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'Mood Food Project' Summary June 18, 2006

Depression can take many forms. It can be constant or occasional. It can accompany an otherwise normal life or it can be debilitating. Sadness, low energy, fragile temperament, and low self-esteem are all symptoms of depression. More inconspicuous ones are boredom, disinterest, chronic aches & pains, and addictions.

The cause of depression is often complicated, involving social, psychological, and biological forces -- all of which are rarely easily identified. Depression can be fed by what you eat (or more often by what you don't), and what you eat can be driven by how you feel. It can promote health problems, and health problems can lead to depresson. It can be caused by bad relationships and/or lead you into them. It's often cyclical in these ways, and it definitely tends to feed on itself.

Many depressed people self-medicate with readily available pick-me-ups -- alcohol, sugar, and caffeine. And the cycle continues. When we regulary intoxicate our brains with alchohol, it suffers. When we fail to nourish it with much-needed nutrients, it suffers. It should be common sense that what we put into our bodies is going to affect us, yet modern life rarely treats food as nourishment. It's either a necessity or a treat. 2,400 years ago Hippocrates wrote: "Let your food be your treatment, and your treatment your food."

There are a number of different explanations for the cause and effect relationship between food and mood, including: brain chemical imbalances, food allergies, nutritional and/or fatty acid deficiencies, and sugar sensitivity. 'Mood Food Project' will explore food as both an explanation and solution for some of the possible causes of depression. Being aware of how food affects you doesn't have to be a drag. Good emotional health is a pretty great perk.