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“We are such stuff as dreams are made on; and our little life is rounded with a sleep.” – William Shakespeare

Many of us are captivated by success. We love to read success stories, interview successful people, and learn how we ourselves can become more successful. We especially love to learn the “tricks” of success. Think about how much money people have made through the production of success-related media, books, CDs, DVDs, classes, conferences…the list goes on. Tony Robbins, perhaps the most well-known success and self-help guru in the world, is estimated to be worth nearly a half of a billion dollars.

And successful people have been asked just about every question known to man: ‘What do you do in the morning?,’ ‘What’s your diet like?,’ ‘How do you balance work and home life?,’ ‘How much do you work out?

Ever wonder what successful people do before bedtime? We asked this question ourselves, and found some of these bedtime habits very interesting.

SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE DO BEFORE SLEEPING:

1. THEY READ

One thing behavioral experts have discovered is that reading is the very last thing a number of successful people do before going to sleep. From business magnates like Bill Gates; to national leaders like Barack Obama, to fashion designers such as Vera Wang – reading is considered a non-negotiable activity for many successful individuals.

2. THEY HAVE AN “UNWINDING” RITUAL

One thing most successful people don’t do before bed is work. Of course, some successful people are considered “workaholics” and may continue their work into the late hour – but, this is considered an exception to the rule. To “unwind” is also something considered non-negotiable – and there are a number of ways to do so.

3. THEY DO SOMETHING NOSTALGIC

Some successful people like to “take a trip down memory lane.” Doing so helps them keep things in perspective – to remember what is truly important in life. Part of success is the ability to recognize when a mental break is needed; when the body and mind require something other than the work that all-too-often makes up their day.

4. THEY DAYDREAM

Not really a surprise, here. Many successful people have attributed daydreaming – aka “mind-wandering” – to breakthroughs that have brought them to the next level of success. This is particularly true of innovators, artists, and other creatives who truly appreciate the power behind daydreaming. Aside from the next “big breakthrough,” some successful people will daydream to simply relax the mind, gain inspiration and/or wisdom, or develop potential goals.

5. THEY PLAN FOR TOMORROW

People that have achieved tremendous success are known for their incredible work ethic – an attribute that often involves working above and beyond the normal “9 to 5” routine. While they may not do anything too demanding prior to bedtime, they will plan for the next day. Not to mention, this short time investment pays big dividends. Successful people understand this short planning time makes the execution of tomorrow’s activities clearer… and less stressful.

6. THEY’LL UNPLUG FROM EVERYTHING

Avoiding heavy work, relaxing, and recharging often requires a completely disconnect from the phone, computer, tablet, or any other digital device. Further, researchers have discovered that use of electronic devices prior to bedtime makes it much more difficult to fall asleep – an essential part of a successful person’s life.

7. THEY PRIORITIZE FAMILY

For many, the phrase “work-life balance” translates to “work-family balance.” For most people, including the very successful, family always comes first. Balancing a heavy workload and quality time with the spouse, kids, pets, etc. can be a difficult task at times, but is often considered non-negotiable – and rightly so.

Whether family/pet time is scheduled or not doesn’t matter to successful people. The great ones always know who helps make them great…and make certain to reciprocate their love.

8. THEY PRACTICE GRATEFULNESS

Many successful people take the time to reflect on or write down things that they are appreciative for in their lives. Some keep a ‘gratitude journal’ to keep things in perspective, and also to serve as a reminder for progress made in various aspects of their lives.

This is a particularly important habit for successful people, as their day is often riddled with stressful situations. Too much stress breeds pessimism, and a pessimistic outlook is not something that successful people can afford.

9. THEY DECOMPRESS

As mentioned, successful people too often have to handle stressful scenarios. Any person that has been exposed to high levels of stress over a long duration of time requires a certain period of time to decompress.

Related article: 5 Ways Successful People Learn Differently

For some, this means hitting the gym. Others like to meditate, listen to relaxing music, or take a hot bath. The list is endless, but the goal is the same: decompression.

10. THEY ABSTAIN FROM BOOZE

Not completely abstain, but most successful people refuse to touch alcohol right before bedtime. Whether intentional or not, successful (and all) people abstaining from booze before bedtime improves our quality of sleep.

The National Institute of Health – a preeminent public health organization – has discovered that consuming alcohol prior to sleep “robs people of deep sleep and REM sleep and keep them in the lighter stages of sleep.”

