I know we are a fitness based organization, but part of living a health and active lifestyle is diet. This is an section of a study review covering the benefit of antioxidants (blueberries in this case) on cases of PTSD. I thought it was interested and that I would share.

Title: The Science Behind Superfoods: Blueberries
Date: May 17, 2021
URL: https://diaryofahealthynerd.com/2021/05/17/the-science-behind-superfoods-blueberries/
Citation: Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB). “Blueberries may offer benefits for post-traumatic stress disorder.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 5 April 2016. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/04/160405175653.htm>

Combating PTSD

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is an anxiety disorder that manifests after a distressing event and has been associated with all sorts of psychological and societal setbacks for the suffering individual. A team out of Louisiana State University studied the biochemical mechanisms behind PTSD back in 2016 and found that many PTSD sufferers have an abnormally low level of the gene SKA2. They studied this connection in rats and found that they were able to increase SKA2 levels in depreciated rats by feeding them the human equivalent of 2 cups of blueberries a day. A previous study of rats had also indicated that a blueberry-rich diet would also increase serotonin levels, which has been linked to feelings of happiness and well-being.

While this relationship still needs to be studied further, this indicates that there could be some link between blueberries and the alleviation of PTSD, anxiety, and depression.