depression

[Guest guest]

This was posted on PIEN:

Depression associated with subsequent risk for Parkinson's disease

Last Updated: 2002-05-27 16:00:11 -0400 NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A

diagnosis of depression is associated with a three-fold higher incidence of

Parkinson's disease, Dutch investigators report in the May 28th issue of

Neurology.

The study authors suggest that depression may actually represent the first

clinical manifestation of Parkinson's disease.

Dr. Marjan van den Akker, of Maastricht University, and colleagues searched

the Registration Network Family Practices (RNH) database for patients

diagnosed between 1975 and 1990 with depressive disorder or affective

psychosis.

They identified 1,358 subjects diagnosed for the first time after the age

of 19.

The investigators matched the depressed subjects with a reference group of

67,570 nondepressed subjects with the same year of birth.

By the year 2000, Parkinson's disease was diagnosed in 278 subjects,

including 1.4% of those with a history of depression and 0.4% of the

reference group.

After correcting for age, sex, and socioeconomic status, the hazard ratio

for Parkinson's disease was 3.13 for the depressed individuals compared

with the nondepressed subjects.

Dr. van den Akker's team theorizes that reduced serotonin activity, as a

compensatory mechanism for a reduction in dopamine activity, exists before

the onset of motor symptoms in patients with PD.

Thus, these patients may have a biologic vulnerability to depression.

Neurology 2002;58:1501-1504.

Copyright 2002 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.

http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2002/05/27/professional/links/20020527e

pid005.html

[Guest guest]

Hi Terry for your problems,

Wish I could wave a magic wand and make things better but mine's broke and

just don't work any more. I've nothing to offer but to say hope for a better

tomorrow and if tomorrow is worse, then take pleasure in how good today was

for you. Keep the water up my good man and keep trying to make your total

situation better.

On the good side you did get SSD, (sometime run the numbers on how much you

would need in 6% bonds to bring that amount you now get every month - a

handsome sum I'll bet). You did have a little good luck with the doctors. You

do have more experience with this disease and might know how to cope with it

better than you did a year ago. You have found this board rather than being

in the dark with the condition if CP. And the Cardinals are not playing too

bad this year and they might actually have some potential.

Best Wishes, Poncho GA

[Guest guest]

Hi Terry for your problems,

Wish I could wave a magic wand and make things better but mine's broke and

just don't work any more. I've nothing to offer but to say hope for a better

tomorrow and if tomorrow is worse, then take pleasure in how good today was

for you. Keep the water up my good man and keep trying to make your total

situation better.

On the good side you did get SSD, (sometime run the numbers on how much you

would need in 6% bonds to bring that amount you now get every month - a

handsome sum I'll bet). You did have a little good luck with the doctors. You

do have more experience with this disease and might know how to cope with it

better than you did a year ago. You have found this board rather than being

in the dark with the condition if CP. And the Cardinals are not playing too

bad this year and they might actually have some potential.

Best Wishes, Poncho GA

[Guest guest]

Because people sometimes have difficulties with depression while dealing with

diabetes, I thought this might be a good read. Hugs, Marilyn

Nutritional Blockbusters that Fight Depression

B Vitamins

Believe it or not, a sweet potato or a spinach salad might help you beat the

blues. Both are rich in folate and vitamin B6 or pyridoxine. Deficiencies in

these two B vitamins, experts believe, can actually bring on the symptoms of

depression. Vitamin B6 works by keeping your brain’s neurotransmitters in

balance. These chemicals control whether you feel depressed, anxious, or on a

steady

keel.

Experts are not sure why folate fights the blues, but they do know low folate

levels in your body can deepen depression, and high folate levels can help

defeat it. You can find folate in most fruits and vegetables, especially

spinach, asparagus and avocados.

Eat chicken, liver, and other meats to feed your brain vitamin B6. Plant

sources of the vitamin include navy beans, sweet potatoes, spinach, and bananas.

Depression can also signal a deficiency in thiamin, also known as vitamin B1.

Stick with whole-wheat breads, meats, black beans, and watermelon to punch up

your thiamin levels. These foods might help you feel more clearheaded and

energetic.

Iron

Beating the blues might be as easy as eating iron-rich foods if you have

iron-deficiency anemia. Over two billion people suffer from this condition and

even more live with less-serious iron deficiency. A sour mood is a major symptom

of a lack of iron. Other symptoms include pale skin, sluggishness, and trouble

concentrating.

Iron-deficiency anemia often attacks pre-menopausal women, people who

regularly take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID’s) and others at

risk for

chronic blood loss. It’s a good idea to visit your doctor if you suspect

you’

re anemic.

