Depression link to processed food

Conversion to organic food/living made all the difference for my healing. It was like coming out of a haze. Now GMO's... that concerns me too.

Interesting findings, What is the definition of processed food though?

Is not any thing we cook processed in the end? 

I suppose Müsli is part of the whole food category and soup would be processed. 

Economics do play a very big role here as you said your self and I suppose that depression may be a combination of many negative factors coming together at the same time.

Any form of abuse will make it worth. Food is part of the equation and maybe along genetics and environment the largest part.

I find it amazing that Americans consume so much processed food. I'm guilty of consuming it myself. Some of the worst stuff is the "meat" that's purchased in supermarket deli sections and what we put in sandwiches. I heard somewhere that in Italy, some of the tour buses won't allow McDonalds food because it stinks up the bus and smells like poop! HA!

Pre-pocessed food of fast food has no valuable ingredients and per definition doesn't provide any resistance against infections (swine flue), it is sterile food that doesn't give the energy one should need. It creates fat that in the end leads to obesity. The stomag requires every time more of that, which makes people hungry and eat even more processed food. Those marketing guys are more clever than one generally may think. I can speak and tell about, because one of my companies was involved in this process, finally I sold it off.  Good for business but bad for your health. Better eat vegetables and fruit with real meat from the butcher, not from the supermarket that's all salted and prepared for maximum shelf life but not the life of the consumer!

Socio-economic factors definitely play a role here.  Nowadays there are many contradicting studies.  There seems to be one daily.

Having said that obivously fresh food and fruit and veggies are the answer.

Dieticians recommend that we rate our plate, to contain approximatel 1/4 meat, 1/4 starch and 1/2 veggies.

In addition the number of units of fruit and veggies as recommended by the Canada Food Guide.

Again for socio economic reasons that is not possible for a lot of people.

I would also include in the processed food department fresh fruits and vegies that are laced with pesticides, and milk that contains growth hormone and antibiotics.

And of course GMOs.

The key word is processed. No one can ever be totally sure what it is processed with. There in lies the problem.

Indeed Rory there is another wasting aspect to processed food too. That is the shelve life date.

Many products have a longer shelve life than the date on the package indicates. Shop owners by law are forbidden to sell it and most of this food is dumped. In crisis time this food may go to crisis centers where it is distributed under the poor for free. Its mind boggling to calculate the waste, but for sure in money terms it is enormous, and guess who is paying for this waste? You and me all of us! But get that message across to authorities to make the shelve-life axiom more flexible is not in the cards.

if food is already processed than our bodies have little processing to do, so it is understandable that the depressive function of this can carry through to our state of mind  'we are what we eat' thank you for this informative post

Processing foods can break down the valuable ingredients and even remove some.  Shelf life is increased by the introduction of chemical additives, and similar to other disturbances like ADD can be a contributor to some forms of mental illness like depression that is discussed here. 

I would also posit that depressed individuals might not consider a healthy diet as fastidiously as a well person.  Therefore, they would chose fast foods and processed foods that don't require as much preparation as cooking from scratch.  So, its a matter of do the foods cause the depression or does the depression effect food choices.   

Whole foods such as grains and rice do keep, but they might have a shorter shelf life than processed foods that are combined with chemicals.  White rice can keep indefinitely if stored properly, and archeologists have found it in digs several thousand years old.  Brown rice, on the other hand, has shorter life because it is not processed and still contains some oils that can become rancid.  It keeps for only about 3 months in cool and dry place. 

Boxed cereals keep unopened for 8-10 months, if opened about 3 months.  Oatmeal will keep for one year if stored in an air tight container. 

I buy boxed soy products, but they do not contain chemicals except for citric acid, and all ingredients are organically grown.  It's possible to buy some boxed products that are for the most part chemical free, but caveat emptor needs to be in effect.    

generaldecay food that has surpassed its sell-by date is in most cases long thereafter still fit for consumption. I made myself several times over tests, because one of my businesses was in the equipment for food processing. We discovered that food packaged and conserved in glass and tins do have an almost unlimited period of storage and still being fit for consumption. We tested for example condensed milk and meat in tins after 5 years and those were still consumable without any negative effect. It are most of the time the bureaucrats without any specific knowledge about food conservation that write the laws, and that are passed into law by politicians who even know less about. It is really shameful that unnecessary 'good food' is destroyed and the industry and finally the consumer is saddled up with unnecessary additional expenses.

PIM

A person I lived with on a farm for a while as a child canned and preserved all kinds of foods. They lived in an old farm house, and your comments reminded me of an incident with canned jelly and fruit.  The house was built in the 19th century and had a root cellar.  When I was playing around outside one day--I was 8 at the time--I found a very small door on the side of house behind some bushes.  Of course, I had to open it, but it was too dark, so I asked my caretaker if I could have a flashlight to look inside.  She said, I didnt need to because it was just a root cellar, and there wasnt anything in there.  I told her I thought I saw jars inside, but wasnt sure.  She gave in and said okay, lets look. 

There were jars of preserved fruit in jars and jelly. The jelly was sealed with wax, but had retained its color.  We opened it up and tasted the jelly.  It did have some crystals on the top, but underneath was delicious jelly.  We have no idea how long it was there because she had lived there for years.  There were apricots and peaches, and they were good as well. 

I agree, glass and tins can last a long time. 

Medications similarly have disgard dates, but I have taken an anti-histamine that was ten years old and worked fine. 

Good experience a211423. And nicely worded. You could write a children's story about! You will become the next J.K. Rowling the writer of Harry Potter!

Our ancestors new more about food conservation than many of us do today. In WWII we came through the hunger winter of 1944/45 thanks to the same procedure of food conservation.

Thank you PIM for your generous comments.

I love to can food, but it is out of fashion these days because most people use their freezers.  However, it is a known fact that preserving through canning and dehydration is the most economical form of preserving food because no energy source is required for storing, and you don't have to worry about the electricity going out and losing hundreds of dollars worth of food. 

I still can fruits and vegetables and make my own relish, jelly and jam.  My family has always loved canned fruits since they were babies and now as adults I try and can their favorites.  Jalapeno jelly is their favorite!  

If it were not for this drought we are having, I would have a pantry full of canned tomatoes and green beans and peas, but the water outlook here is dim for being able to garden in the future like I did in the past. : ( 

For watering don't you use drip tubes, it is an Israelian invention from years ago. Very little water is used, because the water drops are administered right at the roots of the plants. We use it here as well quite successfully and saving large amounts of water.

I'm astonished that canned food isn't on sale anymore. In Europe it still is obtainable especially at the Tesco style discount stores. Fish canneries are very much in operation and their products can be kept for up to 10 years if stored in a cellar. I still do have some tins with fish about 10 years out of consumption date, but the content still is tasty (sardines and tuna) not even a taste of the tin itself that sometimes occur.

I have used drip irrigation in the past, but since I moved here several years ago, I have not used it, but its a good suggestion.  This house came with a huge front yard with grass and a sprinkler system, and to keep it looking lush in the summer, I have to water almost every day or at least every other day.  This summer I watered twice a week just to keep it alive to conserve water, but it looked awful all summer. 

I hope you didnt misunderstand what I said about "canning."  I meant home canning is out of fashion, not canned good in the stores.