High tech foods that we put into our bodies every day have been so processed that there are hardly any nutrients left in the foods. These over-processed foods have been filled with artificial or lab-created nutrient chemicals that do more harm to our bodies than good. 

All these are the causative agents of a high acid body that can become a perfect ground for diabetes, obesity, and cancers.

But we can all turn this around by trying to alkalize our bodies. 

This can be a straightforward process as making an acidic medium alkaline is merely doing the opposite of what got the medium acidic in the first place.

Explained in detail below are some of how we can do that as it regards our bodies. 

As we move towards this direction, we would find out that we would have more energy for longer. 

1. The most important thing is to start your day with smile and with a large glass of water with the juice of a freshly-squeezed lemon. 

Lemons actually have the opposite effect on your body even they may seem acidic. 

Drink first thing in the morning to flush the system.

Another option is to drink one or two glasses of organic apple cider vinegar and water daily. You should only mix one to two tablespoons of vinegar in eight ounces of water.

2. Eat large portion of green salad tossed in lemon juice and quality olive oil. 

Greens (vegetable or fruit) are among the best sources of alkaline minerals, like calcium. 

Eat alkaline foods during the day like most fruits and vegetables. They sustain the body’s pH on a daily basis and keep balance in your organism.

3. Your snack should consist on raw, unsalted almonds. 

Almonds are full with minerals that are natural alkaline like magnesium and calcium, which actually help to balance out acidity and in the same time to balance blood sugar.

4. Drink almond milk and make yourself nice berry smoothie with added green powder like spirulina, or other greens. If you have choice between almond milk and cow’s milk, almond milk is better option.

5. Go for a nice walk or some other exercise. It’s very important to be active. 

Exercise actually helps move acidic products so your body can better eliminate them.

6. Breathe deeply. Ideally, choose a spot that has fresh, oxygen-rich air and go there whenever you can. 

While you are there, drink lots of water (and on daily basis as well) to flush the system of waste.

7. Do not eat meat every day. If you can skip few days without meat it will be great because eating meat every day leaves an acid residue behind. We have a lot of vegan or vegetarian recipes for you. Alkalize your body!

8. Skip dessert loaded with sugar and skip drinking soda. 

Sugar is one of the worst acidic foods we consume and our enemy. 

If you drink just ONE can of soda, you will actually need more than thirty glasses of neutral water to neutralize the acidity in your body!

9. Add more vegetables to your diet. Be careful, potatoes don’t count. 

However, sweet potatoes are good choice but don’t make them with butter, use olive oil and Himalayan salt for baking. 

Peppers, Asparagus, squash, Aubergines, and other vegetables are also great choices.

10. And last but not least: Add more sprouts to your daily diet. They are extremely alkalizing and rich in nutrients and energy-boosting enzymes.

The goal of this new editor is to make adding rich content to WordPress simple and enjoyable. This whole post is composed of pieces of content—somewhat similar to LEGO bricks—that you can move around and interact with. Move your cursor around and you’ll notice the different blocks light up with outlines and arrows. Press the arrows to reposition blocks quickly, without fearing about losing things in the process of copying and pasting.

What you are reading now is a text block the most basic block of all. The text block has its own controls to be moved freely around the post…

… like this one, which is right aligned.

Headings are separate blocks as well, which helps with the outline and organization of your content.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Handling images and media with the utmost care is a primary focus of the new editor. Hopefully, you’ll find aspects of adding captions or going full-width with your pictures much easier and robust than before.

Try selecting and removing or editing the caption, now you don’t have to be careful about selecting the image or other text by mistake and ruining the presentation.

The Inserter Tool

Imagine everything that WordPress can do is available to you quickly and in the same place on the interface. No need to figure out HTML tags, classes, or remember complicated shortcode syntax. That’s the spirit behind the inserter—the (+) button you’ll see around the editor—which allows you to browse all available content blocks and add them into your post. Plugins and themes are able to register their own, opening up all sort of possibilities for rich editing and publishing.

Go give it a try, you may discover things WordPress can already add into your posts that you didn’t know about. Here’s a short list of what you can currently find there:

• Text & Headings
• Images & Videos
• Galleries
• Embeds, like YouTube, Tweets, or other WordPress posts.
• Layout blocks, like Buttons, Hero Images, Separators, etc.
• And Lists like this one of course 🙂

Visual Editing

A huge benefit of blocks is that you can edit them in place and manipulate your content directly. Instead of having fields for editing things like the source of a quote, or the text of a button, you can directly change the content. Try editing the following quote:

The editor will endeavour to create a new page and post building experience that makes writing rich posts effortless, and has “blocks” to make it easy what today might take shortcodes, custom HTML, or “mystery meat” embed discovery.

