Low-Carb State of Mind - Psychology Today

[greenshamr]

Just wanted to share this article with ya'll....

I disagree...but tell me what you think, felt, noticed....


Low-Carb State of Mind
Date effective: December 22, 2006
Brenda Goodman
Content provided by Psychology Today


Do the chips that don't pass the lips of low-carb dieters weigh heavily on their shoulders instead? People who avoid certain foods or are reducing their food intake are famous for irritability, but many who are testing low-carbohydrate approaches like Atkins and the South Beach Diet are reporting unusually high feelings of anger, tension and depression. "It's called the "'Atkins attitude,' " says Judith Wurtman, director of the Women's Health Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Adara Weight Loss Center, both in Boston. "It's very well-documented."

Wurtman, who advocates a diet high in complex carbohydrates for weight loss and stress relief, says her studies on rats have shown a connection between a diet low in carbohydrates and low levels of serotonin--a neurotransmitter that promotes feelings of happiness and satisfaction. In her research, rats placed on a ketotic, or low-carbohydrate, diet for three weeks were found to have lower levels of serotonin in their brains. The same rats binged once starch was reintroduced into their diets.

Wurtman believes that same effect occurs in humans on low-carb diets and leads to pronounced feelings of depression and sadness, even rage. "People feel very angry, and their antidepressants don't work well, either," she says.

Granted, dieting isn't easy no matter how one does it, but many think low-carbohydrate approaches are particularly hard on your happiness. Wurtman goes so far as to call them dangerous for those who already struggle with depression or bipolar disorder.

Other researchers disagree. In fact, Wurtman's assertions are in direct contrast to what advocates of low-carbohydrate diets promise--an end to mood swings and fatigue. Indeed, many who have success on these diets say their moods have never been better.

"It's a very hard effect to sort out," says Frederick Samaha, chief of cardiology at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Philadelphia. In one study by Samaha, he compared a low-carbohydrate diet with a low-fat diet.

"We didn't notice any difference in mood between the two groups. What we found, overall, was that people [on either diet] felt good because they were losing weight and becoming healthier," Samaha says. "But there was a high drop-out rate, around 40 percent, and it may be that those folks left because they didn't see any improvement in their quality of life."

Other researchers believe a low-carb diet may have an adverse effect only on those prone to low moods. Philip Cowen, chief of psychiatry at Oxford University in the U.K., reported in a study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry that the mood problem with low-carb diets was measurable but mild in women fighting depression.

"We routinely use a low-carbohydrate diet, which does produce evidence of changes in brain-serotonin function," says Cowen. "In people with a history of depression--but not in those without--this diet lowers subjective ratings of "'happy' slightly."

So what is a low-carber to do? Robert Thayer, professor of psychology at California State University, Long Beach, and author of Calm Energy: How People Use Food and Exercise to Regulate Mood, says the best advice is to closely monitor mood after experimenting with food. "If you don't have enough energy to function effectively and meet the demands of your day, that's going to create tension."

[Rachel1]

I've been struggling with episodes of mild depression for years, mostly in the dark and gloomy months (which, where I live, is about nine months of the year - blechhh). This started well before low-carbing. While I still have "down" periods, I feel better overall about my appearance and health.

We all know the first few weeks of low-carbing often involves physical and emotional ickiness, the well-known "induction flu." The rat experiment lasted only three weeks. Also, humans are not rats.

Having said all that, sure, there are people who function best on levels of carbs higher than Atkins induction. Many have said so right here on this forum. The take-home message is to tweak the diet as needed. We all know that.

Rachel

[Nancy LC]

Isn't this the lady who wrote the book to push carbs for serotonin? Sounds like she is trying to generate some book sales.

[brobin]

Reading this makes me want to fly into a blind rage!!!!!

Sorry.. I was on carbs this weekend for Thanksgiving and the bloating has me in a foul mood.. I will be fine in 3 days. :)

[ValerieL]

Actually, the best thing I've found for depression is exercise. I've struggled on & off with depression for years, but since I've been exercising regularly, it's not a problem at all.

[Demokat]

If anything I feel MUCH less depressed and happier eating low carb and exercising. Obviously, this author is pushing the high-carb agenda.

