Toss the Prozac and Try This for the Kiddos



Without dredging up horrid memories of high school, do you remember that our cells are made of a lipid bilayer?
That means that the outside of our cells are formed of two layers of fats sandwiched together.  For cells to function properly, a message needs to pass through this sandwich layer.  It works out that the healthier the fats in this sandwich, the better a message gets into or out of a cell.  Things just work better.
So, healthier fats = better messages.  Unhealthy fats = messages get lost.
Consider this in the brain.  Would you want the message to get to where it’s supposed to?  Of course.  So, better fats = better sandwich = better messages.
This can translate to neurotransmitters like serotonin or epinephrine or dopamine getting from one cell to another.  So, of course we would expect to see psychological problems like depression get better with higher intakes of healthy fats.  Seems pretty simple, huh?
Which leads us to this particular study, where researchers looked at the relationship between dietary fish intake and depressive symptoms in over 6500 Japanese children who were between 12 and 15 years of age.  Here’s what they found:
  • In boys, higher fish intake was linked to 27% lower risk of having depressive symptoms.
  • EPA intake had the strongest effect (29% for EPA, 21% for DHA).
  • Looking at omega-3 intake (and not specifically fish intake), there was a 28% lower risk.
  • The protective effect was limited to boys.

James Bogash

For more than a decade, Dr. Bogash has stayed current with the medical literature as it relates to physiology, disease prevention and disease management. He uses his knowledge to educate patients, the community and cyberspace on the best way to avoid and / or manage chronic diseases using lifestyle and targeted supplementation.







Email:



Posted on
Category: Depression
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”