Food Intolerance Cause Anxiety & Depression?

[Victory2016]

Hi all,

I did an IGG Food Intolerance test and had several intolerances. However I am not sure how accurate they are, but now I swear when I eat those foods it makes my depression and anxiety worse. So now I just don't know if it is in my head now or if I am really having a reaction.

I already eat gluten and dairy free, but I have tired to eat some of the other food intolerances and I feel like i get worse.

Here is my intolerance list.

Dairy
Egg Whites
Yeast
Sugar Cane
Kidney Beans
String Beans
Mushrooms
Gluten/Wheat

[Mindknot]

I've some things that suggest that an intolerance can affect your mental health, however I would also reiterate the point that mental health affects your gut (and how well it tolerates stuff!) - big time.

I think most of the things on your list are foods described as high FODMAP (Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides and Polyols). - These are basically food stuff containing certain types of sugars that are harder to digest than others. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FODMAP - worth doing a bit of research.

A low-FODMAP diet is often recommended (by doctors) to deal with the symptoms of IBS and it helped me a lot. Once things have calmed down a bit for you, you may find that you are able to reintroduce some of those foods in small amounts without them affecting your anxiety so much. Worth keeping a food diary too, as it will help you keep track of what most affects you in the long term.

[Victory2016]

I've some things that suggest that an intolerance can affect your mental health, however I would also reiterate the point that mental health affects your gut (and how well it tolerates stuff!) - big time.

I think most of the things on your list are foods described as high FODMAP (Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides and Polyols). - These are basically food stuff containing certain types of sugars that are harder to digest than others. - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FODMAP - worth doing a bit of research.

A low-FODMAP diet is often recommended (by doctors) to deal with the symptoms of IBS and it helped me a lot. Once things have calmed down a bit for you, you may find that you are able to reintroduce some of those foods in small amounts without them affecting your anxiety so much. Worth keeping a food diary too, as it will help you keep track of what most affects you in the long term.

Thanks I will check it out!!!

[Fishmanpa]

FODMAP diet

That's what my wife's gastro recommended to help with GERD. We both have modified our diets and have seen improvements in just a couple of weeks. And to affirm this, we splurged a bit and had something we shouldn't have and paid for it. There's something to be said about FODMAP.

Positive thoughts

[Mindknot]

That's what my wife's gastro recommended to help with GERD. We both have modified our diets and have seen improvements in just a couple of weeks. And to affirm this, we splurged a bit and had something we shouldn't have and paid for it. There's something to be said about FODMAP.

Positive thoughts

Cool, I'm glad it's been working for you and your wife too. There's a lot of genuine scientific research behind this particular diet - e.g. http://www.med.monash.edu/cecs/gastro/fodmap/ (Monash University developed the diet) - otherwise I wouldn't bandy it around, but I also like that it's more about being aware of eating lower amounts of certain foods rather than completely cutting them out - especially if there is no medical reason to do so, because you lose the nutrients... Anyway, I might have to get back on it myself for a bit, I've let my eating habits slip a bit and my guts are starting to take their revenge...

[Victory2016]

Hmmm not sure what to do. I seem to have more mental and anxiety symptoms when I think I am eating something I am intolerant too. I don't really have an issues with IBS. The only problem I have is i burp a lot lol.

[Mindknot]

IBS is very much an anxiety related problem i.e. it flares up when anxiety/depression is high, so even though you may not have symptoms, following a selective diet for a while could still work - even if it just helps you to find a new balance around when/how you can eat these types of foods.

For example I know somehow who has some level of gluten intolerance, but that does not mean she cannot eat gluten at all, it's just certain types of products that set off the symptoms.

Following the low-FODMAP diet could help you work out how much of something you can tolerate. I noticed at lunch the Monash actually have an app (quite expensive unfortunately) which includes details of all the food stuffs plus low-FODMAP recipes to follow & it's all worked out scientifically with quantities & stuff that keeps the FODMAP quantity low over the whole recipe.

hopefully it's something to help.

[Fishmanpa]

It also makes sense that digestive/stomach issues = discomfort = spike in anxiety. Especially if you're dealing with HA. GERD becomes some form of cancer etc. So, following a nutritional program that minimizes symptoms decreases your anxiety over them.

While I don't believe the food itself cases anxiety and depression, the body's reaction to certain foods can contribute negatively to an already existing mental condition.

Positive thoughts

[Mindknot]

It also makes sense that digestive/stomach issues = discomfort = spike in anxiety. Especially if you're dealing with HA. GERD becomes some form of cancer etc. So, following a nutritional program that minimizes symptoms decreases your anxiety over them.

While I don't believe the food itself cases anxiety and depression, the body's reaction to certain foods can contribute negatively to an already existing mental condition.

Positive thoughts

Yep, there's a lot of nerves in your guts, so any discomfort could affect your overall mood... in fact what do they call it? urm.... Enteric Nervous System is the science term, but I've heard it called empathetic system too.I'm not going to be able to concisely and effectively decant all the stuff I've read on this into one paragraph, so I'm just going to stick this in from wiki and hope that you get where I'm going with this:

More than 90% of the body's serotonin lies in the gut, as well as about 50% of the body's dopamine, which is currently being studied to further our understanding of its utility in the brain.

Essentially, good nutrition is darned important for lots of stuff, so it's good to find a balance for yourself that works around these intolerances and still gets you all the nutrients you need.