Schizophrenia – Food Triggers to Avoid

Schizophrenia – Food Triggers to Avoid

While many factors influence mental health, food does play a role in too. You must note what you eat and what triggers your mood because one wrong food can easily set you off onto a path of mental effects. You should add foods to your diet that cause a mood boost and do not end up leaving you restless. The four foods listed below should be completely avoided, especially for schizophrenia patients.

1. Wheat
This is one of the most avoided foods on the gluten-free diet list. However, if you have celiac intolerance or have been diagnosed with celiac disease, then this is one of the main components to avoid along with any of its related varieties. If you end up consuming wheat in any form, you may be causing strain to your body which may further impact mental health. Before you get started on eliminating wheat from your diet, it is best to get a doctor to consult if you have celiac disease.

2. Carbs
This is one of the go-to foods for those who want to pick an alternative for wheat. However, this is really not something you should do without checking with your doctor first. There have been reports that show how a low carb diet, especially a ketogenic diet, is a great option for those wanting to keep schizophrenia in check and provide relief from or reduce many symptoms. On the other hand, if you suddenly switch to a carb-free diet, then you will need to note that you could experience “carb flu”, which is a phase where symptoms could get really worse before they start getting any better.

3. Desserts
When you are trying to cut out carbs, the best place to start is sugar. You need to note that sugar is not the source of any mental health problems, but they are known to cause major mood imbalances and can result in memory impairment. This can end up aggravating your schizophrenic symptoms to a great extent. You can take a conscious step to cut down the use of sugars, especially the added sugars.

4. Cheese
This is one food that is known to cause inflammation and this has a direct impact on your body. Those who have a better tolerance to dairy may not be impacted by the consumption of cheese, but two in three adults tend to have some form of lactose intolerance and this could be the possible root of all your troubles when you consume cheese. The best way to gauge if this has any direct impact on your mental health is to stay away from it for a while before ruling it out of your diet completely.

The major problem to identify foods that affect schizophrenic patients can be quite challenging because not everyone reacts the same way to every food. The best to pick and eliminate the ones that directly impact a person is to stay away from or keep in moderation those foods that are known to be trouble causers. This could be a start to controlling those triggers and symptoms.