What Are You Feeding Your Mind?!!!: The Real Scoop on African Americans and the Prevalence of Mental Illness

Improved Food Security and Nutrition

All of the hungry and many of the overweight are afflicted with micronutrient deficiency (lack of vitamins and minerals). Over two billion people, the vast majority of whom are women and children, suffer from micronutrient deficiencies (UN/SCN, 2004; Gardner and Halwell, 2000). Horticultural crops can play a vital role in solving this global micronutrient crisis. Vegetables and fruits are the most sustainable and affordable sources of micronutrients in diets (UN, 2004).

Healthy diets improve the learning capacity of children and the productivity of workers (Weinberger, 2004). ln contrast, micronutrient-deficient diets lead to reduced mental and physical development, poor performance in school, loss of productivity in the workplace, and the likelihood of poverty in future generations (Haddad et al., 2002).

Vitamin A deficiency alone weakens the immune system of 40% of children in developing countries (UN, 2004). This deficiency increases a child's risk of severe illness and death from infectious diseases, which are the leading causes of death in developing countries. Vitamin A deficiency contributes to higher rates of anemia as well as morbidity from common childhood infections such as respiratory and diarrheal diseases (Sommer and West, 1996), measles (West, 2000) and malaria (Shankar et al., 1999). Deficiencies of vitamin A and other micronutrients may increase the likelihood of HIV/AIDS transmission from mother to child and hasten the progression of the disease in infected persons (Fawzi et al., 2002; Semba et al., 1994).

Iron deficiency affects at least 2 billion, and perhaps up to 3.5 billion people. Shortage of iron in the diet causes reduced productivity, which results in economic losses of billions of dollars globally (Weinberger, 2004; UN, 2004). These losses are so substantial that economists at the Copenhagen Consensus in 2004 agreed that relieving iron and other micronutrient deficiencies should be the second highest priority in world development initiatives, second only to relieving the HIV/AIDS crisis (Economist, 2004).

Although essential in diets, not enough vegetables and fruits are available, especially to poor families in developing countries. Rates of production of vegetables and fruits cannot satisfy consumer demand and these micronutrient-rich food sources are often too expensive for the poor. Production of vegetables and fruits unfortunately is often accompanied by misuse and abuse of pesticides with their negative effects on human health and potential impact on the environment. In the least developed countries, the consumption of fruits and vegetables is declining (FAO 2004b). Steps must be taken to reverse this trend through provision of a range of safe, affordable and nutritious vegetables.

To read the full text and literature references, please download the Strategic Plan.

Source: Recovery!: Educational Information on Eating Disorders

Volume 7, Issue 6
Nov/Dec 2006

Nutrition and Mental Health: Eat Your Way to Mental Health:

by Jennifer Friesen, M.A.

We often hear about how we are affected physically by poor nutrition, but what is not so commonly known is how nutrition affects our mental health. Co-morbidity is common with eating disorders; a single person may not only struggle with an eating disorder, it could also be accompanied by depression, obsessions and compulsions, and anxiety, to name a few. There is a high likelihood that these other issues are affected by the poor nutrition that accompanies an eating disorder, and that consequently, increasing proper nutrition into one’s diet is one important component of improving mental health.

Often times we fail to make the connection between mental health and nutrition. We don’t realize sometimes that what we are feeding our bodies can be affecting our psychological well being. Are you feeding your body, mind and soul? Increasing your nutrition can significantly improve your mental health.


Mood Disorders

Zerbe states that in eating disorders, depression is often a result of starvation or poor nutrition (35). With a lack of food comes a lack of vital nutrients that help the body function smoothly, and depression, like other mental illnesses, can be affected by biological as well as psychological, emotional, social or spiritual issues. Carbohydrates, for example, are important for fighting depression, because when carbohydrates are taken in, an amino acid called tryptophan gets into the brain to make serotonin (a neurotransmitter) which helps to increase positive mood (Beck, 254-5). According to Bourne, other ways of getting tryptophan, and thus increasing serotonin levels, are through eating turkey, tuna, eggs or milk (330).

