Depression and Your Appetite

Depression is a common mental health disorder, found in up to 6.7% of the adult US population (8.1% of adult women and 5.1% of adult men). Most people recognize the emotional symptoms of depression, such as: the feeling of hopelessness, a low mood, tearfulness, anxiousness, irritation with your loved ones, lack of pleasure in the things that previously gave you enjoyment, and even suicidal thoughts.

You're probably also familiar with the many social problems caused by depression, including: poor work performance, avoiding friends, and having difficulties in your personal life (such as arguments with friends and family). But did you know that depression also causes physical symptoms? Slow movement, unexplained aches and flu-like symptoms, and a loss of sex-drive are all found in individuals with depression.

Most people, however, fail to realize the profound effect that depression can have on your appetite. When you're experiencing bouts of depression, your eating habits often change significantly and, with them, your weight.

Here we explore why individuals with depression may under- or overeat, and how doing so may impact on the condition, and on your health.

Under-Eating

Most common with depression is the tendency to under-eat. When you are first depressed, you may find that you can't be bothered cooking for yourself, let alone eating, and so you eat less and may start losing weight. Loss of appetite is partly caused by the feelings of hopelessness and anxiety that proliferate during depression. These feelings cause stress, and when stressed you may not want to eat.

Because you don't really want food, you begin skipping meals. Rather than eating a full meal, you may eat something simple and convenient (such as a slice of bread and an apple). By not cooking a nutritionally-balanced meal, you may soon find yourself experiencing nutritional deficiencies.

Under-eating is one of the worst things an individual with depression can do. Mood is badly affected when you're not eating a healthy, balanced diet. When you eat a poor diet, you will often lack important, brain-enhancing nutrients that not only enhance health, but also enhance mood by making you less irritable and more content.

Oats, for example, are something you might not want to cook when you feel depressed, but are well-worth taking the time to make, as they contain mood-boosting, agitation-busting tryptophan (an essential amino-acid that aids Serotonin production).

READ Good Mood Food: Boosting Serotonin Through Diet

Under-eaters often panic more easily. This is due to the body becoming stressed due to not getting the essential nutrients it needs to be healthy. Thus the body feels starved and goes into a state of hyper-arousal. This could mean that you start reacting more strongly than you would ordinarily do. You could even begin having panic attacks.

Thus, while under-eating could begin as a symptom of your depression, it could very easily end up aggravation your symptoms and worsening your depression.

Next, we'll be covering the less-usual (but no less severe) tendency towards overeating.

Overeating And What to Do Next

Overeating

Less common than under-eating, but still very common in individuals with depression is the tendency to overeat. Individuals with depression tend to self-medicate, often using over-the-counter medication or alcohol. The overeater self-medicates with food.

If you have depression, you may crave carbohydrate-rich food such as pasta, or ice-cream and cakes. You may find yourself buying in large amounts of sweet starches that you never bought before (like cookies). That is because foods that are high in carbs and sugar trigger the release of our mood-boosting hormone-friend, Serotonin.

If you have depression, you may find that you feel calmer and content after you've eaten a sweet, starchy snack. That's because the individual with depression eats to beat their negative feelings, and to feel (if only for a short time) safe, and happy, and loved. Like the under-eater, this will soon trap you into a vicious cycle.

By gorging on high-sugar foods, you will create a situation where your body becomes used to running on very high levels of blood sugar. As soon as your blood sugar levels drop, you will find yourself craving a sweet, starchy fix to raise them to an artificially high level again. Your body doesn't need the food, but your mind craves it. You crave the security that can come only with a packet of potato chips.

There are other dangers for the overeater. Due to artificially raising your blood sugar levels continuously, if you overeat, you are at risk of diabetes, and the potential for excessive weight gain leaves you at risk for dangerous heart disease.

I have depression. What do I do now?

If you are experiencing depression, whether you are under- or overeating, you need help. You should speak to your primary care physician. They will be able to refer you to a qualified therapist. It may also be necessary to prescribe an antidepressant medication, as the most effective treatments for depression usually include a combination of an antidepressant medication and therapy (typically Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, although other types may help you).

Only when you are feeling better about yourself can you make lasting changes to your diet.

In the meantime, take care of yourself

• Distract yourself: If you think you are hungry, try distracting your mind, and your body. Instead of a sweet snack, try a soothing hot drink; watch a funny film; walk the dog around the park; close the curtains and dance to some music. Something to engage your mind and body could be al you need. Just 20 minutes of activity a day has been found to be very therapeutic for individuals with depression.
• Seek love elsewhere: If you think you're hungry, try doing something to feed your soul. Fill up your human need for affection by visiting a loved-one, or talking to a friend on the phone, not by eating another cookie.
• Eat a balanced diet: As we've discovered, depression can be aggravated by nutritional deficiencies, so make sure you have a diet full of carbohydrates, protein, dairy, fruit and vegetables. Also, have at least two portions of oily fish a week (e.g. salmon), as it's likely that the Omega-3 Fatty-Acids will help to tackle depression.

• Remember to love yourself: If you binge, don't give in to feelings of guilt. Depression can make problems seem bigger than they are, so break that cycle of negative thoughts immediately. Say, "I did it. I was unhappy. I'm going to move on". Then do. After that, anytime you catch yourself embarking on any negative or angry thought, softly say to yourself "Stop!", then distract yourself with an activity.

Facing your depression and changing your eating won't be easy, but it's necessary work that could greatly improve your quality of life. So be brave and book an appointment with your doctor today.

You owe it to yourself.