangerous; don't start an herbal regimen if you're already medicated.
Meditation
Regular meditation has been shown to lower heart rate and blood pressure, strengthen the immune system, and decrease the amount of stress hormone released by the brain.
There are many different ways to meditate. You can focus for an extended period of time on breathing or mantra repetition, or you can practice "mindfulness," which involves regarding the thoughts and feelings that come to you as though you were an objective observer. By allowing your thoughts to come and go without judging or reacting to them, they will slowly lose their power over you. Not only will this relieve the stress of worrying, it will also give you a sense of control over how you feel. This is important in alleviating the feelings of hopelessness associated with depression.
It may take practice to keep from mentally straying when engaged in meditative exercises, but if you meditate for as little as 10 minutes a day, you will start reaping its benefits.
Physical contact is an important element in human communication and connection; we use it to show affection, seek comfort, and believe it or not, to maintain our mental health. Therapeutic massage is based on the concept that a more relaxed body can mean a more relaxed mind. A meta-analysis conducted in association with the Massage Therapy Foundation in 2008 reported that a single massage therapy session can temporarily reduce heart rate and stress hormone levels, as well as promote the release of endorphins. While research on long-term treatment is lacking, there is evidence that it may lower blood pressure.
Reflexology is a more specific form of touch therapy that focuses solely on pressure points in the hands and feet. Its practitioners believe in the connection of these points to different organs in the body, the stimulation of which promotes toxin release and blood flow.
If you don't have the finances to hire a professional massage therapist, you may be still be able to reap the benefits of touch. Interpersonal contact with family, friends, and partners stimulates the release of oxytocin in the brain. Sometimes referred to as the "trust hormone," oxytocin enhances feelings of love and closeness between individuals.
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