[Ann1231]

If anything I feel MUCH less depressed and happier eating low carb and exercising. Obviously, this author is pushing the high-carb agenda.

ditto. I am no longer on anti-depressants, I'm calmer, much more content and I feel SO much better all the way around. With carbs, I get very irritable and feel like cr*p.

[time2doit]

I think I am much, much more emotionally stable on low-carb. That blood sugar drop was a real pissiness inducer for me. I have noticed, though, that sometimes large amounts of sugar alcohols will enrage me. Has to be lots, though.

[pennink]

Sounds like a ploy to push the high-carb woe... book's sake and all.

I've never felt happier. My low carb state of mind is more like, "WHOOOOOHOOOOOOOO look at all the food I can have AND lose weight!!!!!"

idiots. We're surrounded by idiots... that's where the low carb anger comes from... geesh.

[Rheneas]

I do tend to get angrier when low carbing.......with people who won't listen when I tell them that my WOE is fine for me, my kidneys are not about to explode, fat does not run in my veins and with those who tell me I am eating unhealthy when they are stuffing their face with crap. The sheer futility of speaking to people like that makes my blood boil.

[ElleH]

This article presented several sides of the argument. I'm not sure what the uproar is about.

I think there's a lot of truth to this article--at least for me. My long history of depression has not improved since I started low-carbing over 12 years ago, in fact my clinical depressions are closer together now (corresponding perfectly following 6-12 months LC eating) and deeper depressions than before I discovered LC.

However, eating higher carb activates cravings and weight gain, it's a hard situation all around.

[bike2work]

"It's called the "'Atkins attitude,' " says Judith Wurtman, director of the Women's Health Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Adara Weight Loss Center, both in Boston. "It's very well-documented."
Why couldn't she cite a specific study? I'd like to see if they had time to adjust or if the study was conducted in the first week of the diet. Or maybe "very well documented" means lots of hearsay.

Also,
many who are testing low-carbohydrate approaches like Atkins and the South Beach Diet
That's pretty non-specific. We don't really know what level of carbohydrate intake produced these results. We've seen other studies where people who claim to be following Atkins are really much closer to The Zone in their eating. Most of the studies I've seen are reduced carbohydrate rather than low carbohydrate and that leads to cravings and bingeing, suggestive of blood sugar anomalies.

Anyway, the worst of my depression has always been when I'm eating carbs. Eating low carb gives me enough energy to get up off the couch and live my life. Accomplishment is a good antidote to depression too. The diet Wurtman advocates leaves me feeling exhausted and unable to focus.

[bike2work]

This article presented several sides of the argument. I'm not sure what the uproar is about.

I don't think the uproar is about the article, but about Wurtman's position.

I hope you start to feel better soon, Elle. :there:

[mike_d]

Ah Wurtman at it again :yawn:

I haven't gone blind, passed out or had sugar rage from lack of carbohydrates in my diet.

[LessLiz]

Sameo, sameo so called health reporting. I sometimes wonder if these are the kinds of principles of medical reporting taught in journalism classes.

A great piece of medical journalism includes the following:

#1. A handful of studies * contradictory results = low carb bad (principle for more advanced, mathematically minded journalists only.)

#2. A handful of studies with contradictory results used to support a conclusion contradicted by most of the studies because it supports popular mythologies.

#3. A handful of studies with no indication of the methods used or the sample size, with one study being used to support a conclusion without any reasons given for this to have occurred (i.e. you are a journalist and should assume your readers are less intelligent than you and prefer to have you think for them).

#4. A rodent psychology study used to explain human psychology is always valid because human emotions are easily as simple as those found in rodentia.

#5. A rodent study and personal opinion is always better than numerous human studies that contradict the same, and conclusions are best based on this combination.

[FenwayGuy]

I've been struggling with episodes of mild depression for years, mostly in the dark and gloomy months (which, where I live, is about nine months of the year - blechhh). This started well before low-carbing. While I still have "down" periods, I feel better overall about my appearance and health.

We all know the first few weeks of low-carbing often involves physical and emotional ickiness, the well-known "induction flu." The rat experiment lasted only three weeks. Also, humans are not rats.

Having said all that, sure, there are people who function best on levels of carbs higher than Atkins induction. Many have said so right here on this forum. The take-home message is to tweak the diet as needed. We all know that.

Rachel

Oh come on now, it was fairly nice yesterday in Vancouver ;) .

