The use of nutritional therapy to treat emotional distress is new. It seems to be almost "magical" in its accomplishments, yet it is surprisingly simple. More and more physicians are prescribing nutritional programs for mental ills. They report that emotional disorders, ranging from ordinary "daily tension" to "chronic depression", have responded with remarkable benefits. In many instances, just one special nutrient has helped bring about a dramatic recovery from a so-called "incurable" emotional illness. In other situations, special allnutritional programs, followed over a period of time, produced amazing results.

The unique benefit of nutritional therapy is that it treats the cause first and the symptoms second. Evidence is being accumulated by qualified research personnel that the entire body must be taken into consideration when treating any ailment. Nutritional therapy is directed at healing the body, so healing the cause. The symptoms, hopefully, subside and the mental outlook becomes more optimistic.

Research reports of physicians and others indicate that natural (unrefined) food, special foods, natural food aids, more vitamin-mineral-protein-enzyme packed foods — all can help build up the body to such a state of health that many nervous ailments slowly melt away. It isn't meant to suggest that all emotional illness can be cured overnight through nutrition. The hope here is that those who are troubled by such disorders can see the possibility of better health through better foods — proper and healthful nutrition.

The secret of the success of nutritional therapy is that it does not separate the mind from the body. You cannot separate them — they are one! If the body is in proper working order then the mind works properly. But on the other hand, the brain becomes disturbed if its physical mechanism, the nervous system, is disturbed by physical and/or biochemical changes.

The common sense approach in nutritional therapy is that a healthy nervous system will promote a healthy mental state. Emotional illness may arise in the body, not, necessarily, in the mind. An emotional upset triggers off a physiological imbalance that is felt in the mind. When treatment begins with healing the nervous system, then the mental system has a better chance of recovery than if treated apart from the rest of the body.

Feed Your Brain-Nerve Cells For Healthy Emotions.

Your body is made up of millions of cells, tissues and other vital organs. These must be constantly nourished by raw materials that will give them the ingredients they need to live and carry on during the lifespan. Your brain is a powerhouse of nerve cells. There are nerve centres in the brain that control regulatory or automatic functions such as breathing, heartbeat, blood circulation, and thinking. Every move and every thought is governed by these brain-nerve cells. They need nourishment just like other body cells.

Through metabolism, the body supplies the brain with the fuel it needs from foods taken in. The Bcomplex vitamins especially are known as being valuable "brain food". Dr. Roger J. Williams, author of Nutrition in a Nutshell, singles out thiamine (B1), niacin, B12 and pantothenic acid as the specifics of the Vitamin B-complex family that help nourish the brain-nerve cells. Without these, the nerve cells develop severe functional abnormalities ... "Failure of cells in one area to get what they need can cause severe damage elsewhere in the body," says Dr. Williams. Good sources of the Vitamin B-complex group include whole-grain, unprocessed wheat products, meat, eggs, dried beans and peas, natural and organic nut butters of all types, whole-grain cereals.

Niacin, or Vitamin B3, is especially healing to the mind.

Niacin helps invigorate the brain-nerve system and helps cells metabolise other nutrients that feed the brain. Good niacin sources are organic peanut butter, meat, fish, poultry and unbleached and unprocessed whole grain bread and cereal products. Special niacin food supplements are available, and you may discuss their use with your physician. Dr. Williams states that niacin is "absolutely essential for brain metabolism".

Many "average" emotional disorders are reported to have responded and been gradually corrected through special nutritional programs. This is encouraging when we consider that the brain and the nervous system — along with all other parts of the body — must do their work using whatever is available to them in the way of vitamins, minerals, proteins, enzymes, and so on. The following checklist shows how closely the health of the brain-nervous system and body are related to nutrition:

Increased Mental Energy.

The B-complex vitamins were given to a group of patients who had problems of mental depression, sluggish intelligence, poor judgment. After a period of time, these patients reportedly responded with better mental health. D.G. Campbell, M.D., in Modem Nutrition in Health and Disease, reports that the nervous system is more sensitive to nutritional variance than any other part of the body. He says the unique benefit of the B-complex group is its ability of making carbohydrate food available to the nerves for mental energy. He also emphasises the value of minerals to nourish nervous tissues.