One study says that low amounts of folate, vitamin B12, iron, zinc, and selenium are more common with depressed people than non-depressed people, as well as Omega-3 fatty acids. Fish oils and folic acid supplements have been used to treat it (Bodnar & Wisner). Hallahan and Garland suggest that a diet containing more fish and fresh vegetables could significantly decrease depression and maybe even other mental illnesses. Omega-3 fats are used by the body’s nerve and brain cells, and possibly also in the formation of mood-affecting hormones. There seems to also be some connection between low omega-3 fats and bipolar disorder (Beck, 127). Sources of Omega-3 fats are fish, (especially oilier ones, like salmon, trout, sardines, mackerel and herring), flaxseed oil, canola oil, walnuts, soybeans, whole grains and leafy greens (Beck, 20).

Another substance, called inositol, seems to have some effect on depression and panic disorder. It is a part of phytic acid and is related to vitamin B, and can be found in citrus fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. Cell membranes in the body need inositol; it is contained in the central nervous system, and is necessary for healthy nerves and muscles. It is thought that inositol helps with the reception of serotonin in the brain, and serotonin in turn helps to create feelings of happiness, calmness and relaxation (Beck, 130).

Lecithin is also thought to have an effect on bipolar disorder. It is made up of phosphatidylcholine, fatty acids and carbohydrate. From phosphatidylcholine comes choline (also in the B vitamin family), which becomes a part of brain tissues, and also helps build ecetylcholine, a chemical that contributes to memory. Choline is found in egg yolks, liver, soybeans, legumes, oatmeal and cabbage (Beck, 131).

Vitamin B6 seems to be important for mood as well, and is another substance involved in producing serotonin. It can be found especially in meat, fish, poultry, whole grains, bananas and potatoes. B12 and folate are used for synthesizing SAMe (S-Adenosyl-Methionine), which helps produce neurotransmitters. Folate also contributes to the production of serotonin, and low folate levels may contribute to poor response to some depression medications (Beck, 256). Sources of folate include spinach, artichokes, asparagus, lentils, dried peas and beans, chicken liver, orange juice and wheat germ. Best food sources of B12 include all animal foods, and soy and rice beverages are sometimes fortified with B12 as well (Beck, 256).

Cholesterol is often labeled as “harmful” and to be avoided, but one study suggests that low cholesterol is associated with suicidality, depression, impulsivity, and aggression (Brunner, Parhofer, Schwandt & Bronisch). Another study by Muldoon, McKeown, and Cuffe also found that low cholesterol is associated with higher amounts of agression. Thus, it seems that some amounts of cholesterol are necessary for mental health.

ADHD

Protein is important for people with Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (Beck, 175), as well as iron and magnesium (Beck, 178). There seems to be some connection between ADHD and Omega-3 fatty acids (Beck, 127). These may not be causes or cures, but they are important factors to consider for maintaining it, for adults or for parents of children with ADHD.

Insomnia

The same carbohydrate-serotonin process that affects depression can be helpful in improving sleep, as well as diminishing pain, because serotonin contributes to relaxation and happiness. For example, a bowl of cereal or piece of toast could help in getting a good sleep. Vitamin B12 could also help to fight insomnia (Beck, 393).

Anxiety

Carbohydrates also can affect the level of stress hormones, improve mental performance, and decrease stress induced depression (Beck, 518). Thus carbohydrates are important in coping with stress, as are vitamins B and C, Zinc, Calcium and Magnesium; all are used by the body in dealing with stress and can in fact be depleted in the process (Beck, 519), so it is important to have enough of them. B vitamins help with the functioning of the nervous system, and a lack of them can lead to anxiety, irritability, restlessness, fatigue, and emotional instability. As we often hear,Vitamin C enhances the immune system and the body’s ability to heal; what is not so commonly known is that it also strengthens the adrenal glands, which in turn contribute to coping with stress. Calcium helps in the transmission of nerve signals, and low levels of calcium can cause nerve cell overactivity, which is a part of anxiety; thus, calcium can help to calm anxiety (Bourne, 320). Because anxiety involves the brain and nerves, omega-3 fatty acids are important in dealing with anxiety as well as mood (Bourne, 328).

