Actually, I find it to be quite the opposite.

Grains actually make me dopey and if I eat too many, I will get a kind of 'mood crash'.

It seems similar to what the guy said on, "Supersize Me". How, if he didn't eat for a while, there would be 'withdrawal symptoms', like headache, a downswing and cravings for the causative food.

My son also is affected by grain this way... so I'm thinking it's a genetic thing.

Oddly, though the world seems to really promote wholegrains, we've found that they are the worst culprits for causing depression. (Gluten grains are an absolute 'no' for us but even wholegrain rice that can cause carsickness in my son, can also bring us down a notch or two in energy, brain-function and mood.)

We have not noticed the same with fruit or veggies... so I don't think it's a 'carb' thing so much with us as a 'grain/starch' thing. (Potatoes can make us headachey and have joint pain too.)

Hi KimS,
Are you including rice when you say, "grain"?

I have a similar reaction when I eat corn... I forget what else.

But brown rice has been just a wonderful find for my health.

Yes, any grain can affect us. It is especially noticeable in my one son and myself.

That's interesting. From reading on Celiac and Gluten forums I was under the impression that others as well as myself could eat rice without the reactions associated with other grains, like wheat.

Thanks for relating your experience.

There are many people who have depressive issues/stressors...and they typically crave carbohydrates. Even Oprah (who I don't like to quote really) says mashed potatoes are one of hers.

That is one issue.

Then there is the issue of consuming a large % of calories at one meal only in carbs. Statistics show that only about 25% of people can handle this. Have stable insulin responses. 75% cannot. I'll never forget the day my son's roommate came on vacation with us for 2 wks. For breakfast he ate 1/2 box of cereal. ( I was not prepared for this on an island 13 miles from a mom and pop grocery). And he was THIN...and we just stared at him A box of GF cereal lasts me a month sometimes. In fact if I can't sleep, I'll have some at 2am and it is guaranteed to put me back "out". We eat protein for breakfast in contrast. But this response is not the same as the depression question posed here.

A large carbo meal (pasta, grains, sugar) will sedate most Americans. This is because a huge insulin spike occurs and that leads to sleepiness.
Being sleepy is not the same as being "depressed".

One side effect of the Atkins diet...high protein/high fat was to create an alert response. In fact it made some people downright mean!

MrsD is right, sleepy/dopey is a different thing. The depression sets in is a feeling of being a useless human being. For us it starts with a sleepy/dopey feeling and then can be followed by a 'useless human being not worth being loved' feeling. It takes only molecular levels of gluten for this to happen. However, large quantities of grain being ingested can steer the mood in this direction... just not to the same degree (in our case).

Gluten grains are the worst and if anyone reads at a celiac site about one of the symptoms that many people use to know they've been glutened, it's that an unexplained sadness sets in. For us, it is very clearly a brain chemistry thing that really goes downhill fast and is quite bad (and seemingly unexplainable). However, we now know that we have to be absolutely vigilant about even the tiniest levels of gluten because it can change our whole day in a matter of 1/2 an hour. I know other people who have to check back on their food for the previous 48 hours though.

People with gluten intolerance often have mood issues, we are told, because gluten causes malabsorption and therefore our vitamin and mineral levels are not great. I am not so quick to adopt that theory though because we react so quickly to it.

Other grains, like brown rice, etc. do not seem to cause as 'sharp' a downswing in mood... nowhere near it actually... But it still does cause a small downswing. Often if I run into a person who is fairly *religious* about their paleo diet, I like to ask why they gave up grain. The general answer is that it made them feel "really bad". This makes me think that my son and I are not as odd as I first thought we were.

That's really interesting. I have some similar feelings when I'm low on B12, and stress can lower my B12 level quite significantly.

When you say, Gluten grains, what do you mean? Do you know anything about chia seeds, and where they fit in? (I got pretty sick last summer as a result of eating them.) For me, brown rice is a life saver.

I forgot to ask: is "paleo diet" related to a time long ago?

hope you don't mind. If you stir fry some veggies- I like to use fresh spinach, peppers, onion, mushroom and season salt, put this over the brown rice and sprinkle with some of your favorite cheese you have a healthy meal. This cuts down on the amount of carbs and adds some protein. When possible carbs and protein should be eaten together.Carose

(I must confess I am organizing my life here a bit now, since I have retired..)

And I am rereading it because of this thread. It is just excellent and explains how low serotonin levels lead to carb cravings. And how amino acids get into the brain to make the various neurotransmitters, etc.

Title:
Food & Mood: The Complete Guide to Eating Well and Feeling Your Best, Second Edition (Paperback)
by Elizabeth Somer (Author) M.A. R.D, Nancy Snyderman (Preface) "What a miracle you are!..."

It is available on Amazon used starting at $3.18..and up.
$12.92 new

It is designed for the layman, easy language, many easy to read graphs and tables. It is over 400 pgs long, with a good bibliography.
It goes into carbs, proteins, nutrients, and how to balance them for desired mood control, and energy.
There is a list 3 pages long on all the hormones and peptides in the body and how they influence hunger/satiety. It's the most complete list I have ever seen!

So Kimmy and others here I strongly recommend you check it out of the library if yours has it, or order whichever version you can afford.
It has all the vitamins in it and other supplements (like Omega-3s), and some other surprises in it, including food choices.
Mine is the Second edition. (which is completely revised and updated)

You can read more about the book at Amazon.com
All of the reviews by others who have shared their opinions on the website, are all very favorable.

Gluten grains include, wheat, rye, barley and oats.

Chia seeds are gluten free.

The paleo. diet is a 'living off the land' type of diet and many people think it is the way humans "originally" ate.

Brown rice is great for some people. I have heard that many times.

There are people who do not do well with *any* wholegrains though (no one seems to really know why)... and wholegrains are often not even considered to be a possible culprit with problems like headaches and depression. That's why I like to mention them to be involved that way with us.

For 35 years, I suffered headaches/migraines and muscle spasms. I spent thousands of dollars on chiropractors, drugs, physiotherapy (some doctors believed it was stress) and one psychiatrist. These were all good people who helped me the only way they knew how to. Some achieved temporary results which were a relief but it meant that I was looking at a lifetime of therapy.

Then, something else happened in my life and I decided to do an elimination diet. I was like a new person, with a new lease on life!!! Grains were my biggest offender. Now, no therapy, no headaches, no muscle spasms, etc.

Most books promote wholegrains, even if they're gluten free. Wholegrains really just don't work well for some people though.

It's been six years for me, and I'll never look back. I'm in better shape over 40 than I was at 30!

I'll be looking into getting that book MrsD. It sounds really interesting! Thanks for the reference.