44. Your Brain on Food: How Your Diet Affects Your Mental Health - with Dr. Uma Naidoo

Origins

Dr. Uma Naidoo shares her journey into nutritional psychiatry, inspired by her upbringing in a large Indian family where food was central. She combined her passion for nutrition with psychiatry during her residency, recognizing the importance of lifestyle measures alongside medication 1. Dr. Naidoo highlights the gut-brain connection, explaining how the vagus nerve links the brain and gut, and the role of serotonin receptors in gut health 2.

If you're eating bad foods, your gut is disrupted, the bad bacteria flourish, the good bacteria aren't doing so well, you end up with an imbalance, and that imbalance leads initially to inflammation and potentially, over time, to a leaky gut.

--- Uma Naidoo

   

Clinical Practice

In her clinical practice, Dr. Naidoo integrates nutritional psychiatry to address both mental and physical symptoms. She often finds that patients with anxiety or depression also suffer from gut-related issues, emphasizing the importance of a holistic approach 3. She recommends specific foods like saffron for depression and anxiety, and highlights the benefits of a whole foods diet for mental health 4.

We know there's a biological, anatomical, biochemical relationship between the gut and the brain. It's linked by the vagus nerve.

--- Uma Naidoo

   

Research

Dr. Naidoo discusses the scientific research supporting nutritional psychiatry, noting the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids and turmeric for mood and anxiety 5. She also shares a case study of a patient who experienced anxiety after abruptly cutting out sugar, illustrating the importance of gradual dietary changes 6.

Omega-3 also helps anxiety. So it's a great food to incorporate in your diet if you have both symptoms of anxiety or depression.

--- Uma Naidoo