The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression

by Andrew Solomon

You are what you eat; you feel what you are. You cannot cause a depression to remit simply by choosing the right foods; but you can certainly bring on a depression by failing to eat the right foods, and you can to some extent protect against recurrence through careful monitoring of diet. Sugar and carbohydrates appear to raise the absorption of tryptophan in the brain, which in turn raises serotonin levels. Vitamin B6, which is found in whole grains and shellfish, is important to serotonin synthesis; low levels of B6 may precipitate a depression. Low cholesterol has been linked to depressive symptoms. The studies aren’t in, but a good diet of lobster and chocolate mousse may do much towards improving one’s state of mind. “The twentieth century’s emphasis on a physically healthy diet,” says Watson, “has probably given us a psychologically unhealthy one.” Dopamine synthesis also relies on B vitamins, especially B12 (found in fish and dairy products) and folic acid (found in calf’s liver and broccoli), and also on magnesium (found in cod, mackerel, and wheat germ). Depressed people often have low levels of zinc (which occurs in oysters, endive, asparagus, turkey, and radishes), vitamin B3 (found in eggs, brewer’s yeast, and poultry), and chromium; and these three have been used to treat depression. Low levels of zinc have been especially strongly associated with postpartum depression, since all reserves of zinc pass from the expectant mother to the baby at the very end of pre...