Matt Mullenweg, 2017

The information corresponding to the source of the quote is a separate text field, similar to captions under images, so the structure of the quote is protected even if you select, modify, or remove the source. It’s always easy to add it back.

Blocks can be anything you need. For instance, you may want to add a subdued quote as part of the composition of your text, or you may prefer to display a giant stylized one. All of these options are available in the inserter.

You can change the amount of columns in your galleries by dragging a slider in the block inspector in the sidebar.

Media Rich

If you combine the new wide and full-wide alignments with galleries, you can create a very media rich layout, very quickly:

Sure, the full-wide image can be pretty big. But sometimes the image is worth it.

The above is a gallery with just two images. It’s an easier way to create visually appealing layouts, without having to deal with floats. You can also easily convert the gallery back to individual images again, by using the block switcher.

Any block can opt into these alignments. The embed block has them also, and is responsive out of the box:

You can build any block you like, static or dynamic, decorative or plain. Here’s a pullquote block:

Code is Poetry

The WordPress community

If you want to learn more about how to build additional blocks, or if you are interested in helping with the project, head over to the GitHub repository.

Thanks for testing Gutenberg!

Depression is one of the most common, yet one of the most complex illnesses in the modern world. It is generally believed that it is caused by chemical imbalance in the brain, but some scientists oppose to the idea. Nevertheless, what everyone agrees is that the prescribed medications rarely work, particularly if used more than the prescribed dose.

The good news is that there is a simple and all-natural way to manage depression and its symptoms. This article presents 10 simple tricks which will help you regain your happiness and the control over your own life!

1. Dancing

As strange as it seems, dancing serves as a great mental exercise. Once you start doing it, you will feel calmer, more relaxed, and happier. This activity soothes the nerves and positively affects the brain. Try out different dance moves to see which one works the best for you, such as line dancing, break dancing, or ballroom dancing.

2. Working Out

When you are working out, your heart starts releasing more blood and it is important for overall health. Moreover, exercise releases endorphins that help in controlling your stress level by boosting the neurogenesis that is the brain cell growth. If you are angry with something or someone, then do rigorous exercise. Once you are done with your exercise regime, you will find that all your anger has been drained away and you are feeling relaxed and happy.

3. Travelling

Traveling doesn’t necessarily have to be somewhere far away. You can take a day off and visit the hotel nearby and enjoy your stay. The staff will treat you the best way possible, which will in turn give your mood the long- needed boost. Travelling alone is the best way to alleviate depression, as it helps you boost your self-confidence while facing the challenges on the way.

4. Lifestyle Changes

Our lifestyle is the reason behind our depression, so a little bit of tweaking to our lifestyle will have a positive effect on our mind. If you are a night bird and wake up really late in the morning, then change the routine and hit the bed early, so that you can get up early and exercise. Even the food habits need to change. You must not indulge in canned foods, rather fresh fruits and gluten-free foods are best suited. These little changes can bring in a huge difference in your life.

5. Do What Makes You Happy

Do more of the things that make you happy, whether it is hanging out with your friends, watching a movie, enjoying a long walk alone, shopping, or something else.

6. Avoid Being Alone

Loneliness is a state of mind and it generally creeps in when you are sitting alone. Once you are stuck with this loneliness, then no matter how many people are there by your side, you will still feel lonely. So, try to keep your mind engage with something creative to help you stay away from this loneliness.

7. Plan Your Future

Having no idea about your future and goals is one of the reasons why people feel scared and depressed. Stop for a moment and think about the things that make you happy and about the way your future should look like. Once you determine what is that you want, work on it!

8. Genuine Faith

Our generation hasn’t seen misery or crisis that our ancestors have been part of. Their minds were always pre-occupied with several things. Nowadays, half our job is done by machine, so we have enough time to sit idle and think rubbish and somehow depression has become a part of our life already.

9. Appreciate The Good

It seems like we are so busy with ourselves so we rarely take the time to think about others and their actions as well as to appreciate the things they do for us. This must be changed! Any act of goodness and kindness should be acknowledged and appreciated.

10. Two Sides of The Coin

Happiness and sadness are the two sides of the same coin and human being enjoy their life as much as they suffer. It I just that when we are happy we don’t pay much heed, but when we are angry or sad, then we turn the whole world upside down. So, as soon as you accept the fact that you will have to deal with both the emotions, you will do just fine.

