Carbs

[soonatpeace777888]

Anyone else notice a decline in their mental issues and depression when they eat a lot of carbs? It seems to really impact my OCD positively and my mood but I don't like the weight gain associated with high carb diets.

I heard carbs are the brains preferred source of fuel so maybe that has something to do with it.

 

[Argo]

The opposite. I learned this only recently because I was doing things like fasting for the last few months, and I also changed my diet to completely cut carbs. I happened to get my method complete in that time and get through most of the work I was doing to tie up loose ends(sell/donate my possessions, etc), and had planned for April. It's now April and everything is in limbo. I have everything ready, and I have near-zero actual drive to die or finish working on it compared to before. This also happened 5-6 years before, when I had a method mostly complete ,... so... it's not clear to me how much of it is "you stop wanting to die once you complete your method" and how much of it is "carb based diets have a relationship with depression and can make you less suicidal". I've noticed lots of different health improvements from having zero carb intake+strength training.

I tried some ice cream once in this four month period by the way, and holy shit... it was like a taking drug whose sole effect was to make you feel like absolute shit. It was amazing. So... who the hell knows, maybe sugar is just really, really bad and basically depression fuel, but we're so used to it that it's hard to tell. There are some theories about gut bacteria too and sugar, and it's all really complicated so... this is all probably pretty personal and you'll have to just try stuff for long periods of time to see what works. Elimination diets are really useful that way too.

But if you're of the recovery bent, and you're desperate to be less depressed/suicidal, then maybe just try gradually reducing carbs for a few months. Could be worth it as an experiment.

Edit: Oh, and you can gain weight on anything, but the specific problem with carbs, to put it crudely: First of all they spike your insulin. Insulin blocks leptin, which is the thing that says, "Hey, we have lots of extra fat around over here... you uh... totally don't need to eat more , eating more is a terrible idea". So what happens is, you just eat and eat and eat when you're playing the whole carbs and insulin game. That's partly why you feel very full and satisfied and hunger free on diets that involve no carbs. It gets much more complicated than that with all kinds of things, like fiber and what carb it is, but that picture is a fairly typical picture.

 

[damyon]

For me, there is some kind of range when I feel better after eating carbs.

Too little, and I feel fatigued. Too much and sleepiness kicks in.

 

[Dr Iron Arc]

That's partly why you feel very full and satisfied and hunger free on diets that involve no carbs.

Not for me. I can't go without carbs for even a day it seems.

 

[Forveleth]

Your brain ultimately needs glucose, which is a type of sugar. Carbs are a slightly more complex form of sugar which your body can easily and quickly break down into glucose. Yay!

However, carbs are usually high-calorie and often nutrition-deficient food. So, when you eat a bunch of carbs a few things happen to you:

• Short term your blood sugar spikes and then drops very low as your body tries to compensate for all of the extra sugar it now has. This can leave you feeling slow and sluggish.
• Because they're so high calorie, eating carbs can easily give you an access of calories which leads to weight gain which makes you feel sluggish.
• Carbs can lead to water retention which makes you bloated and everyone feels gross when bloated.
• Carbs can be nutrient poor which leads to a lack of key nutrients and then your body feels "off" leading to poor mental health.

As far as your OCD, a big part of OCD is dopamine. Dopamine is the chemical in your brain that makes you feel good when you do something. A lot of times our brains release a lot of dopamine while we're eating carbs because carbs usually taste good and make us happy. So, you're basically medicating yourself with carbs.

I don't know if you wanted an actual answer but I've done a bit of research on food and mental health and I can't help but share.

 

[Argo]

Not for me. I can't go without carbs for even a day it seems.

Yeah, hence 'diet'. This is a long term thing. Personally I found they have a drug-like quality to them unlike any other macronutrient where you need a constant re-supply and are never really full. There are certain political and economic narratives one could come up with as to why carbs are so mainstream but I won't get into it

 

[ColorlessTrees]

Carbs make me severely ill and damage my body in the long term, generally and sensationally speaking, but that's because I have a metabolic illness. And it's a large part of the reason I'm on this site to begin with.

Anyway, the answer seems to be individual; metabolic disease, which will absolutely cause conflict with high carb intake is very common nowadays, though—sedentary, stressful lifestyles and poor, highly unnatural diets will do that to humans who have not quite caught up biologically. It can also be 'there', insulin resistance, without even showing up on bloodwork.

