Nutrition Note

More on dealing with depression/maintaining your good state of mind

 "We know that vitamin D receptors exist in the brain, and there is evidence that in utero--as the infant is developing-if the mother is vitamin D deficient, the child has a much higher risk of developing schizophrenia later in life.  There are animal studies that have shown vitamin D will increase serotonin levels in the brain.  Therefore it is thought that if you have a healthy vitamin D status (25-hydroxyvitamin D 30-100 ng/mL), it will do the same thing for people:  improve their serotonin levels and improve their mood and feeling of well-being."
Credit:  Life Extension September 2010, interview with M.F. Holick, PhD, MD.

Vitamin D, which our bodies make from sunshine, is in the nutrition news a lot lately.  It plays a more important role in our health than was previously known.  These discoveries are coming about as a result of finding an almost epidemic deficiency of this nutrient in the bodies of people living under certain modern conditions (northern latitudes, cities shaded by tall buildings, regular use of sunscreen & other forms of sun protection).

(some commonly prescribed anti-depressant medications function as serotonin re-uptake inhibitors-attempting to increase the levels of serotonin available in your brain, to improve the mood)

Generally, good health supports good mood.  This is just one specific factor that can fairly easily be controlled.
If you want, you can request a simple blood test from your doctor to determine your personal level of vitamin D.  If it is low, you can improve your health in many ways by supplementing with vitamin D3 according to your doctor's advice or, by judiciously adding a little sun exposure.
An easy way to improve your life!