Thiamine Intelligence Boost.

Three researchers reported in the Bulletin of the Staff Meetings of the Mayo Clinic, on emotionally disturbed patients with problems of behaviour. The subjects were unable to concentrate, suffered from confusion of thought and poor memory. All were irritable, depressed, quarrelsome, unco-operative and fearful of some impending disaster. Two threatened suicide. All had lost their manual dexterity, had headaches, chronic insomnia, were ultra-sensitive to noise, and the women had painful monthly periods. But when the doctors gave them high dosages of thiamine, these symptoms subsided. The patients experienced emotional relief and an increase of basic intelligence. Many could even be considered "cured!"

Personality Brightener.

A group of mental patients were given extra thiamine at an Illinois hospital. Benefit? Attention span, interest, ambition, playfulness, sociability, speed and manual dexterity all got a boost. According to the National Research Council Bulletin, thiamine helped the patients develop a cheerful personality. A timid, depressed person can actually be transformed into a pleasant, personable individual with the help of thiamine. So claims Tom D. Spies, M.D., who reported, in the Association for Research on Nervous Disorders, that administering thiamine to 115 of his moody, depressed patients brought about a personality-intelligence improvement within 30 minutes to 20 hours of administration.

Vague Emotional Distress.

Neurasthenia (mild mental disorder) is the condition first observed in youngsters whose diets are low in thiamine. This was noted by I.N. Kugelmass, M.D., in the American Journal of Digestive Diseases. Symptoms include fatigue, anxiety, irritability, forgetfulness, headaches, impaired judgment, bodily complaints, hyper sensitivity, frustration and sleeplessness. Dr. Kugelmass states that a food program reinforced with thiamine as a supplement, improves (though it does not always cure) the condition. He compares the preceding symptoms and actual, real, diagnosed mental illness.

Emotions Need Nutrition As Much As The Body.

Because the nervous cells are more sensitive to a disturbance of the nutrition and oxygen supplies than other cells, a nutritional deficiency often shows up first as an emotional disorder. Specialist V.P. Sydenstricker, M.D., writing in the Annals of Internal Medicine, says that any or all of these symptoms may come first, long before there are any other indications of diet deficiency: Loss of memory for recent events (often seen in older folks who ordinarily can remember well events of bygone years); insomnia; anxiety; apprehension; distractibility, also partial deafness with emphasis upon loss of hearing of high tones; digestive disturbances.

Such distress signals should be reported to a physician. Dr. Sydenstricker calls for the utilisation of corrective food programs to help ease such nutrition-based emotional disorders.

Niacin For Happy Youngsters.

Dr. Tom spies tens of 195 children suffering from pellagra (a disease of Vitamin B deficiency) who displayed these emotional-physical conditions: they were irritable, easily frightened, fretful, crying a good deal, listless, tiring quickly, apprehensive, had poor appetite. Dr. Spies writes in the Journal of the American Medical Association, that when he gave the youngsters brewer's yeast, as well as a niacin supplement, they responded almost immediately. Following corrective food programs that included these supplements, they became happy youngsters again.

Pantothenic Acid And Personality.

Four men were placed on a diet deficient in pantothenic acid, another of the B-complex group. In two weeks, they were fatigued, wanted to sleep during the day. By the third week, they had lost their appetite and suffered from constipation. By the end of the fourth week, they were quarrelsome, discontented and irascible. They also suffered from burning feet! According to a physicians' report in the Proceedings of the Society of Experimental Biology, when these patients were given supplements of B complex —especially pantothenic acid— they experienced a remarkable recovery. In particular, they all showed an improved personality.

Nervous Symptoms And Calcium.

Calcium deficiency is nearly always related to the instability of the nervous system. This valuable mineral helps transmit impulses along nerves. According to the Physiological Basis of Medical Practice, by Drs. Best and Taylor, calcium deficiency leads to nervous disorders. Possible treatment — but only on a doctor's orders! — is to take calcium tablets or select such natural food sources of calcium as milk, cheese (but remember there is less calcium in cottage cheese) turnip greens, collards, kale and broccoli.