That aside, I'm pretty sure there's a link to hyperglycemia/general unstable blood glucose and mental health issues/excaberation. It's also entirely possible to feel the effects without metabolic disease, because the average person in modern society consumes way too many carbs, refined or not, without the necessary lifestyle to combat and regulate the hard hit. Thus, mood dysregulation and/or degradation.

The bottom line is the average person should be eating way less carbs, and preferably ones lower on the 'glycemic index'; but exactly how much is correct will be highly individual.

I have a small library more info on this subject, but I'll spare you unless anyone wants to know specifics.
Also, wrote this from a carb-fueled brain fog haze, so maybe it will be useful, maybe not.

 

[sserafim]

Carbs make me severely ill and damage my body in the long term, generally and sensationally speaking, but that's because I have a metabolic illness. And it's a large part of the reason I'm on this site to begin with.

Anyway, the answer seems to be individual; metabolic disease, which will absolutely cause conflict with high carb intake is very common nowadays, though—sedentary, stressful lifestyles and poor, highly unnatural diets will do that to humans who have not quite caught up biologically. It can also be 'there', insulin resistance, without even showing up on bloodwork.

That aside, I'm pretty sure there's a link to hyperglycemia/general unstable blood glucose and mental health issues/excaberation. It's also entirely possible to feel the effects without metabolic disease, because the average person in modern society consumes way too many carbs, refined or not, without the necessary lifestyle to combat and regulate the hard hit. Thus, mood dysregulation and/or degradation.

The bottom line is the average person should be eating way less carbs, and preferably ones lower on the 'glycemic index'; but exactly how much is correct will be highly individual.

I have a small library more info on this subject, but I'll spare you unless anyone wants to know specifics.
Also, wrote this from a carb-fueled brain fog haze, so maybe it will be useful, maybe not.

Carbs are evil. I felt the best when I was on a keto (and gluten and grain free) diet. Gluten and grains are bad for you, yet they're dietary staples due to how they're cheap sources of energy. The average person *does* eat way too much carbs, and they should be eating *much* less. The food pyramid is wrong. Carbs should not make up the majority of your diet. Humans were also not meant to eat gluten or grains. We were hunter gatherers for thousands of years before the introduction of agriculture. Carbs are also basically sugar, aka glucose, which is pure energy

 

[Unicr0n]

I feel like crap if I eat a high amount of carbs.

 

[sserafim]

I feel like crap if I eat a high amount of carbs.

That's because carbs are bad for you lol

There are certain political and economic narratives one could come up with as to why carbs are so mainstream but I won't get into it

What are they? Do tell. My theory is that they keep the masses dumb and as sheep. Gluten induced brain fog is a thing. They also need a use for all the excess corn they produce. They add it to foods in the name of high fructose corn syrup

Not for me. I can't go without carbs for even a day it seems.

That's because of rice, my dude. Unfortunately, carbs are a central part of the diet of cultures across the world, and people have been conditioned to be reliant upon them

 

[Dr Iron Arc]

That's because of rice, my dude. Unfortunately, carbs are a central part of the diet of cultures across the world, and people have been conditioned to be reliant upon them

Yeah, rice and noodles probably gave me type 2 diabetes. Being Asian sucks cause of how greasy and full of fat good Chinese food is. I'd love to live on a diet of just raw fish and seaweed like the Japanese but that's expensive.

 

[damyon]

I have a small library more info on this subject, but I'll spare you unless anyone wants to know specifics.

That would be interesting. I haven't gone further than simply looking at the glycemic index when there is so much to consider, like glycemic load, insulin index, etc.

~~~
I wish I had studied a biology or chemistry-related subject at university. While I can read scientific papers, I do not have enough time to connect all the dots together, and instead, I have to utilize the conclusions of type:

The total amount of carbohydrate in a food, rather than its glycemic index or load, is a stronger predictor of what will happen to blood sugar.

From: https://www.health.harvard.edu/dise...e-lowdown-on-glycemic-index-and-glycemic-load

 

[eatantz]

Specifically pasta and rice make me feel so bloated and gross. It's like a chore to eat but at the same time there in a lot of my fav dishes e.g. carbonara pasta :(