I am averaging 60-70 grams of carbs a day at this point (when I do not go off the rails once in a while still) and have never felt better. Too much energy to feel down in the dumps, a digestive system now working the way it should, etc, etc,

I will respectfully disagree with this lady. I actually have no idea who she is, but yeah, she appears to pushing an agenda.

[greenshamr]

Wow! When I posted this article this morning I had no idea it would get such a reaction! Thanks for all the posts!

I tend to disagree with the article and I can only relate to my personal experience. When I consume high amounts of carbs..I feel awful! When I stick with LC'ing...I always feel better and my mood/disposition is much more pleasant because I'm not dealing with headaches, gas, cramps...etc! Simply stated, if I feel good physically...my mood tends to match that of my overall health.

I work in the health industry and do a lot of research so articles like this come up frequently...I'll be sure to share when interesting things come up regarding LC'ing. I was thrilled on Friday when I attended a health care symposium and a panel of doctors admitted that Low Fat/Low Cal foods are what caused the obesity epidemic. Of course they didn't say "Eat LC" but they did say to maintain a diet of unprocessed foods which LC'ing falls into IMHO.

Thanks ya'll for your input! You made it an interesting thread!

[kyrasdad]

Did she not consider that people who are obese might tend to be depressed or irritable, anyway? What is the "well documented" part? What documentation? I have heard anecdotal stories about this, but most of those ended with "it went away after a while", meaning not long into induction.

It's not well documented, or well thought out. Does she mean to say the entire human race was irritable and depressed until Frito-Lay came along to save us? Seriously?

[Rachel1]

Does she mean to say the entire human race was irritable and depressed until Frito-Lay came along to save us? Seriously?

Might explain the Inquisition.

Rachel

[Mossling]

Might explain the Inquisition.

Rachel

And the Crusades. (No, wait! That was "Kill Infidels and Win Valuable Prizes!")
:lol:

[oakdryad]

Wurtman, who advocates a diet high in complex carbohydrates for weight loss and stress relief, says her studies on rats have shown a connection between a diet low in carbohydrates and low levels of serotonin--a neurotransmitter that promotes feelings of happiness and satisfaction. In her research, rats placed on a ketotic, or low-carbohydrate, diet for three weeks were found to have lower levels of serotonin in their brains. The same rats binged once starch was reintroduced into their diets.

Huh. The rats binged when starch was re-introduced into their diets. Doesn't that suggest to anyone else that just maybe the starch is functioning like a drug?

I know that when I eat higher carb, I get into a cycle of binging and crashing blood sugar -- and I feel logy, depressed, achy and angry. And I have cravings almost non-stop.

I restarted LC in August, and then about three weeks later I saw a friend I hadn't seen for a while. She commented NOT just on the weight loss, but also on the fact that I had more energy and was happier than she'd seen me in a long time (actually since the last time I'd given LC a serious chance).

I suspect that as with so many things, people's responses will vary, but I function ever so much better on LC...and even though I have a high stress job and am frequently cranky, when I'm eating LC it's more a re-active cranky (i.e., I deal with high levels of stupid and get pissy about the stupid) rather than it being a ground state of being (like when I'm eating lots of starch and sugar).

I think I'll give this *research* a pass.

[greenshamr]

[QUOTE=oakdryad]Huh. The rats binged when starch was re-introduced into their diets. Doesn't that suggest to anyone else that just maybe the starch is functioning like a drug?


I suspect that as with so many things, people's responses will vary, but I function ever so much better on LC...
QUOTE]


I totally agree and from reading the boards --I have found that most people ditto that!

[Kary]

The "Atkins Attitude" eh? Could they possibly be mistaking the re-emergence of self esteem as "attitude"? It is probably somewhat surprising to family members and friends when the formerly passive, "sure use me as a doormat, I'm fat so obviously I'm not as good as you" person starts to express opinions and says no to others demands. Bit of a shocker really when people insist on changing and growing :) .

[renegadiab]

I was feeling tired and down, despite being treated for sleep apnea. My sleep doctor suspected depression. No one can blame it on low carb, because I don't feel any worse than I did before. Then I heard that low testosterone can cause depression, fatigue, irritability, etc. in men. I had my testosterone checked and it was boarderline low. Now I'm on testosterone replacement and feeling better. There are other causes for depression, so don't blame low carb. Overall, I'm feeling much better on low carb than I did before.