Nervous Tension, Insomnia And Leg Cramps.

Pregnant women (and non-pregnant women and men, too) often suffer from these emotional-related problems. "Other symptoms which are often intensified," says Adelle Davis, in Let's Have Healthy Children, "are a tendency to become more high-strung, inability to sleep soundly and perhaps cramps in the calves of the legs, particularly during the night... These abnormalities occur when calcium is under-supplied or is poorly absorbed."

Nutrition expert Davis offers this easy to follow calcium program if your doctor approves: "If you drink daily one quart of skim milk fortified with powdered milk, and if you take calcium tablets before meals, the nervousness, insomnia and leg cramps resulting from calcium deficiency will probably soon disappear. When sleeplessness and nocturnal leg cramps are problems, it is often wise to take calcium tablets just before retiring; keep the tablets by the bedside and take more during the night if wakeful or if leg cramps recur."

How A Vitamin Can Help Ease Simple Neuritis.

Because so many severe emotional upsets start with "simple neuritis", it is vital to seek help for this problem as soon as possible. Adelle Davis says, "Usually, neuritis is corrected as soon as Vitamin B1 is added generously to the diet. Neuritis starts with fatigue and an 'all-gone' feeling. Recurring numbness and vague, fleeting pains may be felt in the hands, feet, and shoulders". Symptoms: "The hands and feet 'go to sleep' easily, and a prickling needles-and-pins sensation is often noticed. As neuritis becomes more severe, steady pain follows the nerve channels and may become excruciating indeed".

Treatment: "Physicians usually treat neuritis by giving injections of Vitamin B1, which often brings immediate relief. Since much of the vitamin is lost in the urine within a few hours, however, the pain may soon recur", warns nutritionist Adelle Davis. "In addition to the injections, many doctors advise their patients to take 5-milligram tablets of Vitamin B1 by mouth every 2 or 3 hours — the frequency depending upon the severity of the pain — until the neuritis disappears. Research has consistently shown that better results are obtained when foods rich in alt the B-complex vitamins are eaten in addition to the taking of Vitamin B1 injections or tablets". Special B-Complex foods include whole grain bread and cereal products, meat, fish, poultry, eggs, milk, liver. Nutritionists advise emphasising whole grain and unbleached wheat products.

Nutrition And Mental Confusion.

A physician, writing in the British Medical Journal tells of a 71-year-old man who had an arthritic condition, but had rarely been seriously ill before that. The physician made a house call, found the patient in bed. The man was confused: he was unable to speak coherently, he could not find the bathroom, and he was unable to put on his clothes. This was a serious case of mental confusion that might have been wrongly diagnosed as "senility" if the physician hadn't tried nutrition therapy. The doctor prescribed 50 milligrams tablets of niacin three times a day. Result? The elderly patient improved steadily and in one month had completely recovered. But he grew overconfident, discontinued the niacin tablets and suffered a relapse. When the physician came, he found the patient in the earlier confused state. Once again, the niacin program was put into effect. The man recovered in seven days. He has been well ever since.

The physician notes, "Perhaps from this can be deduced that some cases of senile dementia will respond dramatically to concentrated Vitamin B therapy".

Vitamin-Mineral Therapy Promotes Mental Healing:

A comprehensive vitamin-mineral-protein-enzyme food supplement was developed by physicians and given to a group of 19 emotionally disturbed patients. Here is a sampling of the results of the experiment as reported in the Journal of Psychology, by George Watson, M.D. — the nature of each patient's illness and how this vitamin-mineral supplement affected it:

Depressed Young Man.

At 19, he developed a psychosis because of a facial dermatitis. He remained secluded in his room. He did not talk to his family, was unable to meet anyone. He was given this special all-purpose multiple food supplement to be taken daily. Results? In one month, he felt at ease. He joined his family to watch TV. He had talks with his father. His mother told the doctor, "His recovery, frankly, is more than we had hoped for''. His score in the psychological test given at the end of the treatment was normal. Nutritional therapy had made him "alive" again.

Emotionally Frustrated.

