How are ye doing, guys!
Time for part 3 of this series in which I explain why it's important to adopt a healthy
diet, now, even if you're young and healthy.
In part 2 of this series I focused on the impact of diet on our cardiovascular system,
and how that can go on to cause disease in our 20s, in our childhood and even while we
are still in the womb.
Another function of the body hugely impacted on by our diet, and an area that is the focus
of massive amounts of research at the moment is our digestive tract and the intestinal
microbiome.
What we eat confers a selective pressure on our bacterial symbionts, and eating choline-
and carnitine-rich foods like meat, dairy, eggs and seafood or foods that these compounds
are artificially added to, fosters the growth of bacteria that metabolise these compounds
into what eventually becomes trimethylamine N-oxide, a compound that further increases
cardiovascular disease risk.
Conversely however, consumption of resistant starch and fibre found in whole plant foods
encourages the growth of bacteria that metabolise these nutrients to short-chain fatty acids,
which are now regarded as an essential part of bowel function - these short-chain fatty
acids feed our colonic epithelium and play a vital role in dampening down bowel inflammation.
But consumption of animal protein encourages the growth of bacteria that metabolise the
protein to hydrogen sulfide and other toxic substances that appear to block the action
of these short-chain fatty acids in addition to being directly toxic, allowing inflammation
to progress unchecked - a critical step in the aetiology of inflammatory bowel disease,
most cases of which are diagnosed before age 35.
Amazingly, these short-chain fatty acids can even bind to certain cell surface receptors
to help regulate our metabolism and promote satiety, potentially helping us maintain a
healthy weight.
So even the intestinal microbiota of a seemingly "healthy" person eating a standard Western
diet may not be healthy at all, but instead increases the risk of a variety of diseases
through these and other mechanisms and is set up to be disease-causing over time.
The standard Western diet is acid-forming in our body.
In particular, animal-derived protein seems to be primarily responsible due to it's specific
amino acid profile.
Over time this acid excess, even when only moderate, leads to deregulation of metabolism
and the onset or worsening of chronic disturbances.
One of these disturbances is seen in our muscles - diet-induced acidosis is likely to induce
or worsen muscle wasting, on top of the performance-killing effects of advanced glycation end-products
found in fried foods and animal products, as I discussed in part 1 of this series.
Not great for gains!
Additionally, some evidence suggests that this acid formation may enhance bone loss,
although this is not as conclusive.
This provides another potential mechanism by which a plant-based diet confers performance-enhancing
benefits.
No wonder more and more athletes are tapping into this natural, legal method of enhancing
sports performance.
Lower-back pain is the second leading cause of disability Worldwide as I discussed in
part 2, but another cause takes the top spot.
A cause that you may be one of the over 300 million people Worldwide suffering with today.
Depression.
The current pharmacologically-focused model of Psychiatry has only achieved modest benefits
in addressing the burden of poor mental health Worldwide, and it is becoming clear that nutrition
is as important to Psychiatry as it is to Cardiology, Endocrinology or Gastroenterology.
Given the immense burden of mental disorders, diet and nutrition offer key modifiable risk
factors, such that nutritional Medicine should now be considered as a mainstream element
of Psychiatric practice.
Evidence from different types of research including clinical trials suggests dietary
patterns and specific dietary factors may influence the risk for depression.
The questions are, which dietary elements, and why?
The standard Western diet is acid-forming as we have discussed, but it is also well-known
to cause inflammation, and indeed this chronic, low-grade inflammation is one of the mechanisms
by which it exerts it's causative effects in a diverse range of diseases, including
depression.
While the elements of a standard Western diet that cause inflammation and how they do so
would require several seperate videos to explore, the elements that appear to be of special
importance in depression include refined carbohydrates, omega-6 fatty acids found in refined oils
and especially arachidonic acid, which like cholesterol is found only in animal products,
and saturated and trans fats, also found mostly in animal products and processed foods.
Saturated fat also increases intestinal permeability to the endotoxins produced by bacteria found
in meat, which are also pro-inflammatory.
The obvious solution is to cut out these pro-inflammatory foods.
However, we can also fight this inflammation with antioxidants, which thankfully are plentiful
in whole, plant foods!
Additionally, other nutrients found in abundance in plants, such as folate, magnesium, and
fibre, also appear to be protective against depression.
Long-chain omega-3s may also play a role due to their potential to reduce inflammation
and through other mechanisms.
These authors recommend low-mercury seafood for pregnant women to limit exposure of the
fetus to brain-damaging pollution like heavy metals and PCBs, but whether you are carrying
a fetus or not, why accept any of this toxic pollution or any of the other baggage like
choline and animal protein that comes with seafood at all, when you can get your long-chain
omega-3s from a guaranteed contamination-free source: Golden algae supplements.
This is the one I am currently taking myself!
Overall, a traditional whole food diet is associated with more optimal brain function
through multiple pathways.
But we need to both reduce consumption of processed foods and animal products AND increase
our consumption of whole, plant foods - both are independently associated with a reduced
risk of depression.
Additionally, these dietary changes need to be implemented as early in life as we can,
even before birth if possible like we have seen with atherosclerosis, obesity and immunity.
It is also important to remember that dietary protection from depression is likely due to
the synergistic effect of elements of a healthy diet pattern, rather than any isolated nutrients
or foods.
The authors of these dietary recommendations relied heavily on observational data and animal
experiments to form their recommendations and acknowledged that rigorous randomised
controlled trials are required to confirm causality...and that's just what they did!
A randomised controlled trial of dietary improvements for adults with major depression - the 'SMILES'
trial, in which participants in the intervention arm were encouraged to increase their consumption
of foods associated with lower risk of depression, whilst restricting processed foods and animal
products - they still included a small amount to make the diet more palatable and easy to
follow, and it was also intended to not cause any weight loss to confound the results.
Despite the relatively modest improvements made to diet, significant differences were
observed in three separate measures of depressive symptoms, giving us an insight into the power
of diet in both preventing and treating depression.
This was the first randomised controlled trial to ask the question "if I improve my diet,
will my mental health improve?", and while the researchers advised caution given the
preliminary nature of this study, their results suggested that dietary improvements may provide
an efficacous treatment strategy for depression.
Just think how good you'd feel eating 100% plant-based!
And indeed, you need only look at the happy, healthy people that have changed their lives
with a plant-based diet and taken to YouTube to share their transformations and stories
with the World, and this effect becomes abundantly clear!
In summary, with all of these effects in mind it's no wonder why so many people feel so
much healthier after adopting a plant-based diet.
You don't realise you're in a constant state of low-grade sickness until you release yourself
from it with real food and proper nutrition.
Contrary to popular belief, most people report an improvement in quality of life and satisfaction
when cleaning up their diet.
Give it a go, and trust me, you'll feel amazing like me and all the other people that have
taken the leap!
Thanks for watching!
If you have any questions or comments leave them in the comment section below and I'll
get back to you.
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Sláinte!