Sources of vitamin C are citrus fruit, strawberries, kiwi, cantaloupe, broccoli, bell peppers, brussels sprouts, cabbage, tomatoes, and potatoes. (Beck, 519). Zinc is found in seafood, red meat, poultry, yogurt, wheat bran, wheat germ, whole grains and enriched breakfast cereals (Beck, 62). Magnesium is found in wheat bran and germ, almonds, brazil nuts, peaunts, sunflower seeds, beans and peas, dates, figs, spinach, and swiss chard (Beck, 48). Calcium can be found in dairy products, leafy vegetables, beans, tofu packaged with calcium, sardines, canned salmon including the bones, broccoli, rutabaga, figs, almonds, and molasses (Bourne, 320, Beck, 44).

All this evidence suggests that eating nutritious food not only improves physical health, but mental health as well. Taking this idea further, we can conclude that because eating disorders often withhold nutrition from the body, they might be a contributing factor in other mental health issues. Fighting an eating disorder, then, can also be a way of improving mental health. Notice, too, that the nutrients mentioned here come from a wide variety of foods and food groups. A balanced diet will help you to feel better physically, mentally, and emotionally: feel more positive, more focused, more calm, more equipped to live life to the fullest (Friesen).

This is one just report of numerous amounts of information available online to holistic approaches to treating various illnesses. Because many African Americans do not have consistent access to the internet or an awareness of nutrition based therapies, they often miss out on the benefits that tools like the internet can be used to treat illnesses such as ADHD, depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder through simple modifications that can be made in their diet.

So how do we make this information more accessible to those who do not have resources like computer access or the basic literary and technological skills to access these remedies online? In many cities, public libraries are making internet more accessible to those who can read and have basic computer knowledge. But in order to make more people aware of how illnesses can be cured or better monitored through nutrient alternatives, there will have to be a movement among leaders in local communities, schools and churches to make this information more readily available.

With the rising cost of health care and prescriptions, it seems counter-intuitive to continue to rack up debt or have to depend upon the inadequate services of a health care system negligent of those without insurance just to be able to treat illnesses and diseases that could be prevented through the simple modifications of lifestyle behaviors and the integration of more nutrients into their diets.



The practice of herbalism originates back to the beginnings of mankind when African healers and herbalists would administer herbs and ointments to treat common ailments or alleviate illness. Believed to be an inherent and evolutionary process it has been noted that even animals have developed the instinctual ability to seek out and consume certain varieties of plants when they are feeling ill.

While in later years, plant therapy, which had developed into a practice of eradicating the source of physical and spiritual ailments began to organize and establish itself as a more exclusive profession throughout the middle ages [through monastic orders], plants and herbs have become a very universal instrument used to serve vital functions in health and healing that transcends spiritual and cultural faiths and ideologies Natural).

Throughout African American literature and history, we hear many tales of characters who, facing the challenges of the social stigmas related to being black and under-assimilated in an oppressive white society suffer from physical and emotional breakdowns and are forced to play the consequences of their anxiety, depression and rage. Many African American studies analysts often refer to this phenomenon as internalized oppression, but seldom have looked into the direct correlation of how this anxiety, panic, and desperation correlate to the way that we treat and take care of ourselves.

It has been widely accepted that indicators such as environment, traumatic experience and family history are believed to be the underlying cause for the development of mental illness in the health of African Americans. While black scholars have been quick to fight to dispel the historic archetypes of the socially stunted portrayal of the American negro, there is still some consensus among the educated that some underlying problem does exist within the African American community that keeps some members of the community from progressing. And for generations researchers have debated whether the problem arises from some sort of inherent biological defect --passed down from generation to generation, or whether or not the problem is instead the byproduct of something much more destructive and environmentally systemic. Let's just say that the experiences I have learned about in mental health survivor health groups and the information in this video does not inspire much confidence. [disclaimer: some of this information is a bit inflammatory, so if you'd like feel free to skip ahead]



Authors and intellectuals such as Dr. Cornel West of Princeton University write about the issue of black nihilism, despair and rage, looking for some sort of spiritual answer or social movement to bring about transformation with models used in liberation theology. But there has always been some sort of link in the chain of information that will bring this endless soul searching, tireless cycle of victimization to an end. And unfortunately the only remedy seems to be getting out of the environment and reshaping past experiences in a way to help African Americans to understand them better, without necessarily changing the behaviors that stunt communication and the ability for those still embedded and connected to the resource deprived areas of the African American communities to progress.

