Depressed? Easy on the steak

In March 2010, French researchers found that cooking beef lead to a significant degradation of tyrosine and tryptophan in meat.

Why should you care? Because these are two critical amino acids which help fight off depression.

Why care about tyrosine?

• Tyrosine is an amino acid which is a precursor to the neurotransmitter dopamine.
• Dopamine deficiencies have been linked with depression (and sugar cravings).
• Here’s the thing: depressed people are often told to eat more tyrosine-rich foods. However, most go-to tyrosine foods are animal proteins – steak, fish, etc.
• Of course, everyone who eats meat cooks it first – which we now know strips the food of the tyrosine that they were trying to get in the first place.

Why care about tryptophan?

• Tryptophan is an essential amino acid which functions as a biochemical precursor for the neurotransmitter serotonin.
• Serotonin deficiencies have been linked to depression.
• Serotonin is often recommended as a supplement to depressed individuals, typically in the form of animal proteins. As this research shows, it’s better to get tryptophan from raw, plant-based foods.

Eat these instead to get your tyrosine:

• Raw almonds
• Raw avocadoes
• Raw pumpkin seeds
• Raw sesame seeds
• E3 Live Blue-Green Algae

Eat these instead to get your tryptophan:

• Raw cacao
• Sprouted Oats
• Raw Sesame seeds
• Sprouted chickpeas
• Raw Sunflower seeds
• Raw Pumpkin seeds
• Spirulina
• Bananas
• Sprouted lentils

We’re currently developing an advanced retreat program at the House of Verona to help depressed individuals. If you’d like to hear more about this, click here. Thanks!