Hi all

As you may know, I am posting my raw food blog on this site and also on a diabetes forum.

Someone on the diabetes forum has very kindly suggested that the reason why I get such awful sugar and starch cravings is because the serotonin in my brain is getting low. The way he expressed it made a lot of sense to me.

I'm now wondering how I can get more serotonin from a raw food diet, as I had always connected serotonin with starchy carbs, which obviously I am not eating on raw.

Any suggestions, please?

Many thanks

Claire

There was actually a study done that said eight hugs a day boosted your seratonin levels!

I don't know about foods that promote seratonin levels, but a lot of starches/pastas/rices have a very opiate/sedative effect, so I could see how this would naturally interfere with seratonin production. Same with stimulants. I don't know what your daily food intake looks like, but maybe this is something to consider?

Are you getting enough calories from sweet fruit? Eating more sweet fruit, once your body adjusts, will annihilate almost any craving.

It's also been proven that exercise... and good old lovin' ^.^;;... are very good for seratonin as well.

I was god awful depressed before I went raw, which has a lot to do with seratonin, and just by sticking to raw, it balanced itself out naturally within a month.

Good luck!

Hi Claire,

I also struggled with out of balance serotonin levels that I think were due to over 25 years of very chronic weed smoking. I took a supplement called 5HTP which really seemed to help a lot. I don't think it's anything that needs to be taken for a prolonged period of time. I would do it for two months and then stop for 4-5 months. I think it helps your brain get back into serotonin balance. At any rate, it might be something to investigate.

good luck

Aloha Nui Loa,

Greg

A great many people think they are thinking when they are really rearranging their prejudices. - William James

There is no pill that can be swallowed,
There is no guru, that can be followed, - Michael Franti (Pray For Grace)

The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion. - Albert Camus

A couple of meandings on 5-HT et alia. I did years of extensive research at Princeton University on Serotonin and its function (try Googling "princeton paul o'neill serotonin". Basically it does everything - everything stabilizing, that is.

But, to quote myself..."Everything in moderation, including excessiveness."

So, instead of loading up on 5-HT only, you might want to mix in a little CNS rocket fuel,....

...Any guesses on what that is?

Well, there is one MAJOR excitatory neurotransmitter for us (and many/most higher order vertebrates)....and ....it ....is...

Glutamate.

MSG might seem "bad for you".....if you've been living a spirituallly/mentally/etc. sedentary life....

....but...if you're ready to get off the couch, so to speak,....and learn to walk, run, skip and dance....

do a little investigating here as well as with 5-HT.

Love,
Paul

[www.oneillpaul.com-a.googlepages.com]

Oh, Paul. You tortured cats, didn't you!

I am a member of Dave's Garden (http://www.davesgarden.com) as well. There was a recent post citing a research study on seratonin levels in soils being secreted by soil microbes. The study suggested gardening without gloves in rich soil.
Pretty neat!
Eric

Bananas are good for serotonin.

Rob

--
Rob Hull - Funky Raw
My blog: [www.rawrob.com]

Thanks everyone for your responses - much appreciated!

Claire

huhuhuhu.... funny, Arugula!

tryptophan i believe is the precursor to the neurotransmitter serotonin, and it is present in all fresh raw fruits and veggies. i believe a balanced diet helps provide adequate levels of serotonin in your head along with exercise and um... good friends, loves, and lovers.