Feeling A Bit Blue? Try One of These Mood-Boosting Food Tips!
Healthy foods might not be high on your list if you are feeling depressed. No one wants to eat carrots when they’re sad. But following a healthy diet could actually improve your mental health, making you feel happier and healthier. If you are feeling stressed or run-down lately, then try adding a few mood-boosting foods.
Eat to sleep
You may have noticed before that a few days without a good night’s sleep can leave you feeling groggy or cranky. So it’s essential to add foods that will help you sleep better. Salmon, tuna, and soya beans all contain vitamin B6, which your body needs to produce melatonin – the sleep-hormone. If you struggle to stay asleep during the night, try to cut out alcohol and see if that works. Even though alcohol might help you fall asleep faster, it reduces the rapid eye movement (REM) period. This means your body does not get enough deep sleep that’s needed for cell repair.
Curb Your Anxiety
Most of us experience anxiety at some point in our lifetime. Besides medication, there are foods that can help to lower the severity of the symptoms. Turmeric contains curcumin, a power antioxidant shown to improve brain health and decrease feelings of anxiety.
Chocolate makes most of us happy, but did you know that there is scientific evidence to back it? Dark chocolate contains antioxidants that boosts blood flow to our brain, helping us to cope with stressful situations. It also increases serotonin, a neurotransmitter responsible for the feeling of happiness.
Love Your Carbs
Carbohydrates usually get a bad rap for wrecking your diet, but carb-lovers will be happy to know that it’s not all bad. It helps our brain to produce serotonin, the same happy-chemical we mentioned previously. But that doesn’t mean you should be eating donuts. Try including healthy carbohydrates such as oats and other wholegrains.
Become a hot head
If feelings of anger and frustration are getting you down, then try eating some spicy food. Research say that hot foods can actually help to lift your mood. It’s all because of the chemical in chilies that make them hot – capsaicin. When eating hot foods, your body responds to the capsaicin by releasing endorphins.
Thanks to research we now know that food can help alleviate feelings of sadness and anxiety. If you’ve been feeling low lately, give one of these foods a try!
