What Are Neurotransmitters And How Do They Affect Mental Health? Amino acid neurotransmitters are important for mental health and knowing which ones are out of balance is important for recovery from various mental health problems like depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and much more. There is no 100% reliable neurotransmitter test, however, being aware of the symptoms of […]
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How To Increase Serotonin Naturally Neurotransmitters are brain chemicals that help transmit information from one neuron to another. There are several types of neurotransmitters, each with their own functions. One neurotransmitter called serotonin is associated with mood, pain and gut function. Below are common symptoms associated with a deficiency in serotonin:Anger/irritabilityIncreased pain sensitivityCraving for sweets/sugarsDigestive […]
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7 Blood Tests You Must Get If You Suffer From Depression When people present with symptoms of depression, two treatments are most commonly recommended. These include psychological therapies (e.g., cognitive behaviour therapy) or antidepressant medication. These treatments are based on the theory that depression is caused by psychological factors (e.g., irrational beliefs, ineffective copings skills) […]
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Biochemical subtypes associated with depression, anxiety, behaviour disorders and schizophrenia The standard treatment approach for correcting biochemistry in a person suffering from a mental health problem such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, etc, comprises prescribing some form of medication (e.g, antidepressants). While this can be very helpful for a portion of people (approximately 30%) its effectiveness […]
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Environmental, physical, psychological, and nutritional causes of depression To adequately treat depression, it is important to identify what causes depression. There are several causes of depression including biological, psychological, lifestyle, environmental, and nutritional factors. Some of these are well-recognised by mental-health practitioners, while others are often overlooked and without adequate treatment will greatly influence the […]
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The Stress Response…and how it relates to the HPA Axis! Stress and the stress response mean different things to different people but it is often viewed in a negative light. However, when triggered at appropriate times, stress is certainly not a bad thing. In fact, it can have a number of positive effects in the body as […]
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The Gut-Brain Connection in Depression and Anxiety: An Overlooked Cause of Depression and Anxiety Research has confirmed that there is a ‘bi-directional’ relationship between the gut and brain. They both communicate with each other, and when there is a problem in this communication, depression and anxiety can occur. Unfortunately, the health of our gut and its impact […]
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The Relationship Between Inflammation and Depression Over the last few decades, it was commonly-believed that depression and anxiety was the result of disturbances in brain chemicals known as neurotransmitters. For example, neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine and GABA were believed to be low in people with depression and anxiety. While neurotransmitters are probably important, we […]
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