Gluten Sensitivity—A Common But Hidden Cause of Depression

You may not have realized this, but the gluten level in our grains is much higher today than it ever was before, thanks to various breeding techniques, and gluten can produce depression if you're sensitive to it. In such a case, the key is to remove gluten from your diet entirely. You cannot simply cut down. It must be removed completely. In Dr. Cass' practice, she's seen many people recover from severe depression when going gluten-free. “They start to feel better, their mood improves. The depression, it turned out was really due to gluten sensitivity. And you may ask, “How can gluten affect your brain like that? What is going on?” It has to do with inflammation,” she explains. “When gluten is inflaming your gut, it’s also inflaming your brain. Whatever’s going on in your gut is also going on in your brain. They’re very connected. The gut is the second brain. In fact, there are more serotonin receptors in the gut than anywhere else in the whole body. What I’m saying is, to summarize, it can be gluten sensitivity, thyroid imbalance, anemia, some kind of infection, Lyme disease, or chronic fatigue syndrome. Many medical issues will show up as depression. Depression is a symptom. Depression is not a condition. It’s not an illness; it’s simply a symptom... We have this three-pound sophisticated organ, the brain,, the control center of our whole body, and it does not get evaluated. No one looks at it. You have a symptom of depression, anxiety, or insomnia, and you get a prescription. That’s crazy. That is not good medicine. I’m saying I’m not even practicing alternative medicine; I’m practicing good medicine.” An important issue to address is junk food, which also promotes gut inflammation. So one of the first steps in addressing problems like anxiety and depression is to clean up your diet and address your gut health. Otherwise, you’ll have virtually no chance of getting healthy emotionally and mentally. As noted by Dr. Cass, there are times when temporary use of an antidepressant may be warranted, but such occasions are really quite rare. "I think that if we use the right doses of specific herbs and supplements, and get exactly the right diagnosis, the right biological, biochemical diagnosis, we probably won't need to use the meds," she says. High Dose Niacin for Psychosis Before he attended medical school, the mentor I mentioned, Dr. Abram Hoffer, received a PhD in biochemistry specializing in vitamin B research. So when he became director of the largest psychiatric hospital in Saskatchewan, he used his knowledge to research the administration of high doses of niacin (vitamin B3) to schizophrenic patients. Amazingly, he was able to get many of these very ill mental patients well enough to be released, get married and go on to lead normal lives. It turns out that pellagra, a disorder caused by niacin deficiency, produces the same psychiatric symptoms such as irrational anger, feelings of persecution, mania, and dementia that were found in many of these “ hopelessly incurable” patients. The cure was giving them the deficient B vitamin. Sadly, despite “performing miracles” on these hard-to-treat patients, Dr. Hoffer’s ground-breaking research was discredited by the American Psychiatric Association (APA), which was sadly more interested in promoting drugs. “As long as the patients continued to take their niacin, as well as vitamin C, they were OK. On the other hand, nowadays if psychotic patients stop their medication, they may or may not relapse. This brings up another issue; we’re seeing more relapses than we used to in psychosis and depression. It may be due to the meds. Before people were on meds to the extent that they are, they would have a depressive episode, [then] recover and not necessarily have another one...But we’re now having far more chronically relapsing depression and psychosis than before the introduction of medication. Moreover, we’re having more bipolar illness than we ever had. Something is going on. The medications are actually changing the brain. This is what is so scary. We have people who start off being depressed, being put on antidepressants for their depression, end up becoming bipolar, and then they’re placed on a whole cocktail of medications. And they’re kept on that cocktail indefinitely, which frequently ends their ability to function normally.” Top 10 Foods Highest in Vitamin B3 (Niacin) Vitamin B3, or Niacin, is an essential vitamin required for processing fat in the body, lowering cholesterol levels, and regulating blood sugar levels. A deficiency of niacin leads to pellagra, a condition characterized by diarrhea, dermatitis, dementia, inflammation of the mouth, amnesia, delirium, and if left untreated, death. Even a slight deficiency of niacin can lead to irritability, poor concentration, anxiety, fatigue, restlessness, apathy, and depression. Niacin, Vitamin B3, is a water soluble vitamin that is well regulated by the body, thus overdose is rare, and only occurs when niacin is taken in the form of supplements. An overdose of niacin is seen in the form of skin rashes (flush), dry skin, various digestive maladies. A long term overdose can lead to liver damage, elevated blood sugar levels and type II diabetes, as well as increased risk of birth defects. The current DV for Niacin (Vitamin B3) is 20mg. Below are the top 10 foods highest in vitamin B3 (Niacin) by common serving sizes, click here for high vitamin B3 (Niacin) foods by nutrient density, here for an extended list of vitamin B3 (Niacin) rich foods, and here for other foods high in vitamin B. #1: Fish (Cooked Yellowfin Tuna) Niacin in 100g Per 3oz (85g) Per ounce (28g) 22.1mg (110% DV) 18.8mg (94% DV) 6.3mg (31% DV) Other Fish High in Niacin (%DV per 3oz cooked): Skipjack Tuna (80%), Mackerel and Bluefin Tuna (45%), Wild Salmon (43%), Swordfish (39%), Farmed Salmon and Halibut (34%). Click to see complete nutrition facts. #2: Chicken & Turkey (Cooked Chicken Breast) Niacin in 100g Per 3oz (85g) Per 1/2 Breast (86g) 14.8mg (74% DV) 12.6mg (63% DV) 12.7mg (64% DV) Turkey is also High in Niacin: Roasted light meat contains (50% DV) per 3oz cooked. Click to see complete nutrition facts. #3: Pork (Cooked Lean Chop) Niacin in 100g Per 3oz (85g) Per chop (142g) 10.9mg (54% DV) 9.2mg (46% DV) 15.4mg (77% DV) Other Pork Cuts High in Niacin (%DV per 3oz cooked): Lean mince (44%), and Sirloin (35%). Click to see complete nutrition facts.