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More kids are showing up in ERs with anxiety, depression and other common mental health problems: why isn’t nutritional psychiatry part of the discussion?

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This article on NBC news, More kids are showing up in ERs (Emergency Rooms) with mental health crises, reports large increases across the country.

Dr. Anna Abrams, a pediatrician and researcher at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, finds the numbers both shocking and disheartening.

In the 5-year period from 2012 to 2016, when looking at ER mental health admissions in 45 children’s hospitals, they found the following increases:

  • 48 % in white children
  • 64% in non-Hispanic black children
  • 77% increase in Hispanic children

with about a 55 % increase overall.

Dr. Abrams and her colleagues presented these findings at the American Academy of Pediatrics conference in earlier this month.

Other than the very large increases, there is something else to be concerned about: the researchers say they aren’t sure why we are seeing these increases, speculating it “could be due to the scarcity of mental health professionals who can help children” and “People are also talking more openly about depression, anxiety and other common mental health problems and that may make parents feel more comfortable about seeking help for their children.”

While these are very valid reasons, we really do need to be incorporating nutritional psychiatry (a term coined in 2015) and functional medicine (Dr. Mark Hyman is one of the leaders in functional medicine) into these discussions, studies and conferences. Other than poor diets and nutritional deficiencies we need to be considering stress, exposure to toxins, poor gut health and increasing Wifi exposure, to name a few.

If we look at diet alone, there is so much recent research supporting the connection between diet and mental health. Here are two of many new studies:

Despite some contradictory results, overall there was support for an association between healthy dietary patterns or consumption of a high-quality diet and lower levels of depression or better mental health. Similarly, there was a relationship between unhealthy diet and consumption of low-quality diet and depression or poor mental health.

These data suggest that Iranian adolescent females eating a pro-inflammatory diet…had greater odds of having at least moderate depressive symptoms.

And here are just a few other factors to consider:

How do we get this nutritional psychiatry research and case studies into the hands of those who can change actually policy and the way mental health is addressed? I believe it has to be a grass-roots effort from the bottom up and I have these suggestions:

  • share this blog and the research with your doctor and/or allied health practitioner
  • reach out to study authors, journalists and legislators and share research and success stories like the above, and your own personal results
  • if you’re a practitioner, write blogs like this sharing the good results you see with your clients and patients – with researchers, journalists and legislators
  • share in forums and on social media, and with your neighbors, friends and family
  • comment on blogs like this – with success stories in your family or with clients – so more people get to see what really is working

Every little bit helps! I’d love to hear your ideas too.

Healthy travel food, first aid and avoiding anxiety and motion sickness when flying

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Earlier this week I flew from Sydney to Los Angeles for a very interesting health and nutrition event (more on that next week) and in today’s blog I share what I eat on a long international flight, plus what “first-aid” goodies I take in my carry-on luggage.

Even though I order gluten-free meals, I’m sure you’ll agree that the food on planes is pretty horrible and sometimes you can’t even be sure you’ll get your special meal.  One flight we ordered gluten-free only to be told on the plane that they don’t serve gluten-free meals! Fortunately we did a layover in Hawaii and were able to buy a salad and some fruit after a lot of searching but it was not what you’d expect. It was a good thing we did take some snacks with us too but I am now way more prepared when I travel.

As you can see from the above image, this is the typical travel food (or “padkos” as we call it in South Africa) for a 13-hour flight:

  • 2 organic apples
  • 2 organic boiled eggs and some sea salt
  • Homemade biltong from grass fed beef (a South African version of jerky) made with sea salt, coriander and pepper
  • Coconut flakes and organic raisins
  • Sprouted pumpkin seeds
  • A selection of herbal tea bags: ginger (which is great for motion sickness), Nighty night which contains chamomile and is relaxing), Breathe Easy (in case of congestion) and rooibos (great for stress and an excellent source of polyphenols)
  • A can of wild salmon
  • Pea protein powder

I also packed a meal of roast lamb with a veggie selection of carrots, zucchini and asparagus, plus some cauliflower sauerkraut. This was really delicious!

Also, to be safe, I take a selection of “first-aid” products in my carry-on luggage.

Here is some of what I typically pack for “first-aid”:

  • Arnicare which is an arnica gel (for muscle pain)
  • Xlear nasal spray and Biocidin throat spray – I find that using these two products before boarding the plane and half way into the flight prevents me from picking up any bugs and getting sick
  • Tree tree oil
  • Essential oils of lavender (for relaxation and sleep) and peppermint (for energy and a headache). Both are antibacterial too.
  • Melatonin spray to help reset my circadian rhythm and help with jetlag
  • Oil of oregano and garlic supplements (not shown) for bug protection
  • GABA Calm for anxiety. I didn’t use it/need it this trip but after my scary plane ride last year leading to vagus nerve issues, I’ve decided to always have some on hand when flying
  • Boiron Cold Calm, one of my favorite homeopathic cold remedies    

I also take a few of each of the following in a supplement box: Designs for Health Inflammatone (a natural anti-inflammatory), DPP-IV enzymes (for accidental gluten exposure), activated charcoal (also for accidental gluten exposure) and my daily supplements.

Here is a video I did for the Healthy Travelers Global summit, an online event that was hosted by my good friend Robyn Benson in 2015 (just ignore the summit promo and enjoy the tips and demonstrations).