In the report, The Mis(Diagnosis) of Mental Disorder in African Americans, Harold W. Neighbors, an associate professor in Department of Health Behavior and Health Education at The University of Michigan shares:

The notion that African American psychiatric inpatients are at higher risk of misdiagnosis than white patients has been a major topic of discussion since the publication of a series of highly influential papers in the early-to-middle 1980's. Although the misdiagnosis argument is varied and complex, the fundamental premise espoused by most scholars working in this area is that traditional mental health services have not been sensitive enough to ethnic differences in the ways that patients recognize, define and express symptoms of emotional distress. Clarification of how ethnicity and culture influence psychiatric diagnosis is important because mental health policy and service delivery planning are based on reported rates of disorders. These statistics are, in turn, based on the outcome of a diagnostic process that is assumed to have an acceptable level of accuracy. If the misdiagnosis of African Americans is widespread, patient counts by diagnostic group and resulting mental health policy decisions will be based upon faulty data (Neighbors).

In Jonathan Metzl's report Protest Psychosis: Race, Stigma, and the Diagnosis of Schizophrenia,

Misperceptions that persons with schizophrenia are violent or dangerous lie at the heart of stigmatizations of the disease. For instance, numerous studies have found that physicians, police officers, and the general public overestimate the risk of aggression in patients with schizophrenia more often than in other patient groups. My project tells the story of how these modern-day American conceptualizations of schizophrenic patients as violent emerged during the civil-rights era of the 1950s-1970s in response to a larger set of conversations about race. I integrate institutional, professional, and cultural discourses in order to trace shifts in U.S. popular and medical understandings of schizophrenia from a disease of white docility to one of “Negro” hostility, and from a disease that was nurtured to one that was feared. The first and longest section of the paper tracks the medcalization of race and schizophrenia within a particular institution, the Ionia Hospital for the Criminally Insane. Located in a largely white area of rural Michigan, Ionia was the receiving hospital for prisoners deemed mentally ill by the courts and penal institutions throughout the state. I access an extensive archive of medical records and administrative documents to show that, starting in the 1950s, schizophrenia became a diagnostic term disproportionately applied to the hospital’s growing population of African American men for reasons having as much to do with perceived threats of violence as with criteria for mental illness. The paper’s second section contextualizes the Ionia case histories within shifting psychiatric definitions of schizophrenia, as read through an extensive analysis of published case studies and classification systems. Of particular interest are the ways in which published case studies of the 1960s and 1970s explicitly connected the clinical presentations of African American men with the politics of the civil rights movement in ways that, in its worst moments, treated aspirations for liberation and civil rights as symptoms of mental illness. Finally, the third section reads these shifts in psychiatric nosology within changing American cultural concerns about black masculinity. I use media representations, films, music, protest memoirs, and literary texts to explore ways in which civil-rights era debates about the role of violence in promoting social change mapped onto descriptions of schizophrenia as a violent disease. I also show how proponents of Black Power appropriated psychiatric language to dramatize a response to the “insanity” of racism through militant resistance.

Triangulating the historical connections between institutional forces, psychiatric practices, and civil-rights politics ultimately helps me grapple with some of the seemingly naturalized characteristics of present-day schizophrenia discourse—characteristics that often appear denatured of their explicit connections to race. These include cultural tropes of angry, homeless mentally ill persons or findings demonstrating that persons with schizophrenia reside in prisons far more often than in psychiatric care facilities (Metzl).

