Mood is an emotional mental state that can change rapidly as well as over long periods of time. How one experiences their mood depends on both external and internal factors. Depression, anxiety, low energy, lack of focus, and decreased motivation are some of the different manifestations of maladaptive mood and mental health changes.
External factors that can impact mood often involve situational stressors related to work, family, finances and more, while internal factors involve the body’s physiological processes such as fluctuations or deficits in nutrients, hormones, neurotransmitters, and inflammation.
Improving Your Mood
Supporting dysfunctions of the physiology can lead to better success when trying to manage external stressors.
B vitamins are a well-studied group that play key roles in the body. B vitamins are involved in cellular processes such as the methionine, folate and other detoxification cycles. They are also linked to overall brain health, cellular energy production, and the clearance of homocysteine, a marker of inflammation.
The synthesis of dopamine and serotonin, two neurotransmitters directly tied to the regulation of mood, are also dependent on adequate levels of B vitamins. GABA is a neurotransmitter that also relies on B vitamins for production. Decreased GABA levels have been related to increased anxiety, poor sleep, and irritability.
It has been discovered that many in the population are lacking sufficient amounts of an enzyme that helps the body utilize a particular B vitamin (B9/folate) properly. MTHFR gene mutations can negatively impact the levels of the enzyme and have been implicated in various neurotransmitter deficiencies and mood disorders. These gene mutations and the mental health outcomes can be managed by adding adequate amounts of B vitamins and nutrients to the body so that the physiologic activities can proceed optimally.
Nutrition and Your Mood
The influence of nutrition on brain health has been considered a modifiable risk factor to prevent mood disorders and reduce depressive symptoms.
Observational studies have indicated a relationship between a poor diet and worse mental health. Most diets recommended for supporting mental health are similar in nature to The Mediterranean Diet in that they emphasize eating vegetables, protein, and healthy fats while minimizing proinflammatory and overly processed foods. Nutrient dense foods can supply the body with the vitamins and minerals necessary for making neurotransmitters, balancing hormones, and producing energy.
Supplementing for Improved Mood
Specific nutrient supplementation offers an alternative or adjunctive treatment to the current models of care aimed at optimizing mood.
Combinations of B vitamins (like Max B) are often found to be more effective in supplementation than singular B vitamins as they operate synergistically to carry out physiological processes in the body. There are also forms available that better support those with MTHFR mutations impacting vitamin B utilization.
Multivitamin/mineral support can be a powerful approach in supporting health, but it is always ideal to perform laboratory testing for these and other deficiencies to see a clear picture of the needs of the entire system.
To schedule an appointment to discuss your health concerns and which labs would be appropriate for testing, call our office at 952-949-0676.
