TMHS 750 : Why the American Diet Is Fueling Higher Rates of Anxiety – with Uma Naidoo
TMHS 750 : Why the American Diet Is Fueling Higher Rates of Anxiety – with Uma Naidoo  
Podcast: The Model Health Show
Published On: Mon Dec 25 2023
Description: Anxiety is one of the most pressing mental health issues plaguing our society. And in recent years, the rates of diagnosed anxiety have skyrocketed. On today’s show, you’re going to learn about how your gut bacteria impacts your mental health, and the most important nutrition principles for reducing anxiety.  Dr. Uma Naidoo is a Harvard trained psychiatrist, nutritional specialist, and a professional chef. Her work is focused on Nutritional Psychiatry, the intersection of mental health and food. In her groundbreaking new book, Calm Your Mind with Food, Dr. Naidoo outlines how to use nutrition as a powerful tool for healing anxiety and calming the mind. Today, Dr. Uma Naidoo is back on The Model Health Show to share the latest research on the gut-brain connection, and how the Standard American Diet is causing high rates of anxiety and other mental health conditions. She’s sharing practical tips for improving your mental health, what to include on your plate to fend off anxiety, and the pillars to creating a calm state of mind. I hope you enjoy this conversation with the one and only, Dr. Uma Naidoo! In this episode you’ll discover: How your diet impacts your neurotransmitters. The connection between physical pain and mental health. Which mental health condition is the most prevalent. How the pandemic impacted the demand for and access to SSRIs. Why medications alone often don’t offer lasting relief to mental health conditions. How the American food system is purposely engineered to create cravings. The link between sugar, inflammation, and anxiety. Hidden sources of sugar in our food supply. The importance of finding healthier alternatives to your favorite foods. How a diet largely made up of ultraprocessed food affects children. Why gut bacteria play an important role in warding off anxiety. The critical role of iron for mental health. Specific foods that can help improve your mental health. What leptin resistance is and how it works. The two hot spots for anxiety in the brain. How to build an anti-anxiety plate. Why we need to have grace with each other, regarding diets, health, and bodies. Some of the pillars of calming anxiety. Items mentioned in this episode include: HVMN.com/model -- Save 30% on your first subscription order of Ketone-IQ! DrinkLMNT.com/model -- Get a FREE sample pack with any order! Calm Your Mind with Food by Dr. Uma Naidoo Connect with Dr. Uma Naidoo Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram Join TMHS Facebook community - Model Nation  Be sure you are subscribed to this podcast to automatically receive your episodes:  Apple Podcasts Stitcher Spotify Soundcloud   Thanks to our Sponsors! This episode is brought to you by HVMN. it's important to understand that our capacity, our mental health, our physical health, these are all driven by energy and having energy allotted, energy available to literally think the thoughts that we want to think, to be able to have more self-control and self-management of our minds, of our thoughts. We can get depleted very quickly, you know, especially in today's society. Again there's so much coming at us. And so having some supportive nutrition is obviously critical. And right now with innovation there are some things that are kind of head and shoulders above other things when it comes to energy, and in particular numerous studies, including a study published by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, AKA the FASEB journal, have found that exogenous ketones can be up to twenty-eight-percent more efficient in generating energy than glucose alone. 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Again, neuroplasticity is the ability of our brain to change and adapt. Now this is one key electrolyte, but it works in tandem with other electrolytes like sodium. Sodium is critical for maintaining proper hydration of the human brain. If you didn't know this, the human brain is primarily made of water. We're talking somewhere in the ballpark of 75%, upwards of 80% water. It's so important because just a small decrease in our body's optimal hydration level, what's noted in the data, just a 2% decrease in our baseline hydration level can lead to dramatic cognitive decline. Helping to sustain and maintain proper hydration levels in the brain, sodium is critical in that. And also, researchers at McGill University found that sodium functions as a quote, off-on switch for specific neurotransmitters that support our cognitive function and protect our brains from numerous degenerative diseases. 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