Depression-Free for Life: A Physician's All-Natural, 5-Step Plan [Paperback]

The book starts by defining depression and discussing the major types (such as major depression, manic depression, and some others), talks about how anti-depressant drugs such as prozac & MAO inhibitors work, then launches into Gabriel Cousens' five-step approach.

The fivefold approach is basically: <1> amino acid precursors are used to build up the brain chemistry, then <2> he adds vitamin/mineral supplements, <3> essential fatty acids, <4> dietary advice, and <5> lifestyle factors (touch, support, spiritual connection, counseling, etc.) By far, the main emphasis on the book is about the biochemistry of depression, as the last section on the lifestyle factors (<5>) is very brief in relation to the rest of the information in the book.

Along the way, there are checkpoints (that easily stand out, for reference) which you will need to determine which supplements will likely be the most effective for your style of depression.

Some of the stuff in this book is truly new material. The information on optimizing the diet for your specific metabolism (slow or fast oxidizer) is new, and since blood sugar is a major component in overcomming depression, it is very welcome. This is the most mainstream of Gabriel's books, so he does not spend any time going over the benefits of raw foods, and though he does suggest a mostly vegetarian diet, he does not stress it very heavily here. Nevertheless, the diet section has lots of vegan raw-food recipes that are used at the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center, for those who are interested in that lifestyle.

I understood after reading this book why I feel much less depressed during the day when I have sunflower seed meal for breakfast - it has to do with my fast oxidation metabolism combined with the seratonin boosting properties of sunflower seeds. (I discovered that I felt better eating sunflower seeds before I read the book, so it was a pleasure to read the book to discover why that meal is so effective for me.)

Gabriel breaks it down into two categories... fast and slow oxidizers, when speaking of the proper diet. There's a questionairre, which makes it very easy for you to discover which type you are.

There is also a section on nutrients for the brain, nervous system, and those that may elevated the mood. However, much like the diet, there are certain nutrients that will help certain kind of imbalances, and not others. Might sound complicated, but the information is thorough enough to make anyone understand it.

Last but not least, there are recommendations to help overcome self destructive behavior, negative thinking, and patterns of laziness.

All in all, quite an excellent book, most certainly one of the best I've ever read on depression. Sure, your depression problem may not be an imbalance due to improper food choices, but then again, it could be the ONLY problem, as it was for myself.