::::::::::::::  AVOID  ::::::::::::::

1. Expanding our problems

When we experience unhappiness and discontent, our first reaction is almost entirely emotional. In other words, we blow things completely out of proportion. After all, we still have that darned “lizard brain” (amygdala) – the epicenter of negative emotions. Instead, just take a step back, look at the problem objectively (with minimal emotion), and focus on a solution!

2. Eating poorly

Ingesting nutritionally-bankrupt food is all about immediate gratification. It’s certainly not about feeling good long-term, as eating poorly can result in bad health, weight gain, depression, lack of energy and decreased productivity; while having a well-balanced diet results in an entirely opposite effect – more energy, a healthy weight, mental alertness, and increased productivity. Eat right, look great, and feel great.

3. Holding grudges

Similar to other negative emotions, animosity is a needless weight on our backs. We are all witness to the negative behaviors of other people and can become (sometimes justifiably) angered as a result. But remember: this isn’t about their ignorant behavior; it’s about your happiness. Either forgive, forget, or ignore… and move on with your life.

4. Negative addictions

Most things are good in moderation – food, a drink or two, entertainment… it’s when these things take center stage in our lives that it becomes a problem. Unfortunately, many good people have met their end through addictive habits, especially through dependence on alcohol and drugs. A great preventative measure and remedy to these addictions? Finding and living our passions to the greatest extent possible.

5. Living beyond means

We live in a materialistic society, one where we are constantly bombarded with advertisements for the latest car, gadget, or credit card; all promising an easier, more fulfilling existence. Don’t believe it for a second. While purchasing a new product may provide a needed emotional boost, it doesn’t last. Ever heard the term “buyer’s remorse”? It exists for a reason. Instead, seek out something to do that doesn’t involve whipping out a piece of plastic – exercise, reading, sightseeing, etc. – anything brings satisfaction without the debt.

6. Worrying about the future

We only have so much say in what our future holds. This is not meant to disempower (quite the opposite); rather it is stating simple truth. What wecan do is live in the present while fully exercising our God-given abilities and talents, enabling and empowering us to live a happier existence. There’s that phrase again: living in the present. Face difficulties as they arise and let them go. Enjoy the beautiful things in life and experience them fully…be present.

7. Regretting the past

Regret is not only useless, it can be extremely harmful. Research continues to show that repetitive, negative thoughts about decisions made in the past in often a precursor to chronic stress and depression. According to Psychology Today, there are four ways to cope with regret: (1) learn from mistakes but don’t dwell, (2) if nothing can be changed about the situation to let it go, (3) make sure too much blame is not being undertaken, and(4) reframing the situation more positively.

8. Being driven by fear

Yes, fear can be an enabler to unhappiness. To fully understand this, we have to again go back to being present. Quite simply, we can’t allow fear of the unknown (and/or the unavoidable) to cripple our quality of life. Fear is a negative thought process that is often on auto pilot. Remember: we are not our negative thoughts. We are not fear, worry, anxiety, or any other negative thought process.

9. Gossiping

Nothing exudes unhappiness and insecurity more than negative small talk about someone else. After all, why would a happy, confident person engage in something that is of no benefit? They wouldn’t. Gossip is something to be left to the kids at recess, not to adults attempting to make their lives (and others!) better.

10. Being critical – of self and others

How we talk to ourselves shapes our self-image, for better or worse. Self-worth is an essential component to our happiness, and feeling good about ourselves is a right that we all have. Realize when mistakes are made, accept them, and move on…don’t engage in negative self-talk. Further, respect the inherent differences of others and recognize their right to live happily and without undue criticism.

11. Chronic Complaining

Happy and successful people do not complain much. On the other side, it seems that chronic complainers always have something negative to say… even when those around them are happy! The bottom line: we all have different circumstances that we are given in this lifetime, but in the end these circumstances are ours – fair or unfair, wanted or unwanted. Instead, seek solutions to problems instead of complaining, which leads to nowhere.

12. Delaying goals and dreams

It’s relatively easy and effortless to get caught up in the routine of life: working, eating, sleeping, maybe even a day or two of doing something fun or relaxing. But here’s the thing: by not directing our talents and passions toward a positive and tangible goal, we potentially discard something great before its realization. The hardest part of living out our goals and dreams istaking the first step. After building a game plan taking that first step, only then can we see the possibilities.

Once aware of these habits, you can make sure to keep them at bay by following the advice mentioned above.

How Can YOU Help Someone Who’s Dealing With Depression?

