How does diet effect anxiety/depression issues?

[Dexter2748]

I have a really bad diet at the moment. I rarely eat a full meal and when I do it's always take away or just toast at home, I also consume a large amount of soda each day. I suffer from depression and experience horrible anxiety attacks all day long even though I have a good go and psychologist.

would cutting out sugar make a big difference? Has anyone made a diet change like this and seen positive results? And if so how long did it take for you to start feeling a little better?

[JessF]

This is a good idea.  I don't know what you consider to be a large amount, so maybe think about cutting down rather than going cold turkey, but its a bit like what I suggested to cazza on another thread when she said she was drinking black coffee all day and not eating much.  Sugar is the same, its a stimulant, it rushes through your bloodstream and then when it wears off BOOM, a crash.  So it could potentially be making you both more anxious and more depressed.  I found my moods became a lot more stable when I cut back on sugary drinks, coffee and also alcohol.

Try and stick to some regular meal times as well and cut back on the takeaways. You can make a nice simple salad by getting a bag of mixed greens and a smoked chicken breast from the supermarket, all pre cooked, you just cut up the chicken and away you go.  I'm a lazy cook at the best times and I've really enjoyed the salads over summer, you can grab some mixed nuts from the supermarket too - so easy to throw together, healthy and filling.

Takeaways are so tempting, but they're like the sugar cravings, the fatty stuff fills you up quick and gives you a high, but it burns up quick and then you end up hungry again.  Lack of good nutrition will add to your depression too.

[sos54]

I have been reducing my sugar intake and would say try and give it a go. There has been a huge amount in the media recently about the evils of sugar and if you google you will find a mountain of information and i have one warning form my experience. Don't believe everything you read - there are often 2 sides to any story particularly when the person is selling books. Sugar consumption is a large problem however due to the hidden sugars in our processed food.

I would be concerned if you consume a large amount of regular soda a day and that is where you could maybe start. a 600 ml can of soda has 16 teaspoons of sugar in it. I have known people who find full sugar soft drinks make them tired and sometimes dizzy. Part of my anxiety is dealing with dizziness and those symptoms can mimic anxiety and panic attack ones so i avoid them. Personally I think it is also important to be happy and not stress so i try to do everything in moderation and if i have a piece of cake laden with sugar I just try and walk a bit more that day or watch my sugar for the rest of the day. You may find too if you start reducing it you may feel some withdrawal from the sugar so maybe don't go cold turkey.I get bored with water so do have occasional diet cokes and have been trying water with lemon in it and soda water with a dash of lime juice as a back up.

Just seeing that you have considered it and come here to ask makes me feel you may be unhappy about it yourself. Your weight may or may not be an issue for you but reducing sugar and just eating healthier will make you feel better about yourself regardless. I myself try and eat as little processed food as possible and limit my fruit intake [fructose from fruit is a sugar too although better then refined sugar] I have learnt to make quick easy meals or have a healthy choice at takeaway and sometimes I have bought the more healthy frozen meals as a back up so i didn't resort to unhealthy takeaways. Would be happy to give you more ideas if it would help but generally I say go with it and give it a try - it never hurts to see how it works for you. I would bet you will feel better and fairly quickly. Also I really hate exercising except for walking with someone [can't do it by myself] and would highly recommend that to help your depression and attacks.

Here is an excerpt from an australian site http://www.rethinksugarydrink.org.au/faq

'Sugary soft drinks are packed full of ‘empty kilojoules' which means they contain a lot of sugar but have no nutritional value. A 600ml bottle of soft drink contains 16 packets of sugar and about 1000 unnecessary kilojoules.Sugary drinks provide excess kilojoules which can lead to weight gain and obesity. This is because people do not generally reduce how much they eat to allow for the extra kilojoules in the sugary drink.Being overweight or obese can lead to health problems like type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some types of cancer'

[Perkin]

I know that sugar has an effect on my anxiety.  A few years ago I felt nauseous all the time and thought it might be a food allergy so I cut all common allergens from my diet for two weeks, started eating each food again one at a time and kept a diary of how I felt. I figured out the nausea was because I was stressed and sugar and caffeine made the stress worse. It was also so much easier to cut down on sugar long term when I had a clear understanding of how much worse it made me feel.