Improve your mood by avoiding this ingredient

It is powerfully addictive and can cause havoc with the brain.  Refined sugar is one of the biggest happiness destroyers in our diets and can contribute to depression, anxiety, and low-energy.

Research shows a strong link between high sugar consumption and the risk of both depression and schizophrenia.  A prominent British Researcher, Malcolm Peet, led a group of researchers who analysed the relationship between diet and mental illness.

Two potenital ways in which refined sugar could affect mental health include:

1. Eating high levels of sugar leads to a "sugar high".  When the body compensates by producing more insulin, chronic inflammation disrupts the immune system in ways that can cause havoc on the brain.  Diets high in sugar have also been associated with inflammation, obesity and chronic disease such as diabetes.  The researchers concluded that consuming excessive amounts of sugar can set off an avalanche of negative health events, both mental and physical.
2. Research has shown that high sugar diets decrease the brain chemical called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF).  BDNF is responsible for the development of new brain tissue and is therefore vital for brain function, growth and learning.  Studies have shown correlations between patients with depression and schizophrenia and extremely low BDNF levels.

For most of mankind's existence, refined sugar did not exist.  Today a large percentage of products on the supermarket shelves contain refined sugar, a food that the human body was never designed to process.

Try cutting sugar out of your diet for a couple of weeks and monitor the improvement in your mood, energy and mental clarity.

Strong scientific evidence supports these herbs for mental health
Sage - Sage has long been suggested as a possible therapy for mood enhancement.  Several trials provide evidence for this use of sage, even in stressful situations.
St John's Wort - Extracts of St John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) have been recommended traditionally for a wide range of medical conditions, with the most common modern-day use being the treatment of depression.  Short-term studies (one to three months) suggest that St. John's Wort is effective in the treatment of mild-to-moderate depressive disorders.