A person can feel depressed due to many different reasons. Let it be the financial pressure or a chronic disease, depression can affect a person’s behavior, feelings, thoughts, tendencies and even the sense of well-being. 

According to the World Heart Organization (WHO) report of 2018, depression is a fairly common mental disorder that affects more than 300 million people worldwide. Needless to say, depression is on the rise globally and that is why it is important for everyone to play their role in helping people affected by depression.

Do you know someone in your circle who is depressed? Do you want to help that person but don’t know how to do it? Instead of not doing anything about it, you can do little things that can be really helpful in supporting a depressed person in their recovery.  Your encouragement and support can help that person in overcoming negative thoughts and eventually depression.

Words Matter

It is important to understand that a depressed person feels vulnerable. This is where kind, caring words can mean a world to that person. Say these words and let that person know that you are going to help him or her by doing whatever you can:

• Do you need someone to talk with?

• I care about you!

• Is there anything I can do for you?

• I am here for you

• Your presence in my life means a lot to me

• I can understand, I really do

• You are a strong person

• There is always hope

These words may seem less moving to other people, but a depressed person can really find hope in these words. Be a good listener and let the other person talk.

Go for the Cause of Depression by Asking Questions.

It is critical to ask questions to better understand the root cause. There are high chances that your friend may not voluntarily tell you everything. That is why it is important to ask questions in better understanding why that person is depressed. Ask questions such as:

• When did you start feeling depressed?

• Is there anything that triggered it?

• What makes you feel bad for yourself?

• Do you have suicidal thoughts?

• Is there anything that makes you feel happy?

Show patience while asking questions because your friend is going through a rough phase of his life. It may take time for your friend to open up and this is where your patience can play a pivotal role.

Help In Identifying and Coping with Sources of Stress

The main contributors to depression is stress. It is responsible for interrupting the healthy coping strategies of a depressed person and makes him more defenseless to mood swings. What you can do is to identify the sources of stress and try to find better solutions for them.

Tell Them They Are Strong

What We Know and What You Can Do About It’ that a depressed person believes that he is not worthy of love. That explains why a person suffering from depression doesn’t want to communicate with his family and friends. This is where you can help that person by reminding him about his strengths. You can cite good times in his life, encourage him to stay strong and tell him that bad time never stays for too long, a good time will come.

Accompany Them to a Doctor or Therapy Sessions

Even though there is a stigma around getting mental health help, you have to convince that person to go with you to a doctor or therapy sessions. It is better if you 

accompany the person because there are chances that he might not go by himself. This little yet caring gesture can make that person feel that there are people who actually care about him.

Make Them Smile

According to researches, one of the best things for a good mental health is laughing. Humor can help in treating anxiety and depression patients. You can make the other person laugh by telling a silly story, remembering good old days, watching a funny movie or even doing together something that he loves.

Bottom Line for You

By doing all of the above-mentioned things, you cannot hope for dramatic changes. Your help can assist in the recovery process that takes time. 

You need to show patience and let your friend know that you are right beside him through thick and thin and you won’t leave him. 

Depression can be cured with the help of medication, but why go there when your tireless support can play the role of an anti-depressant!

All in all, it can be said that little things can make a lasting impact on someone’s life. 

Take your depressed friend to support groups or even spend a few hours a day with him. 

Remember that your efforts can change someone’s mind and even prevent them from attempting suicide!

13/7/2018 The NICD’s Lucille Bloomberg says there is a negative connotation with the word swine flu, raising unnecessary panic but in fact it’s the same as a normal seasonal flu.

JOHANNESBURG – The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) has reacted to concerns raised over reported swine flu cases in Gauteng, labelling them as nothing unusual or to be alarmed about.

Eyewitness News is aware of at least eight cases of the H1N1 virus diagnosed in Johannesburg just this month.

Swine flu is a strain of an influenza virus which has the same symptoms as normal flu.

“People have this misconception that it’s different but it’s part of the seasonal flu menu, so to speak, every year.”

27/06/2018  Influenza Season Update

The annual influenza season, which started in the first week of May 2018 is ongoing. To date, the majority 249/253 (98%) of influenza positive samples for this season, detected by the Viral Watch surveillance programme, have been identified as influenza A(H1N1). 

Similarly, all influenza detections in the public health sector influenza surveillance programmes (pneumonia surveillance and influenza-like illness) have been identified as A(H1N1).

