scholarly journals Diet, Stress and Mental Health

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 2428 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Douglas Bremner ◽  
Kasra Moazzami ◽  
Matthew T. Wittbrodt ◽  
Jonathon A. Nye ◽  
Bruno B. Lima ◽  
...  

Introduction: There has long been an interest in the effects of diet on mental health, and the interaction of the two with stress; however, the nature of these relationships is not well understood. Although associations between diet, obesity and the related metabolic syndrome (MetS), stress, and mental disorders exist, causal pathways have not been established. Methods: We reviewed the literature on the relationship between diet, stress, obesity and psychiatric disorders related to stress. Results: Diet and obesity can affect mood through direct effects, or stress-related mental disorders could lead to changes in diet habits that affect weight. Alternatively, common factors such as stress or predisposition could lead to both obesity and stress-related mental disorders, such as depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Specific aspects of diet can lead to acute changes in mood as well as stimulate inflammation, which has led to efforts to assess polyunsaturated fats (PUFA) as a treatment for depression. Bidirectional relationships between these different factors are also likely. Finally, there has been increased attention recently on the relationship between the gut and the brain, with the realization that the gut microbiome has an influence on brain function and probably also mood and behavior, introducing another way diet can influence mental health and disorders. Brain areas and neurotransmitters and neuropeptides that are involved in both mood and appetite likely play a role in mediating this relationship. Conclusions: Understanding the relationship between diet, stress and mood and behavior could have important implications for the treatment of both stress-related mental disorders and obesity.

2012 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sven Oskarsson ◽  
Christopher Dawes ◽  
Magnus Johannesson ◽  
Patrik K. E. Magnusson

Recent studies have shown that trusting attitudes and behavior are biologically influenced. Focusing on the classic trust game, it has been demonstrated that oxytocin increases trust and that humans are endowed with genetic variation that influences their behavior in the game. Moreover, several studies have shown that a large share of the variation in survey responses to trust items is accounted for by an additive genetic component. Against this backdrop, this article makes two important contributions. First, utilizing a unique sample of more than 2,000 complete Swedish twin pairs, we provide further evidence of the heritability of social trust. Our estimates of the additive genetic component in social trust were consistent across the sexes – .33 for males and .39 for females – and are similar to the results reported in earlier studies. Secondly, we show that social trust is phenotypically related to three psychological traits – extraversion, personal control, and intelligence – and that genetic factors account for most of these correlations. Jointly, these psychological factors share around 30% of the genetic influence on social trust both for males and females. Future studies should further explore the possible causal pathways between genes and trust using panel data on both psychological traits and social trust.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dr. Gopal Chandra Mahakud ◽  
Ritika Yadav

The concept of mental health comprised to the health conditions of people without suffering any mental or psychological problem such as stress, depression, anxiety and other form of psychic disorders. In this regard it can be said that no one is free from and psychological, psycho-physical and psycho-social disorders from which we can derive that no one mentally healthy. But the concept of mental health defined free from the disorders those are prolonged and panic in nature. As the concept of mental health is subjective in nature, it varies from person to person. Besides free from the disorders, a person should pose some of the other positive characteristics to deal with the society effectively. Marry (1958) stated that, a person can be considered mentally healthy with the following characteristics such as (a) Positive attitudes toward himself/herself; (b) Realization of own potentialities through action; (c); Unification of in personality; (d) Degree of independence of social influences; (e) observations of the world around; and (f) Positive adapts to everyday life. Briefly, it can be said that positive mental health of the person make able to an individual to stand on his own two feet without making undue demands or impositions of others. In this regard the role of happiness in day to day life can make the individual more skilled to fight with different mental disorders. The present article is intended to find out the effects of happiness in day to day life in a social situation to deal with different mental disorders to make the individual mentally healthy and prosperous in life.


2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 694-701
Author(s):  
Michael J. Vitacco ◽  
Alynda M. Randolph ◽  
Rebecca J. Nelson Aguiar ◽  
Megan L. Porter Staats

AbstractNeuroimaging offers great potential to clinicians and researchers for a host of mental and physical conditions. The use of imaging has been trumpeted for forensic psychiatric and psychological evaluations to allow greater insight into the relationship between the brain and behavior. The results of imaging certainly can be used to inform clinical diagnoses; however, there continue to be limitations in using neuroimaging for insanity cases due to limited scientific backing for how neuroimaging can inform retrospective evaluations of mental state. In making this case, this paper reviews the history of the insanity defense and explains how the use of neuroimaging is not an effective way of improving the reliability of insanity defense evaluations.


Author(s):  
Kathleen Taylor

Would everyone get dementia if we lived long enough? ‘Risk factors’ focuses on the genetic, environmental, and physiological factors that makes dementia more or less likely to affect us. The media often distorts scientific findings with false correlations. We must be aware of these ourselves, particularly in relation to cause and effect; a factor that we may see as a cause of dementia might be a symptom. Risk factors include age, overall poor physical and mental health, blood sugar, blood and brain function, inflammation, and not using the brain. Many of these can be modified, even the effects of ageing, but there is no single cause or one-size-fits-all solution.


