For decades, psychiatry has operated on the idea of chemical imbalances in the brain. Yet, we still lack a concrete understanding of how these imbalances directly cause symptoms. Psychiatric medications often come with unintended consequences, such as metabolic health issues, leaving a gap in truly effective treatment strategies. Dr. Georgia Ede challenges this paradigm by advocating for a more biologically sound approach: nutritional psychiatry.
Nutritional Psychiatry: Addressing Inflammation and Oxidative Stress
The connection between metabolic health and mental well-being is undeniable. Conditions like depression, anxiety, and even severe psychiatric disorders are closely tied to inflammation and oxidative stress in the brain. Refined carbohydrates and processed foods created neuro inflammation. These excess sugars literally sticks to proteins, DNAand lipids in the brain and become AGE’s responsible for premature ageing of the brain. These dysfunctional molecules triggers inflammatory cytokines cascades. Constant brain sugar spikes eventually create chronic uncontrolled oxidative stress and inflammation.
Dr. Ede emphasizes that we may be “destroying the brain from the inside out.” Her approach marries nutrition with metabolic health, creating a foundation for true mental health interventions.
It’s not just about feeding the brain; it’s about selecting foods that energize it. This shift in focus provides a roadmap for optimizing mental health.
Neurotransmitter imbalance and mental health conditions
Excessive inflammation through diet and other factors can lead to mental health issues. One example can be found with the neurotransmitter Tryptophan. Under normal circumstances, tryptophan is used to make serotonin and melatonin, but most of it travels down the kynurenine pathway which regulates key neutrotransmitters like glutamate (primary excitatory transmitter) and GABA (calming neurotransmitter). The balance between these two at any given time determines the brains overall activity level. But under the influence of oxidative stress and inflammation, we get the tryptophan steal where most of this neutransmitter travels down the lower branch of kynurenine pathway throwing things our of balance leading up to to 100 times more glutamate to glutamate excitoxicity. It directly damages structures in the brain, injuring the mitochondria, weakens the blood brain barrier and shrinks the cells of the hippocampus, the brains memory and learning centre.
The Blood Brain Paradox
The glucose level in your brain is always about 80% lower than the glucose in the blood. The higher the blood sugar, the higher the brain sugar. If you are insulin resistant, insulin will have a harder time crossing the blood brain barrier. This is a huge problem as without adequate insulin, the brain can’t process glucose. This leads to cerebral glucose hypometabolism ( or sluggish brain glucose processing). This is an energy crisis in the brain.
In Alzheimer’s research and several studies have shown that this is one of the driving reasons for neurodegeneration and Alzheimer’s. This very well-established connection between insulin resistance and psychiatric disorders has led to a new branch of psychiatry: metabolic psychiatry.
What does a ‘brain healthy’ diet need to do? According to Dr. Georgia Ed such a diet needs to: nourish the brain and contain all essential nutrients, exclude ingredients that damage the brin and energise the brain by providing reliable energy in ways that support healthy brain metabolism in a healthy range. Here are a few diets that support such a recommendation:
Rethinking Diets: Mediterranean vs. Paleo
The Mediterranean diet outperforms the standard American diet for depression as it does include some nourishing foods and discourage certain types of carbohydrate. While this diet has been praised for its health benefits, its starch-heavy food pyramid and inclusion of red wine may not align with optimal brain health. Wine is a well known neurotoxin and promoter of oxidative stress. Dr. Ede makes a compelling case for starting with a moderate-carbohydrate Paleo diet. By prioritizing low-risk foods like seafood, poultry, and eggs, we avoid overwhelming glucose levels—critical for children, teens, and adults alike.
What If Paleo Isn’t Enough? Enter Ketogenic Diets
Nutritional psychiatry recommends the ketogenic diet. For individuals with metabolic damage or sluggish brain glucose processing, a ketogenic adaptation of the Paleo diet can be transformative. By reducing carbohydrate intake to one’s metabolic tolerance, the body lowers insulin levels, enabling ketone production. Ketones, a powerful energy source for the brain, can significantly enhance mental clarity and resilience. Ketone burn well in a low insulin environment specially with those with insulin resistance. Please find Dr. Georgia Ede’s Scientific and Clinical rationale for Ketogenic Diets. This is a concise explanation for clinicians followed by a curated list of scientific citations with live links to learn more.
Quieting the Diet: Paleo-Keto-Carnivore Adjustments
Dr. Ede takes these diets even further, tailoring them to reduce the strain on insulin levels, the immune system, the gut, and the nervous system. By removing potentially aggravating foods like nuts (a common allergen) and nightshades (which can contain natural neurotoxins), she creates a “quiet” dietary framework that supports mental health with minimal trial and error.
Navigating Histamine Intolerance
For those with histamine intolerance, avoiding high-histamine foods like bacon, salami, and smoked salmon is crucial. Symptoms such as migraines, depression, and panic attacks often signal the need for dietary adjustments to better neutralize histamine in the body.
In 2022, Dr. Ede was involved in a publication of a paper in frontiers by Dr. Albert Danan a practising psychiatrist who carried out a retrospective analysis of 31 inpatients with epileptic and neurological conditions such as autism showed significant improvements with a ketogenic diet. Every patient improved both psychiatrically and metabolically and 43% of the patients achieved clinical remission from their psychiatric conditions.
Meet Dr. Georgia Ede
Dr. Georgia Ede is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist specializing in nutrition science and brain metabolism. With 25 years of clinical experience, including roles at Smith College and Harvard University Health Services, she was the first to offer students nutrition-based approaches as an alternative to psychiatric medications.
Dr. Ede is an internationally recognized speaker on dietary approaches to psychiatric disorders. She co-authored the first inpatient study of the ketogenic diet for treatment-resistant mental illnesses, developed the first accredited course in ketogenic diets for mental health practitioners, and received the Baszucki Brain Research Fund’s prestigious Metabolic Mind Award.
Her new book, Change Your Diet, Change Your Mind, released on January 30, 2024, explores groundbreaking nutritional strategies for improving mental health.
Take the First Step Toward Better Brain Health
Are you ready to transform your mental health through diet? Dr. Georgia Ede’s book, Change Your Diet, Change Your Mind, is a comprehensive guide to optimizing brain health with science-backed dietary interventions.