It seems that these days African Americans are more afraid to seek treatment and trust the help of those who have been designated to them, because of the disparity of the quality of care given from those entrusted to protect them, those who assume their distress is an enigma tied to their poverty and their race. Instead harsh sentences, forced medications and other forms of "tough" or disinterested engagement occur by medical practitioners. Or patients are simply medicated, many times to incorrect experimental dosages in order to curb behaviors, limit arousal and over-stimulation and leaving the brain functioning dangerously impaired. If you talk to many uninsured African Americans who have had to go through the tax funded health care system, many are reluctant to return to health care providers because of the treatment they have received, hoping to simply suffer in silence, for fear of abuse, of being ostracized, humiliated, or left in despair. This attributes to the desperation and panic that leads to many African Americans instead opting to rely upon drugs, alcohol and tobacco as alternative forms of self medication, because nothing they have ever been forced to depend upon has been proven to work.

Those who experience traumatic experiences are more likely to suffer from more extreme symptoms of mental distress when they are aggravated by the lack of proper nutrition or over-consumption of certain types of food [ie caffeine, refined sugar] leading to increased physical disorders; diabetes, nervous and metabolic imbalances and higher disability and mortality rates. Unfortunately, this phenomenon is not just limited to the African American people, but is more likely to be diagnosed in other impoverished ethnicities and people living in malnourished communities all around the world.

Malnoutrition:

Malnutrition is the condition that develops when the body does not get the right amount of the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients it needs to maintain healthy tissues and organ function.

What's interesting is that researchers and physicians have been investigating the links between malnutrition and mental illness for a very long time, and yet for some reason, in the African American community this is not yet common knowledge.



Click images to enlarge



Do these foods look familiar to you?




One thing that should also be noted is that the majority of African Americans who suffer from symptoms of malnourishment are not being underweight, but rather overweight as we often associate with poor nutrition and an unhealthy diet.

POOR NUTRITION & SEDENTARY LIFESTYLE: “The 21st Century Plague”

According to Healthy People 2010, the two leading health indicators for the nation are lifestyle-related: (1) physical activity and (2) overweight and obesity.1
Poor nutrition and lack of appropriate physical activity are major causes of obesity and diabetes, which are considered national epidemics.2 Additionally, poor nutrition and physical inactivity contribute to a host of other diseases such as heart disease and cancer, the two leading causes of death in the U.S.3. The enormous social and economic costs of these lifestyle issues have gotten the attention of our nation’s leaders, who are now summoning a major “call to action” across America: “Promoting healthy lifestyles should be a national priority, beginning in our schools and carrying over into our work places, communities, and especially into our health care system." 4

It is a common myth among many social and religious organizations that mental illness is caused by factors perceived to be disturbances of a spiritual nature. This creates a stigma against mental illness that has kept people, particularly in poor and ethnic communities from being aware how emotional and neurological imbalances can be remedied through diet modification and proper nutrition (Bridging).

Currently, approximately 1 in 4 adult Americans have been diagnosed with a mental disorder, which translates into about 58 million affected people [1]. Though the incidence of mental disorders is higher in America than in other countries, a World Health Organization study of 14 countries reported a worldwide prevalence of mental disorders between 4.3 percent and 26.4 percent [2]. In addition, mental disorders are among the leading causes for disability in the US as well as other countries. Common mental health disorders include mood disorders, anxiety disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), panic disorders, eating disorders, attention deficit disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD), and autism. However, the four most common mental disorders that cause disabilities are major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) [3,4].

Typically, most of these disorders are treated with prescription drugs, but many of these prescribed drugs cause unwanted side effects. For example, lithium is usually prescribed for bipolar disorder, but the high-doses of lithium that are normally prescribed causes side effects that include: a dulled personality, reduced emotions, memory loss, tremors, or weight gain [5,6]. These side effects can be so severe and unpleasant that many patients become noncompliant and, in cases of severe drug toxicity, the situation can become life threatening.