A 42-year-old woman said she felt frustrated, depressed and basically inadequate. She did not look for a job for several years. She displayed symptoms of mental confusion and spoke with a slow, childlike voice pattern. She was given 30 days of the special nutritional supplement. Result? In one month, her voice pattern was normal. She went to school for special courses, appeared to be more alert. Two months of the nutritional therapy and she had found a job. She was calm and relaxed. Her score in the psychological test was also most satisfactory.

Delusions-Hostilities-Hatreds.

At age 53, this woman had delusions, appeared hostile and filled with hatred. She had fits of temper. She had attempted to run away from her home and family. Her family doctor had treated her with a tranquillizer for six months. She was excitable and always hungry. Dr. Watson prescribed the vitamin-mineral therapy capsule. Result? In one month, she was no longer irritable and impatient. In two months, her family reported that she was no longer aggressive and that her appetite was normal. In four months she was considered clinically normal and secured a position as a saleslady in a department store.

Violent Enough to Smash TV Set. The most startling case in this report is that of a 26-year-old man who was so easily enraged he tried to smash the TV set when his father calmly told him to change the station. He displayed symptoms of hostility and some depression. The same vitamin-mineral supplement was given in his case. In a few weeks he was vastly improved. He wanted to find a job where before he had showed little interest in anything. When the supplementation for some reason was stopped, the patient regressed. He became irritable and his temper attacks increased; he was inactive and groggy most of the time. He lost interest in his surroundings and became forgetful, confused.

When nutritional therapy was resumed, he improved immeasurably. Result: He soon sought work and was able to get a job without the aid of his family.

Nutrition And Schizophrenia:

Schizophrenia is the most common emotional illness encountered. What is usually referred to as "split personality" actually encompasses a whole class of emotional upsets which are grouped together as psychoses. There is increasing indication that schizophrenia can be relieved —even healed— through proper nutrition. The basic problem with schizophrenia is that it develops gradually with a few noticeable symptoms. Untreated it may get worse.

One dramatic case history is that of a newspaperman, Gregory Stefan, who tells of his battles with schizophrenia and its conquest through nutrition in his book, In Search of Sanity. Originally, Gregory was happy, well adjusted, married to a devoted wife. Then he started to feel strange. He estimates it as three years before being "... vaguely aware of a change in my physical condition". Gregory was tired all the time. He was tired after resting and sleep. He developed insomnia. He had vague aches and pains. His nerves were raw. He had the impulse to run and run and run. His heart would palpitate. His hands would shake uncontrollably. He was unable to relate to his wife. A physical examination revealed nothing wrong. Now Gregory began imagining all sorts of things, and his symptoms got worse. He had seizures, fainting spells, crying spells. These usually occurred in the late morning or late afternoon.

Gregory was tortured by tension, fear, hallucinations. One moment he wanted to commit suicide; the next, he wanted to live. He was plagued with thoughts of killing his wife! At this point, he was placed in a mental hospital where he remained for four years!

Shock treatments, tranquillizers, nerve medicine, sleeping pills, barbiturates — nothing brought him relief. Even psychiatric sessions were useless. Still his behaviour improved so he was able to eventually leave the hospital. He was still just as sick but less violent. By now Gregory was still just as sick but less violent. By now Gregory was completely defeated. Because he knew he had schizophrenia, Gregory read avidly everything about the subject. Finally he heard of physicians who treated the illness with niacin and sought them out. These doctors told him that they believed schizophrenia to be a physical illness: "caused by an error in metabolism, probably genetic, that results in the production of a brain poison".

Gregory was given massive doses of niacin. In a short time, he was improved and before long was pronounced well. Says Gregory Stefan: "I am more appreciative now ... to the delicate relationship between mind and body, and can understand why Hippocrates, in his dealings with the ill, insisted on treating both mind and body simultaneously".

Children And Nutrition Therapy

There is no doubt protein is important, but protein is not the only nutrient affecting mental development, nor is it the only one of which malnourished children fail to get enough". So spoke A. A. Pokrovsky, M.D., at the International Conference on Malnutrition, Learning and Behaviour at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Even though not every nutrient is directly involved in the development of the nervous system, malnutrition of any type will cause malfunctioning of the metabolism and that will affect the health and abilities of the brain". Dr. Pokrovsky suggests niacin as well as protein be given to youngsters who are mentally sluggish or display below-average intellect while exhibiting no organic defects.

