5 ms·

I'm curious if the author has ever been in therapy. I would never say food + sleep + exercise is a substitute for professional medical advice.

jb1991 3y ago
It’s obviously hyperbole. It makes a point about how to improve your mental health by taking care of your physical health.
Uptrenda 3y ago
There's quite a lot of truth to it though. Exercise (the right kind) has comparable effects to anti-depressants. It can help people with very hard to treat depression manage symptoms. It improves cognition and induces neurogenesis. Sleep. It's quite a curious fact but after a person experiences sleep deprivation their dopamine and serotonin levels spike. It's been noted that this helps with depression. Psychiatrists have observed the relationship between sleep and mental health and used sleep modulation to treat bipolar. They call it triple chrono therapy 'sleep deprivation for 36 h, followed by 4 days of advancing the time of sleep and daily morning bright-light therapy for 6 months) has demonstrated benefits for the rapid treatment of depressive symptom.' So that's an interesting example of using sleep as a way to treat illness. The more common knowledge is that having poor sleep negatively effects mood and cognition. If you look at so-called 'biohackers' the number one thing they seem to emphasize is sleep. Because if you have poor sleep it's infinitely harder to manage every other aspect of your life. Never mind exercising or eating well. You're not going to feel like doing anything. The last one -- diet. In those with mental disorders its interesting to note that the prevalence of nutrition deficiencies is much higher than the general population. I've seen some interesting takes on the potential role that nutrition may play in mental health. There are some that say that some of these illnesses may be caused by potential issues with absorbing nutrients. While others say that specific diets have managed to cure seemingly incurable disorders. There does seem to be evidence of direct dietary ties as a kind of treatment for mental disorders. One of the most important medications in psychiatry, lithium, might also be an essential micronutrient. It seems the more we understand about diet, sleep, and exercise, the more important they actually become for maintaining mental health. Though the specifics do matter.
- agubelu 3y ago
  What would be the "wrong" kind of exercise?
  - reaperman 3y ago
    Something that injures you. But also any long-term routine that lacks an aerobic component. Aerobic aspects of exercise are particularly important for most of the mental health benefits[0]. 0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurobiological_effects_of_physical_exercise https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurobiological_effects_of_phy...
paxys 3y ago
Physical health is important to mental health. Yes "eat better" and "sleep more" is terrible advice for someone who is clinically depressed, but I'd wager that these basic habits will measurably improve the life of most people reading this.
ebiester 3y ago
This is for a different audience. A gap in food, sleep, or exercise in someone who has no pre-existing mental health problems will reduce productivity and can induce or exacerbate a mental health decline. Founders tend to start skipping these and it's a good reminder that these are important. People with pre-existing mental health problems should absolutely look to food, sleep, and exercise to prevent exacerbating their problems, but this is not sufficient.

jb1991 3y ago

It’s obviously hyperbole. It makes a point about how to improve your mental health by taking care of your physical health.

Uptrenda 3y ago

There's quite a lot of truth to it though. Exercise (the right kind) has comparable effects to anti-depressants. It can help people with very hard to treat depression manage symptoms. It improves cognition and induces neurogenesis. Sleep. It's quite a curious fact but after a person experiences sleep deprivation their dopamine and serotonin levels spike. It's been noted that this helps with depression. Psychiatrists have observed the relationship between sleep and mental health and used sleep modulation to treat bipolar. They call it triple chrono therapy 'sleep deprivation for 36 h, followed by 4 days of advancing the time of sleep and daily morning bright-light therapy for 6 months) has demonstrated benefits for the rapid treatment of depressive symptom.' So that's an interesting example of using sleep as a way to treat illness. The more common knowledge is that having poor sleep negatively effects mood and cognition. If you look at so-called 'biohackers' the number one thing they seem to emphasize is sleep. Because if you have poor sleep it's infinitely harder to manage every other aspect of your life. Never mind exercising or eating well. You're not going to feel like doing anything. The last one -- diet. In those with mental disorders its interesting to note that the prevalence of nutrition deficiencies is much higher than the general population. I've seen some interesting takes on the potential role that nutrition may play in mental health. There are some that say that some of these illnesses may be caused by potential issues with absorbing nutrients. While others say that specific diets have managed to cure seemingly incurable disorders. There does seem to be evidence of direct dietary ties as a kind of treatment for mental disorders. One of the most important medications in psychiatry, lithium, might also be an essential micronutrient. It seems the more we understand about diet, sleep, and exercise, the more important they actually become for maintaining mental health. Though the specifics do matter.

agubelu 3y ago
What would be the "wrong" kind of exercise?
- reaperman 3y ago
  Something that injures you. But also any long-term routine that lacks an aerobic component. Aerobic aspects of exercise are particularly important for most of the mental health benefits[0]. 0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurobiological_effects_of_physical_exercise https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurobiological_effects_of_phy...

paxys 3y ago

Physical health is important to mental health. Yes "eat better" and "sleep more" is terrible advice for someone who is clinically depressed, but I'd wager that these basic habits will measurably improve the life of most people reading this.

ebiester 3y ago

This is for a different audience. A gap in food, sleep, or exercise in someone who has no pre-existing mental health problems will reduce productivity and can induce or exacerbate a mental health decline. Founders tend to start skipping these and it's a good reminder that these are important. People with pre-existing mental health problems should absolutely look to food, sleep, and exercise to prevent exacerbating their problems, but this is not sufficient.