Healthy eating, obsessions, compulsions, and tics

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We may suggest that the early identification of low baseline adherence to a specific diet or pharmacological therapy, learned helplessness for previous attempts to lose weight, family environment affecting food habits, the displeasure of body image, and fear of gain in body weight would be required. Moreover, nutritional counseling in these patients should focus on the promotion of a balanced diet that includes appropriate options for dietary fat, lean proteins, complex carbohydrates, and a variety of fruits and vegetables. Complex carbohydrates should be privileged because they stimulate the production of serotonin and maintain normal levels of insulin and glucose. Conversely, sugars produce spikes and drops in levels of insulin and glucose, resulting in fluctuations of mood, sleep patterns, energy level, and impulse control. Indeed, impulsive consumption may be controlled by eating healthy snacks in-between meals (e.g. unsalted nuts, fresh fruit). Patients and caregivers education should include information about nutritional side effects of drugs (e.g. alteration of orexigenic/anorexigenic signals), potential drug–nutraceutical interactions, and the avoidance of excessive intake of alcohol or caffeine that has a depressant effect on the brain or results in increased anxiety, respectively.

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