Elderly Need Better Diet.

The mental condition of elderly patients improved when multi-vitamin supplements were given to them. Drs. Franklin I. Shuman and Ronald I. Goldberg, writing in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society tell of helping to mentally rejuvenate 66 out of 100 patients with such a multivitamin and mineral food supplement. "The geriatric patient is prone to use an abnormal diet (that is, soup and crackers) and as such is subject to the development of vitamin deficiencies. "It is therefore important that any therapeutic agent for the treatment of senility should contain a highpotency preparation."

The senile man or woman may be deficient in Vitamin C, and doctor-prescribed treatments may help control and relieve the problem. P. Berkenau, M.D. writes in the Journal of Mental Science that he tested a group of senile patients against those who were mentally alert and noted that the senile patients suffered from serious Vitamin C deficiency. He was able to counteract this condition by administering large doses of the vitamin. A deficiency of 1000 to 1500 milligrams of Vitamin C is regarded as emotionally hazardous. The doctor's oldsters had shortages of anywhere from 1400 to 3000 milligrams! C. Milner, M.D., in the British Journal of Psychiatry, also tells of a low Vitamin C content in the bloodstream of 40 senile and "mentally ill" patients. For three weeks, he gave each patient 1000 milligrams of Vitamin C daily. Result: relief of depressive manic and paranoid symptoms. Dr. Milner says it takes from 24 to 48 hours to saturate the tissues of a normal person with Vitamin C therapy; in the senile, it may take longer. He adds that, "Psychiatric patients are shown to have an unusually high demand for Vitamin C".

British Clinical Physiology (Spring 1964) reports on 40 senile patients "saturated" with Vitamin C all of whom showed improvement. Doctors in this experiment also concluded that persons with emotional upsets have a high demand for Vitamin C. In foods, Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid) is found in citrus fruits — oranges, grapefruits, lemons, limes. It is also found in strawberries, cantaloupes, tomatoes, green peppers, broccoli, raw greens, cabbage and potatoes. Fresh citrus fruit drinks are the best and tastiest way to obtain Vitamin C, but check with your doctor about proper dosage.

How To "Grow Young With The Years".

With a well-balanced diet and natural foods, it's possible to grow young with the years. We agree with Nathan W. Schock, M.D., head of the Gerontology Branch of the National Heart Institute, who said: "Old people show more variety in their ability and physical powers than any other age group. We've found that the ability to do a job — except for one that requires unusual strength or dexterity — rarely depends on age alone. The mental process does not necessarily dim with age. Those who think more and work more retain their alertness and working ability the longest. "When we see people who slow down with their years, they are not showing the effect of time itself, they are suffering from the cumulative effects of a lifetime of traumas that literally have wiped out a part of the individual. We hope to find a way to avoid such tragedy." Perhaps nutritional therapy may well be the way.

Mental Illness And Nutrition.

Millions of Americans —the estimate is one out of every 10— have some form of mental or emotional illness. Each year, close to 3,000,000 people are treated. There are more patients in hospitals receiving treatment for mental disorders than any other illness. Here are some other facts that should alert the public to the need for finding some way to help control and relieve this growing problem:

• (1) There are close to one million persons in hospitals with mental illnesses.
• (2) Each year, a half-million persons are admitted to public and private mental hospitals for the first time.
• (3) It is said that 5 out of every 10 people treated by private doctors and hospitals show a mental illness problem.
• (4) About one out of every 10 public school children shows emotional upset in need of treatment. There are 250,000 youngsters with less serious disorders who receive help each year at mental health clinics. Well over a half-million youngsters are brought before the courts each year for the kinds of anti-social acts we associate with juvenile delinquency. Many of the youngsters are suffering from emotional disorders which are reflected in their behaviour. Observers have noted with concern the incidence of suicide among adolescents.
• (5) Outpatient psychiatric clinics in the U.S. serve more persons in the 10 to 19 age group than in any other age group.