"Low-Carb State of Mind"
 

Low-Carb State of Mind

By Brenda Goodman, Psychology Today

Publication Date: Mar/Apr 2004

Summary: The low-carb plan can lead to irritability and mood swings.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/htdo...0406-000014.asp

Do the chips that don’t pass the lips of low-carb dieters weigh heavily on their shoulders instead? People who avoid certain foods or are reducing their food intake are famous for irritability, but many who are testing low-carbohydrate approaches like Atkins and the South Beach Diet are reporting unusually high feelings of anger, tension and depression. “It’s called the ‘Atkins attitude,’ ” says Judith Wurtman, director of the Women’s Health Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Adara Weight Loss Center, both in Boston. “It’s very well-documented.”

Wurtman, who advocates a diet high in complex carbohydrates for weight loss and stress relief, says her studies on rats have shown a connection between a diet low in carbohydrates and low levels of serotonin—a neurotransmitter that promotes feelings of happiness and satisfaction. In her research, rats placed on a ketotic, or low-carbohydrate, diet for three weeks were found to have lower levels of serotonin in their brains. The same rats binged once starch was reintroduced into their diets.

Wurtman believes that same effect occurs in humans on low-carb diets and leads to pronounced feelings of depression and sadness, even rage. “People feel very angry, and their antidepressants don’t work well, either,” she says.

Granted, dieting isn’t easy no matter how one does it, but many think low-carbohydrate approaches are particularly hard on your happiness. Wurtman goes so far as to call them dangerous for those who already struggle with depression or bipolar disorder.

Other researchers disagree. In fact, Wurtman’s assertions are in direct contrast to what advocates of low-carbohydrate diets promise—an end to mood swings and fatigue. Indeed, many who have success on these diets say their moods have never been better.

“It’s a very hard effect to sort out,” says Frederick Samaha, chief of cardiology at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Philadelphia. In Samaha’s recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine he compared a low-carbohydrate diet with a low-fat diet.

“We didn’t notice any difference in mood between the two groups. What we found, overall, was that people [on either diet] felt good because they were losing weight and becoming healthier,” Samaha says. “But there was a high drop-out rate, around 40 percent, and it may be that those folks left because they didn’t see any improvement in their quality of life.”

Other researchers believe a low-carb diet may have an adverse effect only on those prone to low moods. Philip Cowen, chief of psychiatry at Oxford University in the U.K., reported in a study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry that the mood problem on low-carb diets was measurable but mild in women fighting depression.

“We routinely use a low-carbohydrate diet, which does produce evidence of changes in brain-serotonin function,” says Cowen. “In people with a history of depression—but not in those without—this diet lowers subjective ratings of ‘happy’ slightly.”

So what is a low-carber to do? Robert Thayer, professor of psychology at California State University, Long Beach, and author of Calm Energy: How People Use Food and Exercise to Regulate Mood, says the best advice is to closely monitor mood after experimenting with food. “If you don’t have enough energy to function effectively and meet the demands of your day, that’s going to create tension.”

So OK I've always been a mean and nasty grouch since I was about 14 years of age. I was even grouchier on induction, but now I'm about a +1 on the grouch meter (out of 10). I have never been less grouchy, irritable or depressed than since adopting a low-carb paleo lifestyle.

At least there was more than one opinion expressed in this article which is progress I suppose.

My mood has improved on low carb eating. There was a discussion on one of the threads where I pointed out that if your brain has been trained to release serotonin on the urgings of a high carb meal, it might be a little sluggish to respond at first. I believe research shows it adapts for people who report a low mood, and soon they report their mood has rebounded for the better.

I am in the category of those who haven't seen a change since I started low carbing. If anything, the thrill of feeling so good has probably put me in a better mood on average. These anectdotal stories about bad moods are no more credible than a PCRM study. Until solid evidence exists that low-carbing will ruin my kidneys, give me pollution breath, make me a raving psychopath, or any of the other allegations that inevitably fall apart when scientifically researched, I'll stick to the way of eating that has given me so much.

Well, jeez, I wasn't the least bit irritable until I read that article...

Liz

Geez and people tell me I have been in a better mood since

One of the first things DH and I noticed when we started low-carbing was how calm and serene we both felt…………I had that overwhelming feeling of ‘well-being’ where I could just sit on the couch and stare out the window for half an hour without moving……none of that fidgeting and constant feet tapping. I can now hold my hand straight out in front of me without the slightest shaking too.

I'm in a wonderful mood.... and I'll thrash anyone that dares to tell me otherwise.

DH was prone to mood swings as his blood sugar levels fluctuated. Now, with a steady blood sugar level throughout the day due to lcing, he's much more amenable.
I, always a saint -), am as adorable as ever. However, since menopause is kicking in, I find those around me are behaving in imbecilic ways.

My choices then are:

Eat like I used to, gain back the 80lbs I lost, and be a jolly old ugly fat guy weighing in at 270.

or

Continue LCing, maintain my 190lbs and be a cranky, ugly old skinny guy.

I think I'll choose the latter ;) (got a problem that that eh????)

I thought the low-carb diet wasn't well documented and needed long term study. I wonder where all this data is?

Amazing! Grumpy...high anger levels! How will they attack us next?

I for one have never felt better or had a more consistent feeling of happiness than since I have been low-carbing! I wouldn't go back to the way I used to feel for anything!

Personnally, I feel great when I am eating properly. I have more motivation to excersize and am full of energy. I think there is big difference between "moody" and a real medical case of depression, bi-polar etc. Having a positive attitude can really help people who are always looking at the negative. Of course that is not very effective for people who have a medical illness. Some people are miserable because they choose to be, While some poor souls struggle with real disorders. I don't see how eating like crap, sitting on your ass and being unhappy about weight (something you can do something about) can make this better!