MarRissa Nelson

PSY1010
10/1/15
Mental illnesses affect a large portion of people around the world. According to
the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) mental illnesses affect over 26% of
Americans over the age of 18. Meaning adults are suffering from a mental illness or
have a diagnosis. That is an incredible number of people that are being affected by this
and many may not even know that what they are suffering from is an actual illness.
Many people close to me have also suffered from affects of mental illnesses and I
wanted to know more about these illnesses and what you can do to prevent serious
problems resulting from this.
I know there is a large range of mental illnesses but it is a very dominate gene in
my family and so many people have been or are affected by some sort of mental illness
in both my immediate and extended family. This is why I chose to focus on and learn
about how health choices affect mental illnesses. Some of the types I want to focus on
are depression, Schizophrenia, split personality disorder/bipolar, Attention Defecate
disorder, and eating disorders.
Depression in aging persons is very common (wardlaw 642-643). Although it also
affects people of all ages. In fact the average age to be diagnosed with depression is
32. Depression affects both woman and men but it is more common with woman. It
occurs when someone is experiencing major life changes. For example a death in the
family, starting a new job, high amounts of stress, lifestyle changes, not enough social
interaction, ect.

Schizophrenia is a brain disorder that one affected by it may hear voices,

withdraw themselves from reality into a world of fantasy, and have delusions in their
minds. It appears in late adolescence or early adulthood. Usually it develops earlier with
males. In a given year 2.4 million Americans are affected by Schizophrenia (NIMH.gov).
Symptoms may start out with feeling unsecure and feeling like people are out to get
you. Also so people experience what they think is visions or delusions in their heads.
Bipolar/Split personality Disorder are two disorders are very closely related. Both
have to do with behavior problems. It is common with both of these disorders that the
mood of a person can change very quickly from one extreme to the next. Symptoms
may include sadness, not wanting to do anything or be around others and emotionless.
Attention Defecate Disorder (ADD) is a disorder that affects ones ability to focus. There
is a couple of different types of ADD. One is Attention Defecate Hyper active
Disorder(ADHD). This is very common in adolescence and children. They become
unable to sit in one place for an extended period of time. This is especially bed for
children in school because it becomes difficult to learn when they are unable to sit in a
classroom for long periods of time.
Eating disorders affect more people that we realize. People suffering from this
disorder are not confident with the way their body and develop a pattern of unhealthy
choices to correct their lack of confidence. There are 3 main type of eating disorders
which are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder. All are very
serious disorders and if left untreated can lead to death very quickly. A person must eat
and drink water to sustain life. Anorexia nervosa Is a fear of being overweight causing

one to stop eating, refuses to eat enough to sustain good health, and aften workout
more than needed. Bulimia involves eating large portions at a time which is followed by
purging. Many people with bulimia are never really diagnosed and therefore it is left
untreated. Binge-eating disorder is very similar to bulimia in that a person has episodes
in which they binge and eat all they can. They lose control during these episodes and
become overweight and obese. Many who are affected by eating disorders are athletes.
Both men and woman develop eating disorders but it is more common that woman have
one of these issues (Wardlaw 463-486).
Many times the cause of mental illnesses is because of major life changes,
although it is different depending on the disorder or disease. For example depression
often starts when one is lonely. Schizophrenia on the other hand is an illness of the
brain and is often hereditary. Many things can onset mental illnesses. It differs
depending on the disease.
Medication is often prescribed for the specific illness. Some mental illnesses
never fully disappear. They are something that affects a person over a lifetime. Most
mental illnesses require therapy also. A person suffering from depression may be
advised to meet with a councilor who can help them get past what initially caused the
depression. Many of the mental illnesses can improve or worsted depending on diet.
For example a lack of vitamin B-6 can cause a person to start falling into depression.
Before one decides to see a doctor about what they may think is a form of depression
they need to first assess what they are consuming. They can increase their vitamin B-6
intake by simply eating bananas, avocados, chicken, and many meats. Vitamin B-6 is

known to help with depression. Many times when one is lacking the correct amount of
amino acids they begin having problems mentally because Amino acids are linked
together by chemical bonds. Reactions in the brain occur with different vitamins and
minerals. When one does not have these links or reactions occurring their mental
health starts suffering. A person that doesnt much protein needs to be especially
careful. They need to have a good variety and combination or different types or proteins.
Some proteins are not complete alone. They much be combined with other proteins to
become complete. A person suffering from eating disorders also needs to get help from
not only a doctor but perhaps a councilor and a dietitian. When one has been dealing
with eating disorders for long periods of time it can be harmful to their bodies to just
start doing the opposite of what they have been doing. They must have help adjusting
back to a healthy lifestyle. (Wardlaw Pg. 381-418, 207-208)
Preventing mental illnesses can be tricky because often it is part of a person
gene and it is hereditary. Although there are things we can do to make ourselves happy
and healthy. Getting plenty of sleep, eating a good diet with plenty of nutrients in it, and
getting out and exercising are all things that are going to affect your overall health. It is
proven that when a person is lacking in certain vitamins and minerals they are more
likely to become depressed (vitamin B-6).
I have learned how important it is that we are aware that mental illnesses and
psychological health is important. We need to be doing everything we can to prevent
future health problems for ourselves and our families. Mental health along with physical
health is very important. It is important that we take care of our physical health so that

our mental health can also follow good health patterns. It is also important to take
control without feeling ashamed if you may feel that you have a psychological or mental
health issue. Often people allow their mental health to go untreated because of
embarrassment which in turn actually makes it worst.

References:
1. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual on Mental
Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press,
1994.
2. Wegner, Schacter. Introducing Psychology: second edition. Worth
Publisher,2011.
3. U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates by Demographic Characteristics. Table 2:
Annual Estimates of the Population by Selected Age Groups and Sex for the United
States: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2004 (NC-EST2004-02) Source: Population Division,
U.S. Census Bureau Release Date: June 9, 2005.
http://www.census.gov/popest/national/asrh/
4. Kessler RC, Berglund P, Demler O, Jin R, Koretz D, Merikangas KR, Rush AJ,
Walters EE, Wang PS. The epidemiology of major depressive disorder: results from
the National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R). Journal of the American
Medical Association, 2003; Jun 18;289(23):3095-105.
5. Conwell Y, Brent D. Suicide and aging I: patterns of psychiatric
diagnosis. International Psychogeriatrics, 1995; 7(2): 149-64.
6. Wardlaw, Gordon M., and Anne M. Smith. Contemporary Nutrition: A
Functional Approach. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2009.
7. http://www.abc.net.au/health/thepulse/stories/2011/09/28/3326945.htm