[bike2work]

An article in another current thread (here: http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=351162 ) says that inflammation is linked to clinical depression (among other things). Inflammation is caused by several things, including eating grains.

[renie]

I find myself that I don't fly off the handle anymore, I'm not irritable b/c I'm no longer hungry :)

[godsbelove]

I'm actually happier, more focused, and just FULL of life while eating the low carb way ! I guess it varies from person to person.

[tom sawyer]

I thought a craving for carbs was a common symptom of bipolar disorder. I kind of figured it was a person either wanting the high/low of the carb intake, or that they were using the carbs to counter-act their own high/low states.

Without the highs and lows of carb intake, people may be cranky for quite some time. Its like any other drug withdrawal, you have the short-term physical withdrawal and the much longer psychological issues of missing what you can no longer have.

If the above is an accurate depiction of what is going on, I think blaming low carb for these feelings is in error. Its like blaming a lack of drugs for the effects of withdrawal. Sure, its the reason, but its not the problem.

[tom sawyer]

I do find myself getting cranky before a meal, even after being on LC for over three years. I don't know if its related to low blood sugar, one would think not. But I have noticed it, and how I quickly develop a better attitude after I've eaten. My realization of this correlation has helped me to deal with the anger better, either by recognizing I'm being pissy because I'm hungry and reasoning through it, and/or by knowing when I need to eat something.

[oakdryad]

I do find myself getting cranky before a meal, even after being on LC for over three years. I don't know if its related to low blood sugar, one would think not. But I have noticed it, and how I quickly develop a better attitude after I've eaten. My realization of this correlation has helped me to deal with the anger better, either by recognizing I'm being pissy because I'm hungry and reasoning through it, and/or by knowing when I need to eat something.

oh, yeah. even eating LC, if I've gone too long without eating my crankiness factor definitely goes up a notch. People I work with know me well enough to say *hey, when was the last time you ate?* if my response is out of proportion cranky. :)

I've also programmed my Outlook at work to remind me to eat at certain times of the day. I find that really helps.

[waywardsis]

My depression went away totally after I stopped eating anything with gluten in it - wheat and most other grains. Overall, I do feel more peaceful and happy when I'm really low carb, lots of meat and fat.

I wonder...maybe some people feel depressed, etc bc they're withdrawing from the opiate effect of grains?

[teaser]

Maybe the rats were no longer serotonin-resistant. Maybe they were happy with less serotonin. Did anyone think to ask them?

[LCivility]

Yeah, withdrawal will affect mood alright. I still fight it after I slip up and eat almost anything with carbs. My body just can't tolerate any more. After way too many years in the Far North I realized that I needed more vitamin D3. I have been taking about 4,000 units daily through the long winters and am cheerful all the time now. Some D3 may help others who have posted, too. I hope so.

[oakdryad]

Yeah, withdrawal will affect mood alright. I still fight it after I slip up and eat almost anything with carbs. My body just can't tolerate any more. After way too many years in the Far North I realized that I needed more vitamin D3. I have been taking about 4,000 units daily through the long winters and am cheerful all the time now. Some D3 may help others who have posted, too. I hope so.

I read about Zuleika's Vitamin D experiment last week and was intrigued. I live in MN, and we're already starting our winter pattern...short, grey days. So this past weekend I started supplementing the D3, and am now searching for the therapeutic dose. :)

However, I noticed that I've started sleeping better. I went to bed last night and had no trouble falling asleep...and I slept until 15 minutes before my alarm went off. Woo Hoo! That's pretty unusual. So I'm going to keep track of that and see how it goes.

[LCivility]

The Canadian Health Authority recommends 1,000 units daily for all adults. This is based on the US study that showed a 64% reduction in cancer in women taking that amount for 7 years.

The researchers then took another look at their data and speculated that even tho the subjects were disease free at the beginning of the study, some of them could have already had cancers that were too small to detect. So they set aside their first two years of data and just analyzed the last 5 years of the study. The cancer prevention rate during this period was 77%.

There have been a number of studies trying to verify the claim the we need more fruits and vegs or fiber to avoid cancer or disease. None of them have shown any beneficial effect from those interventions. The Womens Health Initiative, released Feb of 07 is the latest example.

This supplement, vitamin D3, works spectacularly. I told my GP about this study and she is now taking it herself and recommending D3 to her patients as well.