Treatment Centers

Turns out if taking drugs makes you feel sane, you might not be crazy. Sacramento nutrition expert and executive director of the Community Addiction Recovery Association (CARA), Carolyn Reuben, believes that some drug addicts seek drugs to fill voids left by poor diets and nutrition. The role of proper health and nutrition is gaining attention because of the role it plays in both the prevention and recovery of drug and alcohol addictions.

This topic is nothing new, however. For the last 50 years, research has supported the connection between nutrition and drug use; the idea is that chemical imbalances are worsened by malnutrition. CARA’s work stems from research conduced by CSU Stanislaus Professor Stephen Schoenthaler, PhD. In 1985, he discovered that high sugar levels coupled with vitamin and mineral deficiencies helped exacerbate prison violence. In fact, prisoners who received daily multivitamins exhibited a reduction in violent behavior up to 43 percent.

The concept that proper nutrition plays a role in decreasing drug use is successful enough that Reuben has joined with Sacramento’s Adult Drug Court to help integrate health and nutrition into the recovery process. Here, drug offenders are required to take nutrition and cooking classes. As part of their treatment, they also take regular vitamins and supplements that help balance their body levels of amino acids. Reuben contends that when there is an imbalance of these amino acids, the brain does not function normally.

She addresses several types of chemical imbalances that are precursors for mood disorders and addiction. For example, a lack of serotonin may cause a person to feel anxious, depressed, short-tempered, angry, and even suicidal. Low serotonin levels are also found in those suffering from fibromyalgia. For this group, Reuben recommends the supplements L-tryptophan and 5-HTP.

Reuben states that there is a nutritional fix for most bio-chemical imbalances. Those who use to feel ‘normal’ might simply be deficient in some amino acid, vitamin or mineral. She states that many deficiencies can be counteracted though diet and supplements such as fish oil and vitamins C and B. The opposite is also true – an addiction may cause a vitamin deficiency. Chronic alcohol abuse, for instance, keeps the body from properly absorbing fat soluble vitamins such as A, E and D.

The drug an individual chooses to use may also be an indication of his or her chemical imbalance. Meth users may replace a lack in certain amino acids with meth, not knowing that it is this imbalance that is driving them to use. On the other hand, food might be the drug of choice for some with low levels of endorphins.

 

 

Reuben states that we seek to equalize the imbalance we feel when our dopamine or ‘feel good’ levels are out of whack – and that can lead to all sorts of fixes including compulsive behaviors and drug and alcohol addictions.

While many factors contribute to a person’s decision to use drugs or alcohol, poor nutrition certainly doesn’t help matters any. It can exacerbate pre-existing chemical imbalances, and will continue to hinder the progress of recovery for addicts. As addictive substances alter the brain’s response to pleasure, restoration in the form of proper nutrition is not to be ignored.