An examination of the role nutrients play in mental health, this book reviews the scientific literature from many fields of science: health, psychology, nutrition, mental well-being, and the interface with chronic disease. The book provides a straightforward, readable report of broadly selected scientific research on how various nutrients affect mental health. It covers several types of mental health disorders and their links to nutrients, nutritional status, and nutritional supplements. This book provides mental health professionals with the information they need to evaluate nutritional issues.

Exploring the connection between nutrition and mental wellness so therapists can provide more effective, integrated treatment. Diet is an essential component of a client’s clinical profile. Few therapists, however, have any nutritional training, and many don’t know where to begin. In Nutrition Essentials for Mental Health, Leslie Korn provides clinicians with a practical guide to the complex relationship between what we eat and the way we think, feel, and interact with the world. Where there is mental illness there is frequently a history of digestive and nutritional problems. Digestive problems in turn exacerbate mental distress, all of which can be improved by nutritional changes. It’s not unusual for a deficit or excess of certain nutrients to disguise itself as a mood disorder. Indeed, nutritional deficiencies factor into most mental illness—from anxiety and depression to schizophrenia and PTSD—and dietary changes can work alongside or even replace medications to alleviate symptoms and support mental wellness. Nutrition Essentials for Mental Health offers the mental health clinician the principles and practices necessary to provide clients with nutritional counseling to improve mood and mental health. Integrating clinical evidence with the author’s extensive clinical experience, it takes clinicians step-by-step through the essentials for integrating nutritional therapies into mental health treatment. Throughout, brief clinical vignettes illustrate commonly encountered obstacles and how to overcome them. Readers will learn: • Why nutrition matters in mental health • The role of various nutrients in nourishing both the brain and the gut, the “second brain” • Typical nutritional culprits that underlie or exacerbate specific mental disorders • Assessment techniques for evaluating a client’s unique nutritional needs, and counseling methods for the challenging but rewarding process of nutritional change. • Leading-edge protocols for the use of various macro- and micronutrients, vitamins, and supplements to improve mental health • Considerations for food allergies, sensitivities, and other special diets • The effects of foods and nutrients on DSM-5 categories of illness, and alternatives to pharmaceuticals for treatment • Comprehensive, stage-based approaches to coaching clients about dietary plans, nutritional supplements, and other resources • Ideas for practical, affordable, and individualized diets, along with optimal cooking methods and recipes • Nutritional strategies to help with withdrawal from drugs, alcohol and pharmaceuticals And much more. With this resource in hand, clinicians can enhance the efficacy of all their methods and be prepared to support clients’ mental health with more effective, integrated treatment.

A paradigm-shifting approach to treating mental disorders like anxiety, depression, and ADHD with food and nutrients, by two leading scientists who share their original, groundbreaking research with readers everywhere for the first time.

'This is a fascinating book, by a leading researcher, covering one of the most exciting areas of modern nutritional research - how what we eat impacts our gut and brain. The combination of personal stories and cutting edge science is a real winner.' Michael Mosley You feel how you eat. We accept that the quality of our diet affects the health of our heart and liver. So why wouldn't diet - good or bad - affect the health of our brain? This is the question that Australian scientist Felice Jacka set out to answer. Having suffered depression and anxiety as a young woman, she wanted to understand the role diet plays in our overall mental and brain health. What she found through her own research and that of other eminent scientists worldwide will revolutionise the way we think about what we eat and how we care for our brains. * Obesity and depression are two major causes of disease and disability across the globe, and each influences the other. *Food does affect mood: highly processed foods increase depression risk, while a balanced, whole-food diet can prevent depression and improve mood. *A healthy diet improves gut health, and in turn health microbiota (gut bacteria) promote brain health and keep our weight in check. *A healthy diet improves brain performance at all ages, from school-age kids to their work-stressed parents. *The Mediterranean diet is linked to lower rates of Alzheimer's disease and general cognitive decline in older people. Professor Jacka, who leads the field of Nutritional Psychiatry research globally, provides not just the most recent scientific evidence but also a range of simple, practical solutions for improving the way we eat on a daily basis, including meal plans and a range of delicious recipes. This is not a diet book. This is a guide to the good habits that will protect your most precious organ, improve your quality of life and optimise mental and brain health across your lifespan. PRAISE FOR BRAIN CHANGER 'Jacka is leading the way in providing evidence-based approaches that are rooted in cutting-edge science to transform how we think about mental health.' Professor John Cryan

A revolutionary prescription for healing depression and anxiety and optimizing brain health through the foods we eat, including a six-week plan to help you get started eating for better mental health. Depression and anxiety disorders are rising, affecting more than fifty-eight million people in the United States alone. Many rely on therapy and medications to alleviate symptoms, but often this is not enough. The latest scientific advances in neuroscience and nutrition, along with our understanding of the mind-gut connection, have proven that how and what we eat greatly affects how we feel—physically, cognitively, and emotionally. In this groundbreaking book, Dr. Drew Ramsey helps us forge a path toward greater mental health through food. Eat to Beat Depression and Anxiety breaks down the science of nutritional psychiatry and explains what foods positively affect brain health and improve mental wellness. Dr. Ramsey distills the most cutting-edge research on nutrition and the brain into actionable tips you can start using today to improve brain-cell health and growth, reduce inflammation, and cultivate a healthy microbiome, all of which contribute to our mental well-being. He explores the twelve essential vitamins and minerals most critical to your brain and body and outlines which anti-inflammatory foods feed the gut. He helps readers assess barriers to self-nourishment and offers techniques for enhancing motivation. To help us begin, he provides a kick-starter six-week mental health food plan designed to mitigate depression and anxiety, incorporating key food categories like leafy greens and seafood, along with simple, delicious, brain nutrient–rich recipes. By following the methods Dr. Ramsey uses with his patients, you can confidently choose foods to help you on your journey to full mental health.