Researchers have observed that the prevalence of mental health disorders has increased in developed countries in correlation with the deterioration of the Western diet [7]. Previous research has shown nutritional deficiencies that correlate with some mental disorders [8,9]. The most common nutritional deficiencies seen in mental disorder patients are of omega-3 fatty acids, B vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that are precursors to neurotransmitters [10-16]. Compelling population studies link high fish consumption to a low incidence of mental disorders; this lower incidence rate has proven to be a direct result of omega-3 fatty acid intake [10,17,18]. One to two grams of omega-3 fatty acids taken daily is the generally accepted dose for healthy individuals, but for patients with mental disorders, up to 9.6 g has been shown to be safe and efficacious [19-21]. Western diets are usually also lacking in fruits and vegetables, which further contributes to vitamin and mineral deficiencies (Lakhan).

At more than any other time in our history, African Americans, particularly children within the last twenty years have been diagnosed with clinical illnesses, mood and behavioral disorders. Here are the factors that the National Alliance on Mental Illness have to attribute to the prevalence of the higher diagnosis mental health within the African American community:

African Americans in the United States are less likely to receive diagnoses and treatments for their mental illnesses than Caucasian Americans. Culture biases against mental health professionals and health care professionals in general prevent many African Americans from accessing care due to prior experiences with historical misdiagnoses, inadequate treatment, and a lack of cultural understanding; only 2% of psychiatrists, 2% of psychologists and 4% of social workers in the U.S. are African American.

African Americans tend to rely on family, religious and social communities for emotional support, rather than turning to health care professionals, even though this may at times be necessary.

Mental illness is frequently stigmatized and misunderstood in the African American community.

African Americans are often at a socioeconomic disadvantage in terms of accessing both medical and mental health care – in 2001, 20.2% of African Americans were uninsured.

Experiences of mental illness vary across cultures and some mental illnesses are more prevalent in the African American community compared to other cultures in the U.S.

Across a recent 15 year span, suicide rates increased 233% among African Americans aged 10 to 14 compared to 120% among Caucasian Americans in the same age group across the same span of time.

Somatization – the manifestation of physical illnesses related to mental health - occurs at a rate of 15% among African Americans and only 9% among Caucasian Americans.

Some studies suggest that African Americans metabolize medications more slowly than Caucasian Americans, yet they often receive higher doses of psychiatric medications, which may result in increased side effects and decreased medication compliance.

Social circumstances often serve as an indicator for the likelihood of developing a mental illness. African Americans are disproportionately more likely to experience social circumstances that increase their chances of developing a mental illness.

African Americans comprise 40% of the homeless population and only 12% of the U.S. population.

People experiencing homelessness are at a greater risk of developing a mental illness.

Nearly half of all prisoners in the United States are African American. Prison inmates are at a high risk of developing a mental illness.

Children in foster care and the child welfare system are more likely to develop mental illnesses. African American children comprise 45% of the public foster care population (NAMI).

And yet with all of the experimentation that occurs in state hospitals and the prison system on African Americans that has been done to "rehabilitate" institutionalized African Americans back into the segments of society that the rest of America doesn't have to look at, NAMI seems to have overlooked one of the primary causes of the biochemical imbalances that affect the mental health of African Americans that manifest itself into depression, anxiety, and panic that we have all learned to stigmatize -- the connection between these illnesses and the food that is either embraced or forced upon African American culture.

Unfortunately, the stigma with mental illness, generated from the greater community and fueled within the messages that we spread among ourselves, leads us to believe in the misconception that many of the mental challenges, stigmas, and desperation from feeling trauma or emotionally not well is the product of our mental capacities and not that we simply have not been taught the proper ways to take care of ourselves through the education of affordable nutrition, have access to safe facilities for physical activity, or educated and engaged people looking after our well being and mental health. For generations we have grown up listening to messages that something is wrong with our minds, or even worse that others believe that we are inferior because of our minds and we feed upon those messages until they manifest themselves into our reality. When the reality is that most of us have the mental capacity to learn and effectively communicate our own needs. The problem lies not in the genes or the experiences of our culture but that we have failed to pass down key aspects of our knowledge so that we can translate what we have learned into wisdom in order to benefit ourselves. When we are too distressed or uneducated about how we can improve our understanding of our own mental capacities we begin to believe the fallacy of others stigmas that tell us that we do not have the resources to grow and heal ourselves, and it is this attitude and the belief in this misconception that keeps us from becoming our greatest selves. Instead it is more beneficial for us to integrate more affirmative lessons that teach us how to modify our lifestyles so that they are sustainable so that we can learning how to practically take care of our economic situations through the investment that we make in our physical health.