To get more iron in your diet, try meat for starters. The darker the cut, the

more iron it has. If you’re a vegetarian, stick with legumes, fortified

cereals, quinoa, kale and other green leafy vegetables. And it’s a good idea

to top

these foods with a rich source of vitamin C, like lemon juice. The vitamin C

will help your body absorb the iron.

Selenium

You probably heard selenium fights cancer, but you might not know the mineral

banishes bad moods, too. People who do not eat enough selenium-rich foods

tend to be grumpier than people with a high dietary intake, according to recent

research. Eat some high-test selenium foods – like seafood, poultry,

mushrooms,

sea vegetables, and wheat – and feel the effects for yourself.

Carbohydrates

IF stress gest you down, a diet rich in carbohydrates might be just what the

doctor ordered. Eating mostly carbohydrates during the day may make stressful

situations more bearable for some people. In a European study, scientists fed

people either a diet high in carbs and low in protein, or vice versa. Then the

doctors put the subjects through a difficult mathematical task. The

carbohydrate-rich diet worked to lower stress and depression in some of the

subjects.

The carbohydrate diet appears to work by raising the level of tryptophan in

your brain. Tryptophan is the amino acid your body needs to make serotonin, the

“happy†neurotransmitter.

It’s important to remember not all carbohydrates are equal. Nutritionally

speaking, carbohydrates from fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and cereals

are

best. They’ll save you from stress and boost your levels of vitamins,

minerals, and fiber.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

Fat makes up about 60 percent of the human brain. You can keep your brain

running smoothly with the right kinds of fats or you can gum up the works with

too much of the wrong kind. It all depends on what you eat.

Sound fishy? As a matter of fact, it is. The essential fats found in seafood,

called omega-3 fatty acids, play a major role in brain function. They may

even boost your mood. You need them but cannot make them on your own.

“Essentialâ€

fatty acids only appear through your diet. That means next time you’re

feeling blue, dip into the deep blue sea for your dinner. New medical evidence

suggests the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish – called docosahexaenoic acid

(DHA)

and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) – can help drive away depression.

A Harvard psychiatrist found that fish oil capsules helped people with

bipolar disorder, or manic depression, who go through periods of extreme highs

and

lows. The Harvard psychiatrist suggests the omega-3 fatty acid in fish oil may

slow down neurons in your brain, much like the drug Lithium, which is used to

treat manic depression.

Another research group from England noticed depressed people had less omega-3

fatty acids in their red blood cells than healthy people. The more sever the

depression, the less omega-3.

There is even evidence that EPA can help treat people with schizophrenia, a

serious mental illness that can cause delusions, hallucinations and

disorganized behavior.

Some experts believe fish fights depression because neurotransmitters, the

brain’s Pony Express riders that carry messages from cell to cell, have an

easier time wriggling through fat membranes made of fluid omega-3 than any other

kind of fat. This means your brain’s important messages get delivered.

Fish also has an effect on serotonin levels, one of your brain’s good-news

messengers. If you don’t have enough serotonin, you’re more likely to be

depressed, violent, and suicidal. If you have low levels of DHA, you also have

low

levels of serotonin. More DHA means more serotonin.

Most antidepressants, including Prozac, raise brain levels of serotonin. You

might be doing the same thing just by eating fish.

Whether you’re depressed or not, work more omega-3 into your diet and perhaps

cut down on omega-6, another type of essential fatty acid found in vegetable

oils, meat and eggs. Right now, the typical American eats at least ten times

more omega-6 than omega-3.

Not that omega-6 is bad, but too much leads to excess signaling in your

brain. Fortunately, omega-3 can help stop the crazy antics of omega-6 and bring

things back to normal.

So, to fix your balance of omega-6 and omega-3, the obvious first step is to

eat more fish. Fatty fish, like salmon, herring, mackerel, and tuna, offer the

best omega-3, but all seafood contains at least some. Aim for at least two

fatty fish meals a week.

If you really dislike fish, get some omega-3 from flaxseed; walnuts; and

collard, turnip, and mustard greens. Other good sources include dark green,

leafy

vegetables like spinach, arugula, kale, Swiss chard, and certain types of

lettuce. Remember though, the omega-3 in these foods is in the form of

alpha-linolenic acid, which the brain can convert to DHA only in small amounts.

To get

the good stuff your brain prefers – the pre-formed DHA and EPA – you still

need

to eat fish.

You can take fish oil supplements, which are available in health food stores,

pharmacies and supermarkets. Just one caution -if you’re taking blood

thinners, check with your doctor before taking supplements since omega-3 also

has

blood-thinning effects.

Marilyn

Moderator for

Diabetic_Recipes

dnevessr@...

Opinions expressed are solely

my own and should not be

mistaken for

Professional advice.