freemonkey

Yesterday, I'm listening to my local NPR station and they are interviewing an MD who's done a clinical study on a "syndrome" that seems to affect a great many women, (and men to a lesser extent). They call it Body Blues. The list of symptoms include low energy, craving carbs late in the day, mild depressions, mild anxiety, difficulty focusing and remembering things. I thought, "hey, that's me!"

She says that this is due to lower levels of seritonin (no surprise). But she also says that this can be treated without the drugs normally used.

Apparently, treatment is fairly simple: Get more natural sunlight every day, combined with light exercise (brisk 20 minute walk) and a cocktail of some B vitamins, a D vitamin and Selenium.

This actually seems like common sense to me, but because I'd like for it to work, maybe I'm expecting more than it can actually deliver.

Any thoughts?

aofl

Hmm, take a walk in fresh air and sunshine and take vitamins.

Nope. Can't see how that can possibly be any good for a person.

freemonkey

Well, I know that stuff is just common sense. My questions, I guess, are about that specific vitamin combination.

One of the last sane

Both vitamin D and selenium are toxic in excess, so check out your actual requirements.

southernhybrid

If you take the brisk daily walk outside, why would you need to take the extra D? Personally, I think a 20-30 minute brisk walk helps mild depression, as well as mild anxiety while also improving metabolism. Take a multi vitamin if you think it might help. I always feel much better when I walk everyday. I don't think having a small serving of complex carbs before bedtime is such a bad idea.

I have found that when I spend too much time surfing the Internet I have difficulty concentrating but I haven't been able to stop my addiction long enough to prove it.

Arrowman

Er - What drugs are "normally used" to treat this alleged "syndrome"?

I've had those symptoms. They tend to go away when I eat right, get enough sleep and walk the dog.

I wonder at the credibility of doctors (forgive me, but usually American doctors) who conduct "clinical studies" on what is essentially tiredness brought on through inadequate diet and exercise, give it a catchy name like "Body Blues" and then proclaim that the answer lies (partly) in a particular combination of vitamin supplements.

Still, I suppose it sells books.

[ June 24, 2002: Message edited by: Arrowman ]</p>

freemonkey

Anti-depressants

buddhagrrl

Hi freemonkey~

Like some of the other respondents on this list, I'm loathe to trust what mainstream doctors suggest to treat ailments usually cooked up to sell some type of drug or another. (Let's remember that the medical establishment has a long and heinous history of concocting ailments for women, PMS for example [see Ehrenrich and English, "For Her Own Good: 150 Years of Experts' Advice to Women"].)

That being said, I'm a fan of Dr. Andrew Weil (author of "Spontaneous Healing" and "Heal Yourself"), who is an advocate of natural treatments of just about anything. For depression, he suggests, first and foremost, exercise. Next, he recommends a diet high in carbs and low in fat (limited protein and dairy), plus B vitamins.

Making sure you're getting all the vitamins you need is imperative. Deficiencies in everything from calcium to folic acid can lead to depression, but a good multivitamin (your local natural foods store probably has a house brand that's not too expensive) should give you the appropriate cocktail of nutrients you need. If you're really adventuresome, you could get a bottle of amino acids (liquid form) to sprinkle over your food to add some nutritional "oomph" to your intake.

So, in summary, I pretty much agree with what the doctor said, but that's because this particular approach to battling the blues has worked for me on a number of occasions.

freemonkey

My sentiments, too, buddhagrrl. I have not read that book, but I am familiar with many of the "cures" for "women's ailments".

Mad Kally

Freemonkey,
Please just buy some Centrum vitamins or something similar at the grocery store. Stay away from those health food stores! The uneducated clerks there will tell you they have a remedy for cancer and every other bizzare claim you can dream of..