The connection between nutrition and mental illness

August 18, 8:23 PM
Source: Seattle Nutrition Examiner
by Heidi Nebel

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Mental illness is often thought to be confined to the brain but balancing body chemistry via nutrition can have huge effects on mental illness. Many diseases are known to have their roots in nutritional imbalances and changing one’s diet or using nutritional supplements can often correct the imbalance creating the disease.

One of the pioneers of treating mental illness through nutrition is Dr. Carl C. Pfeiffer, Ph.D., M.D. His belief was that different patients have different nutrient needs based on their individual biochemistry. He successfully treated mentally ill patients with mega doses of specific nutrients, and dietary changes that would address both immediate and long term causes of the disease. For example, individuals with mental illness are often found to have imbalances in zinc and copper levels, high or low levels of blood histamine, heavy metal toxicity, gluten or other food sensitivities, as well as deficiencies in B6, B3, manganese and vitamin C. Dr. Pfeiffer believed that the use of drugs only gave immediate results at the expense of long term health and should be reserved for the critically ill.

Mental illnesses and behavioral disorders that have been treated with nutrition include schizophrenia, anxiety, phobias, obsessions, depression, ADD, ADHS, autism and bi polar disorders. The Pfeiffer Treatment Center (named after Dr. Pfeiffer) is located outside of Chicago and specializes in the treatment of these biochemical imbalances using nutritional supplementation and diet.

There has been some remarkable research done about the correlations between more than just mental illness and food. According to this article about Poor Nutrition & Sedentary Lifestyle,

• Poor nutrition and lack of physical activity are responsible for an estimated 300,000 to 600,000 preventable deaths each year.

• An estimated one third of all cancers are attributable to poor nutrition, physical
inactivity, and being overweight.

• Since nutrition and physical activity are associated with many chronic conditions, it is important to note that more than 90 million Americans live with chronic illnesses, which represent 70% of all deaths, 60% of medical care costs, and one third of the years of potential life lost before age 65 in the U.S (Friesen).

The Health Risks of Poor Nutrition

Source: ChooseHelp.com

Whether malnutrition is induced through an insufficient intake of daily calories, or through inefficient metabolic processes damaged through a legacy of abuse, the chronic effects of a lack of proper nutrition devastate the body and mind.

A healthy diet : Careful preparation of good and nutritious food helps to restore bodily health, mental health, and internal metabolic.

Vitamin and mineral deficiencies affect virtually all of the organs, and gastro intestinal systems, organ functioning, and mental processes are diminished from a lack of proper nutrition. Additionally, the impact of poor nutrition can increase further abuse.

In response to the massive sugar intakes of alcohol consumption, there is a pancreatic response and a corresponding over production of insulin which creates an induced state of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). Low blood sugar, in addition to causing headaches and other physical symptoms, reduces energy levels and mental abilities, and can induce feelings of lethargy and depression. The solution to experienced hypoglycemia is further sugar consumption through alcohol for a temporary alleviation of experienced symptoms. This chronic low blood sugar partially explains the cravings towards consumption, and explains how proper nutrition, which restores blood sugar balance, can help to alleviate these cravings.

Chronically elevating and dropping blood sugar levels also greatly increases the risks of experienced type 2 diabetes, and many alcoholics ultimately battle with this condition from their years of abuse.

Poor nutrition influences the production of central nervous system neurotransmitters, and when neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin are diminished there is a resultant mood imbalance, and both a decreased ability to resist temptation, and a greater perceived need for the pleasurable effects of intoxication.

