Yes, you read it right. A little known fact about vitamin C is that it is an important mood booster. “Many people have heard about how vitamin C can help protect us during cold and flu season. But vitamin C can also protect against poor mental health,” he says. Dr Uma Naidoo, Harvard-trained psychiatrist, and professional chef. It’s a connection he touches on in his new book, This is your brain on food. Here, Dr. Naidoo explains the connection between vitamin C and mood, including how to make sure you’re getting enough to maintain your mental health.
How Vitamin C and Mood Are Connected
Dr. Naidoo explains that the main reason vitamin C improves mood is that it is essential for the production of neurotransmitters in the brain. Even if you haven’t gone all the way down the rabbit hole investigating how mood is regulated, chances are you’ve heard of the neurotransmitter dopamine. dopamine it is a “happy” brain chemical related to making us feel energized and plays a vital role in the brain’s pleasure and reward systems. Dr. Naidoo explains that not getting enough vitamin C can cause dopamine levels to drop. Scientific studies also show that vitamin C helps convert dopamine into another neurotransmitter called norepinephrine. When norepinephrine levels are low, it can lead to feeling depressed or anxious.
“These neurotransmitters govern things like mood and cognition, as well as protecting the brain from inflammation,” says Dr. Naidoo. She explains that this is important because many mental health conditions are related to having underlying inflammation. This is exactly why more psychiatrists start prescribing anti-inflammatory foods to their patients. “One of the keys to managing mental health is to focus on the gut,” says Dr. Naidoo. “The connection between the mind and the gut is strong, so it’s important to protect the gut from inflammation, and vitamin C can help with that.”
Dr. Naidoo says that another way vitamin C is related to mood is because it affects our energy levels. “When the body is inflamed, this puts stress on the body; it requires energy to protect and fight inflammation,” he explains. “So when inflammation is reduced, you can also expect your energy to improve.” If you’ve ever experienced a bad bout of digestive upset, you know how powerless it can feel. The same thing happens when your body is fighting off a nasty cold. So even though vitamin C has no calories, it makes sense that it still affects energy levels.
How to Get Enough Vitamin C to Benefit Your Mental Health
Of course, there are many factors that influence one’s mood; vitamin C is just one. So how do you know if that is What is the problem you need to focus on to improve your mental health? Dr. Naidoo says that if you constantly feel depressed or anxious, it’s important to talk to a doctor and therapist. A therapist can help see what factors outside of your health may be influencing your mood. A doctor, Dr. Naidoo says, can do a clinical evaluation for low vitamin C (and other nutrients) to find out if that might be playing a role. For example, being deficient in vitamin D can also affect someone’s mood.
If your doctor tells you that you need to increase your vitamin C, the good news is that it’s relatively easy to do so. The key is knowing which foods are the best sources. Dr. Naidoo says that, in general, he wants to try to come between 65 milligrams and 90 milligrams of vitamin C per day. “There are so many foods that can help you achieve this,” she says. Some that he often recommends to patients are citrus fruits, red bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli.
A single orange has 82 milligrams of vitamin C—the value of a whole day. a pepper has 342 milligramsa serving of Brussels sprouts has 85 milligramsand a serving of broccoli has 89 milligrams. See how easy it is to have enough?
Again, vitamin C is not the only factor that affects mood. Heck, it’s not even the only nutrient that affects mood. But if you’re not getting enough vitamin C, it can certainly lead to a drop in both mood and energy. That means it’s something to make sure you’re getting enough all the time, not just when you’re sick. When you eat foods rich in vitamin C, your entire body will benefit, including your brain!
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