Young adults with a poor diet saw a significant improvement in their symptoms of depression when they switched to a healthy Mediterranean diet, a new study shows.
The 12-week randomized control trial, conducted by researchers from the University of Technology Sydney, was recently published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
The study contributes to the emerging field of nutritional psychiatry, which aims to explore the effect that specific nutrients, foods and dietary patterns can have on mental health. The diet used in the study was rich in colorful vegetables, legumes and wholegrains, oily fish, olive oil and raw, unsalted nuts. The primary focus was on increasing diet quality with fresh wholefoods while reducing the intake of 'fast' foods, sugar and processed red mea.
"There are lots of reasons why scientifically we think food affects mood. For example, around 90 percent of serotonin, a chemical that helps us feel happy, is made in our gut by our gut microbes. There is emerging evidence that these microbes can communicate to the brain via the vagus nerve, in what is called the gut-brain axis. To have beneficial microbes, we need to feed them fiber, which is found in legumes, fruits and vegetables," they said.
Amaranth extract goes head to head with beet as nitrate source
Arjuna Natural (India), May 6, 2022
A number of studies have established that nitrate, a nitric oxide metabolite, is beneficial for endurance during exercise. However, this bioavailability study, published in the journal Nutrition, was the first clinical trial to show that extract of amaranthus - one of the sources of nitrite in nature - can help athletes work out longer and harder. The researchers found that a single (2g) dose of amaranth extract was able to increase nitrate (NO3) and nitrite (NO2) levels in the body for at least eight hours.
Until now, sports nutrition manufacturers have typically incorporated beetroot powder and juice into formulations in order to support nitrate levels. These findings give this market a new, more potent form of nitrate to work with, according to botanical extracts manufacturer Arjuna, whose interest in amaranthus stems from its traditional use in Indian medicine and cooking.
By comparison, he said that amaranthus was a far more “potent” form of nitrate for sports nutrition applications.
“It’s standardised to 9-10% nitrate content, whereas most beet-based ingredients contain less than 2% nitrate,” he told NutraIngredients.
Arjuna attributes this to its patent production process, which extracts 9,000mg per 100g of nitrate from the leaves of the amaranthus species.
Another advantage over its beet-based counterparts is that it doesn’t contain any reducing sugars and oxalates.
