According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4 out of the 10 leading causes of disability in the US and other developed countries are mental disorders. Major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) are among the most common mental disorders that currently plague numerous countries and have varying incidence rates from 26 percent in 

America to 4 percent in China. 

Though some of this difference may be attributable to the manner in which individual healthcare providers diagnose mental disorders, this noticeable distribution can be also explained by studies which show that a lack of certain dietary nutrients contribute to the development of mental disorders. Notably, essential vitamins, minerals, and omega-3 fatty acids are often deficient in the general population in America and other developed countries; and are exceptionally deficient in patients suffering from mental disorders. Studies have shown that daily supplements of vital nutrients often effectively reduce patients' symptoms. 

Supplements that contain amino acids also reduce symptoms, because they are converted to neurotransmitters that alleviate depression and other mental disorders. Based on emerging scientific evidence, this form of nutritional supplement treatment may be appropriate for controlling major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and anxiety disorders, eating disorders, attention deficit disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD), addiction, and autism. 

(Nutritional Journal)

 Nutritional therapies for mental disorders | Nutrition Journal | Full Text (biomedcentral.com) 

 According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, six out of every ten adults in the United States have at least one chronic disease, and about four in ten have two or more chronic diseases [1]. 

Chronic diseases, i.e., conditions that occur for at least one or more years and necessitate ongoing medical care, include diseases such as cardiovascular conditions, cancers, diabetes mellitus, and Alzheimer’s disease. These conditions are also among the leading causes of death globally, accounting for 70% of all deaths around the world [2,3,4].

Diet, often considered as a lifestyle factor, contributes to the development of many chronic conditions including obesity, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, stroke, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, some cancers, and perhaps some neurological diseases.

 Moreover, one medical condition, when present, often contributes to the development of other medical conditions, such as the impact of obesity or excess body weight/fat as a risk factor for conditions including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, and some cancers, among others. 

This Special Issue features research conducted by Ding and coworkers [5], which demonstrated significant associations between weight change during the different phases of adulthood and the risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. The authors reported that their findings, if causal, could translate to the prevention of about 73% of incident non-alcoholic fatty liver disease if individuals maintained a healthy body mass index across adulthood [5].

 Many people, over the course of their lives, have experienced acute stress, a dramatic physiological and psychological reaction to a specific event. Chronic stress, however, is a consistent sense of feeling pressured and overwhelmed over a long period of time.   Chronic stress is linked to other conditions, both psychological and physical. These can include:

• Diseases such as hypertension, heart disease, obesity and metabolic syndrome, Type II diabetes, and arthritis
• Addiction to alcohol, nicotine and/or prescription drugs, and behavioral-related such as addiction to the internet, food, or gambling
• Mood disorders and anxiety disorders, which are common secondary diagnoses for people with chronic stress

Hypertension, depression, addiction and anxiety disorders are the conditions most related to chronic stress.  

Yale Medicine’s stress management recommendations include:

• Exercising
• Eating healthy foods
• Learning time management techniques
• Setting realistic goals
• Getting more sleep
• Making time for leisure activities
• Building stress reduction skills
• Learning and practicing mindfulness (learning to control attention)

(Chronic Stress-Yale School of Medicine)