2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 315-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian-Hua Ren ◽  
Chung-Lim Vico Chiang ◽  
Xiao-Lian Jiang ◽  
Bi-Ru Luo ◽  
Xing-Hui Liu ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectiveThe aim of this review was to systematically search and critique relevant literature on the potential psychological impact of earthquakes on peripartum women to synthesize existing knowledge for further action.MethodsA search through 5 databases was conducted for relevant publications in English, and the results were screened through a set of inclusion and exclusion processes.ResultsEight articles were included. Depression and posttraumatic stress disorder were the most often reported mental disorders. Some factors (eg, family relationships and social support) were associated with mental disorders suffered by peripartum women after earthquakes. An assessment of the quality of the studies showed that most did not have high levels of evidence because of their cross-sectional design and limitations.ConclusionsAmong the factors that influenced the mental health of pregnant and postpartum women after earthquakes, family function appears to be one of the most important and deserves further exploration. Other mental health conditions such as minor psychiatric disorders should also be studied for their relationship with disasters and pregnancy. Well-designed studies are needed to enable a better understanding of the relationship between earthquakes and the mental disorders of peripartum women so that the most appropriate interventions can be proposed. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2014;0:1–11)


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Jorien L. Treur ◽  
Marcus R. Munafò ◽  
Emma Logtenberg ◽  
Reinout W. Wiers ◽  
Karin J. H. Verweij

Abstract Background Poor mental health has consistently been associated with substance use (smoking, alcohol drinking, cannabis use, and consumption of caffeinated drinks). To properly inform public health policy it is crucial to understand the mechanisms underlying these associations, and most importantly, whether or not they are causal. Methods In this pre-registered systematic review, we assessed the evidence for causal relationships between mental health and substance use from Mendelian randomization (MR) studies, following PRISMA. We rated the quality of included studies using a scoring system that incorporates important indices of quality, such as the quality of phenotype measurement, instrument strength, and use of sensitivity methods. Results Sixty-three studies were included for qualitative synthesis. The final quality rating was ‘−’ for 16 studies, ‘– +’ for 37 studies, and ‘+’for 10 studies. There was robust evidence that higher educational attainment decreases smoking and that there is a bi-directional, increasing relationship between smoking and (symptoms of) mental disorders. Another robust finding was that higher educational attainment increases alcohol use frequency, but decreases binge-drinking and alcohol use problems, and that mental disorders causally lead to more alcohol drinking without evidence for the reverse. Conclusions The current MR literature increases our understanding of the relationship between mental health and substance use. Bi-directional causal relationships are indicated, especially for smoking, providing further incentive to strengthen public health efforts to decrease substance use. Future MR studies should make use of large(r) samples in combination with detailed phenotypes, a wide range of sensitivity methods, and triangulate with other research methods.


2009 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 449-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barış Yeşilyurt ◽  
Kevin Whittingstall ◽  
Kâmil Uğurbil ◽  
Nikos K Logothetis ◽  
Kâmil Uludağ

There is currently a great interest to combine electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study brain function. Earlier studies have shown different EEG components to correlate well with the fMRI signal arguing for a complex relationship between both measurements. In this study, using separate EEG and fMRI measurements, we show that (1) 0.1 ms visual stimulation evokes detectable hemodynamic and visual-evoked potential (VEP) responses, (2) the negative VEP deflection at ∼80 ms (N2) co-varies with stimulus duration/intensity such as with blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) response; the positive deflection at ∼120 ms (P2) does not, and (3) although the N2 VEP–BOLD relationship is approximately linear, deviation is evident at the limit of zero N2 VEP. The latter finding argues that, although EEG and fMRI measurements can co-vary, they reflect partially independent processes in the brain tissue. Finally, it is shown that the stimulus-induced impulse response function (IRF) at 0.1 ms and the intrinsic IRF during rest have different temporal dynamics, possibly due to predominance of neuromodulation during rest as compared with neurotransmission during stimulation. These results extend earlier findings regarding VEP–BOLD coupling and highlight the component- and context-dependency of the relationship between evoked potentials and hemodynamic responses.


2010 ◽  
Vol 196 (3) ◽  
pp. 192-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madhabika B. Nayak ◽  
Vikram Patel ◽  
Jason C. Bond ◽  
Thomas K. Greenfield

BackgroundThe relationship between partner alcohol use and violence as risk factors for poor mental health in women is unclear.AimsTo describe partner-related and other psychosocial risk factors for common mental disorders in women and examine interrelationships between these factors.MethodData are reported on 821 women aged 18–49 years from a larger population study in north Goa, India. Logistic regression models evaluated the risks for women's common mental disorders and tested for mediation effects in the relationship between partner alcohol use and these disorders.ResultsExcessive partner alcohol use increased the risk for common mental disorders two- to threefold. Partner violence and alcohol-related problems each partially mediated the association between partner excessive alcohol use and these mental disorders. Women's own violence-related attitudes were also independently associated with them.ConclusionsPartner alcohol use, partner violence and women's violence-related attitudes must be addressed to prevent and treat common mental disorders in women.


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