I share the following:

  • A quick demonstration using Xlear (notice that I actually miss my nose by mistake!) and Biocidin Throat Spray for avoiding bugs
  • The pressure-point wrist-bands I use for motion sickness (find them on Amazon here). Many people with pyroluria are more prone to morning nausea and may be very prone to motion sickness (and it’s commonly a sign of low vitamin B6). In order to be effective they do need to be put on BEFORE you start to travel and the position is key).
  • Amino acids for travel anxiety (GABA for the physical anxiety and tryptophan for the fearful, worrying-about-flying anxiety)
  • Healthy travel snacks

Enjoy the beautiful Rocky Mountains! When I filmed this I was on a trip to St Paul, MN for the National Association of Nutrition Professionals conference and wanted to share just how I travel.

I hope this is all helpful for your next long flight or even a road-trip you have coming up. Do keep in mind that some of this can be adapted for a day out shopping or a day at the beach too.

I’d love to hear about your favorite travel foods and first-aid goodies that you take on a trip.

Teen Depression and Anxiety: Why the Kids Are Not Alright – my response

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Teens suffer from so much anxiety and their anxiety symptoms are now more of an issue than depression; they are cutting and self-harming as a way to feel normal; they are super-stressed; social media and iPhone use is taking over their lives, and in general, they seem to have poor coping skills.

This article in TIME magazine is a sad and concerning read: Teen Depression and Anxiety: Why the Kids Are Not Alright. It was written last year but is still very relevant. The author writes:

“Adolescents today have a reputation for being more fragile, less resilient and more overwhelmed than their parents were when they were growing up”

It’s an excellent article for creating awareness and to get an understanding of the extent of the issues and does highlight the crazy online world of teens:

It’s hard for many adults to understand how much of teenagers’ emotional life is lived within the small screens on their phones, but a CNN special report in 2015 conducted with researchers at the University of California, Davis, and the University of Texas at Dallas examined the social-media use of more than 200 13-year-olds. Their analysis found that ‘there is no firm line between their real and online worlds.’

Here is my response to the article and how I feel we can do better.

No solutions other than coping mechanisms

These teens are hopeless and resigned to the fact that this is how they are going to have to live i.e. simply managing their symptoms. It breaks my heart and it’s not alright!

Unfortunately (like the recent Xanax anxiety article in the New York Times) it offers no solutions other than coping mechanisms.

No mention of the importance of diet or nature

I agree that these kids are under a lot of stress (certainly more than when I was a teen) BUT there is ZERO mention of a real foods diet (that includes quality animal protein), a nourishing breakfast with protein (balancing blood sugar makes such a difference for reducing anxiety levels), the removal of caffeine, gluten and sugar, the importance of addressing nutritional deficiencies and poor gut health.

I love the movie project but there is no encouragement to get these teens out into nature (and maybe take up bouldering or gardening, both of which have been shown to reduce anxiety and depression).

No mention of DPA or GABA or tryptophan for self-harming, anxiety and addiction

The article makes the connections between the endorphin/opioid system and pain and the comfort these teens get from self-harming and cutting:

Scientists want to better understand how self-harm engages the endogenous opioid system–which is involved in the pain response in the brain–and what happens if and when it does

However, there is NO nutritional solution offered and NO mention of the amino acid DPA (d-phenylalanine), which can often be very effective for the cutting and self-harming, because it creates a similar endorphin boost that the cutting provides.  

There is also NO mention of the calming amino acid GABA or the happy and worry-free amino acid tryptophan for the anxiety and worry.

All the above amino acid also address addictions and may well offer neurotransmitter support to help with the addictive nature of their “drug-of-choice” i.e. their iPhones, games and other devices.

We have a plethora of nutritional solutions

We have a plethora of nutritional solutions to consider. Here are some relevant blogs that need to be part of the conversation for these teens:

Something as simple as a weighted blanket may help ease the anxiety some of these teens are experiencing.

We can do better than simply discussing the problem teens face. I’ve worked with both children and teens and we’ve shifted things in a matter of months. It really can be done but we need to share the powerful nutritional psychiatry solution, especially because research shows that most children with anxiety relapse, regardless of conventional treatment approaches.

Do you have a teenager who is experiencing anxiety and what has helped her/him?

Do you work with teens and do you incorporate some of these approaches?

How do we get this information into the hands of parents, schools, organizations, doctors, mental health practitioners and others those who can help make this happen?

Integrative Medicine Approach to Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Anxiety

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pediatric-ocd-anxiety

Gluten was found to be the cause of a childhood case of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In this case report, published in January this year: Integrative Medicine Approach to Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Anxiety, the authors state

This case study is the first reported case of OCD associated with non-celiac gluten sensitivity.

Pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is prevalent in 1% to 2% of the population. Emerging studies have correlated non-celiac gluten sensitivity with psychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia, depression, mania, and anxiety.

The 7-year-old boy was treated at an integrative medicine practice in the United States and experienced these results on a gluten-free diet together with other integrative medicine modalities:

marked reduction of OCD symptoms and anxiety along with marked improvement of social behavior and school work

The authors conclude the following and recommend further research:

The patient’s rapid response without side effects behooves the medical research community to further investigate the association of non-celiac gluten sensitivity and pediatric OCD.

These are truly amazing results and I always recommend that anyone with any mental health condition needs to consider the effects of gluten. I have all my clients go gluten-free for this very reason. Even if you don’t have a diagnosis of OCD, going gluten-free frequently helps with the obsessive thinking, ruminating thoughts, negative self-talk, anxiety and worry.

Of course, this approach or this approach alone, may not work with everyone with OCD (severe or mild) since the root cause can be multi-faceted.

Other approaches for OCD could also include (with or without a gluten-free diet, although I’d err on the side of caution and always remove gluten):

Please share if you’ve found benefits from any of the above approaches for OCD, obsessive thinking or anxiety.