Restoring bodily health, mental health, and internal metabolic processes through excellent nutrition and through the use of vitamin and mineral supplements helps to reduce the experienced deficits of improper nutrition, and as a result to increase the resistance to and desire for further abuse.

While some physical tests such as body fat estimations and blood work can give a partial understanding, the true nutritional deficiencies are tough to accurately ascertain. Most rehab employed dieticians strive to develop a better picture of the patient's nutritional needs by working backwards and determining the diet as consumed while abusing. By evaluating past dietary intake, dieticians can determine what vitamins and essential minerals are most needed. Normally, in addition to balanced meals, dieticians will recommend the use of vitamin and mineral supplements to accelerate the nutritional recovery.

[Those with poor health histories] are encouraged to eat three very balanced and healthful meals daily. Since low blood sugars can induce lower energy levels and a depressed mood (with increased cravings as a result) most facilities will encourage the consumption of three balanced but smaller meals, with three or four additional snacks provided throughout the day.

Because sugar and caffeine can exacerbate mood and energy swings, refined sugars and caffeine will be minimized and healthier whole food and non stimulant substitutes provided.

In addition to a restoration of optimal levels of vitamins and minerals, some histories of abuse may have diminished the production of certain neurotransmitters (tryptophan, tyrosine) and protein rich foods heavy in the needed precursors may be offered to those with particular need.

Because many addicts enter rehab with damaged gastro intestinal systems, less able to process foods and often with accompanying tissue damage as a result, nutrient rich and easily digestible foods are offered as the quickest way to begin to reverse the damage of abuse, and begin to repair the ability to efficiently process food (ChooseHelp).

The Effects of Poor Nutrition on Your Health

Source: LIVESTRONG.COM

Poor nutrition habits can be a behavioral health issue, because nutrition and diet affect how you feel, look, think and act. A bad diet results in lower core strength, slower problem solving ability and muscle response time, and less alertness. Poor nutrition creates many other negative health effects as well.

Obesity

According to a National Center of Health Statistics 2003 survey, about 65.2 percent of American adults are overweight or obese as a result of poor nutrition. Obesity is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 25 or more. Being overweight puts people at risk for developing a host of disorders and conditions, some of them life-threatening.

Hypertension

The National Institutes of Health reports that hypertension is one of the possible outcomes of poor nutrition. Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is called the silent killer, because it frequently remains undetected and thus untreated until damage to the body has been done. Eating too much junk food, fried food, salt, sugar, dairy products, caffeine and refined food can cause hypertension.

High Cholesterol and Heart Disease

Poor nutrition can lead to high cholesterol, which is a primary contributor to heart disease. High fat diets are common in the United States and Canada. The National Institutes of Health reports that more than 500,000 people in the United States die each year due to heart disease, which can be caused by a high fat diet. High cholesterol foods contain a large amount of saturated fat. Examples include ice cream, eggs, cheese, butter and beef.

Diabetes

Diabetes also can be linked to poor nutrition. Some forms of the disease can result from consuming a sugar- and fat-laden diet, leading to overweight. According to the National Institute of Health, about 8 percent of the American population has diabetes.

Stroke

A stroke that is caused by plaque that builds up in a blood vessel, then breaks free as a clot that travels to your brain and creates a blockage can be linked to poor nutrition. Strokes damage the brain and impair functioning, sometimes leading to death. Foods high in salt, fat and cholesterol increase your risk for stroke.

Gout

According to the National Institutes of Health, poor nutrition can lead to gout. With gout, uric acid buildup results in the formation of crystals in your joints. The painful swelling associated with gout can lead to permanent joint damage. A diet that is high in fat or cholesterol can cause gout. Some seafood--sardines, mussels, oysters and scallops--as well as red meat, poultry, pork, butter, whole milk, ice cream and cheese can increase the amount of uric acid in your body, causing gout.

Cancer

According to the National Institutes of Health, several types of cancer, including bladder, colon and breast cancers, may be partially caused by poor dietary habits. Limit your intake of foods that contains refined sugars, nitrates and hydrogenated oils, including hot dogs, processed meats, bacon, doughnuts and french fries (Livestrong).