This strain emerged globally in 2009 during the pandemic when it was referred to as “Swine flu”, and since then has been part of the seasonal circulating influenza strains. Patients infected with this strain should be treated like any other seasonal influenza case. There is no requirement to report or notify individual cases of this strain of influenza.

Influenza is usually an uncomplicated illness, which is characterised by sudden onset of constitutional and respiratory symptoms such as fever, myalgia, cough, sore throat, rhinitis and headache. Influenza typically resolves in 3-7 days in the majority of individuals. 

In a proportion of patients, influenza may be associated with more severe illness or complications, these complications include viral pneumonia, secondary bacterial or viral infections (including pneumonia, sinusitis and otitis media), and exacerbations of underlying illnesses (e.g. pulmonary and cardiac illness). 

Every year there are cases of severe and complicated influenza in otherwise healthy persons, however, these are rare events.

Influenza vaccination remains the most effective measure to prevent illness and possibly fatal outcomes. Individuals at risk of severe influenza illness and complications include among others pregnant women, those with pre-existing chronic illnesses (e.g. diabetes, asthma, HIV) or other risk factors and the very young and elderly. 

Vaccines should be given sufficiently early to provide protection for the influenza season, though it is never too late to vaccinate.

Oseltamivir (Tamflu®) may decrease the duration and severity of influenza illness in patients who are very ill with influenza and it should be considered for those patients who are hospitalised with severe influenza illness especially those at risk of serious influenza complications. The maximum benefit of Oseltamivir is early in infection i.e. within 48 hours of the onset of illness.

A breakthrough nutritional study conducted at the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont has found that just 248mg of magnesium per day leads to an astounding reversal of depression symptoms.

“New clinical research results show magnesium is effective at addressing symptoms and is safer and easier on the wallet than prescription therapies.”

Today, even mainstream science is now confirming that magnesium is a safe, affordable and effective treatment for depression. Just a quarter of a gram of magnesium is all that’s necessary, and it costs less than 10 cents a day.Plus, the powerful nutritional benefits of magnesium help prevent mineral deficiencies and chronic disease in many other ways across the body, imparting enormous benefits for cardiovascular health, brain health, kidney health and much more.

“Once you have identified the root cause of the depression, you should see if you can address it.”

This may involve counselling, the use of psycho-therapies, meditation, prayer, exercise and reflection.

One of the things to do that I always recommend is to take adequate exposure in the sun. Exposure to sunlight will increase your vitamin D levels, which, among other things will help you overcome depression.

Below are natural remedies that help fight depression

1. Cardamom

Cardamom can help detoxify the body and rejuvenate the cells, in turn helping improve your mood and treat depression.

Add one-half teaspoon of cardamom powder to one cup of warm water or milk. Drink it once daily.

You can also add a few drops of cardamom oil to your bath water. Soak yourself in this uplifting aroma-filled bath for 30 minutes daily.

2. Nutmeg

Nutmeg works like a brain tonic and helps stimulate your brain, eliminate fatigue and stress, and improve your mood.

Mix one-eighth teaspoon or a dash of nutmeg powder in one tablespoon of Indian gooseberry juice.

Drink this two times daily to calm the mind and relieve depression.

Do not take raw nutmeg in large doses as it has psychoactive effects.

3. Saffron

Saffron is high in carotenoids and B vitamins that help increase the levels of serotonin and other chemicals in the brain. In fact, a study published in Journal of Ethnopharmacology has found saffron to be as effective as fluoxetine (Prozac) in reducing mild to moderate depression.

Take 15 mg of dried extract of saffron twice daily to fight depression.

You can also use a little bit of saffron in cooking, milk shakes or smoothies.

4. Cashews

Being rich in vitamin C, cashew nuts stimulate the nervous system. Also, the riboflavin in cashews boosts energy so you can be active and joyful. Other useful nutrients in cashews that help combat depression are magnesium, tryptophan and vitamin B6.

Add one teaspoon of cashew nut powder to one cup of warm milk. Drink it once daily.

You can also eat a handful of dry roasted cashews as a healthy snack to lift your mood.

5. Fish Oil

Studies have found that people with depression usually have low intake of omega-3 fatty acids. Fish oil is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which are required for normal brain functioning, and is highly recommended for people with depression.

Take a daily supplement of fish oil to fight depression. Fish oil supplements are sold in health food stores, drug stores, grocery stores and online. Consult a doctor for the proper dosage.

Alternatively, you can eat cold water fish like salmon, sardines, and anchovies that are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Flaxseed and soy products are also good sources of omega-3 fatty acids