By Nike Sotade
Perform at optimum level by eating the right foods to boost your brain and body functions. Experts claim that the foods we eat actually affect our moods.
THE foods we eat affect our waistlines, for better or for worse. But did you know that eating that piece of cake or pie can make you tired or depressed and that eating carrots and celery sticks can fill you with energy and vitality.
These nutrition information, researched from the Internet, will go a long way in helping us to make the right choice of diet to boost our moods.
Dieticians and clinical nutritionists at New York University Medical Centre explain that bodies are like chemistry sets. Everything you put in your body has a chemical effect, which is why food can affect your mood. It gets broken down into elements that can raise your blood sugar or drop it rapidly.
That banana you’re eating, we forget about it but the chemicals in the banana affect us, good or ill. There are chemicals like caffeine that affect the neurotransmitters and affect whether we feel good or bad or energetic or tired.
A big dose of caffeine might make you feel better in the short term – but that’s not a healthy way to energise yourself as you can become jittery and dependent on that caffeine.
And beware of white grains and sugars as well, they say. The problem with white grains like white bread, white pasta, white highly sugared cereals is right after you eat it, it spikes up your blood sugar. Then your body compensates by pulling your blood sugar down.
A lot of us have to have that bagel or pastry and midmorning we get tanked and tired and fatigued and are running off to get more coffee. That becomes a cycle. What we want to do is fill our body with healthy fuel to keep that blood sugar, keep that energy level as consistent throughout the day as possible.
As you eat healthier and your body does not have to deal with fighting the bad things eat, it is able to run more efficiently and you feel happier. If it doesn’t have to keep controlling your blood sugar by producing insulin, it is not working as hard.
As for comfort food, the issue with comfort food is it tastes good immediately and distracts you from your mood. On occasion, it’s ok to do that, but you can’t do that every day, they advised.
But you can eat healthy comfort food. For macaroni and cheese, you can make it with whole grain pasta and non-fat cheese. It will make you feel good – and it won’t have the effect of raising your blood sugar the way regular macaroni and cheese would.
As for chocolate, bitter chocolate has some healthy components. But there’s really not enough of that in chocolate to make a real difference. You need to get healthy fats in your diet. And never lose weight too fast.
Eating small amounts of protein will help the brain develop more neurotransmitters. They will increase mental alertness and regulate mood. Some carbohydrates, eaten by themselves, will relax you and cause the brain to make more serotonin. Bananas, white meat, baked potatoes, chick peas tomatoes, spinach, brown rice, trout and tuna eggs are good examples. Some great protein for energy include fish, meat, poultry, eggs, nuts & seeds and soya based foods.
Since experts say what you eat can actually affect your mood, if you want to feel happier, less cranky and calmer, do check out these tips on the types of foods that help rev up your feel good hormones, making you operate at optimum level.
Clear your head: If you find it hard to concentrate and often feel like your mind is a big pile of load, try snacking on some protein-rich foods. Foods like cheese (stick with low-fat kinds), soya bean products, and lean poultry are great for making you feel alert, energised, and ready to take on the day. So if your brain’s feeling a bit foggy and you find it difficult to concentrate, nibble on some low-calorie string cheese, a vegetable burger, or some boneless, skinless chicken breast. You may be thinking more clearly in no time.
Cheer up: Everyone knows a little chocolate can fix anything, because chocolate really rocks! And not just because it is sweet, delicious, and creamy. Experts say chocolate actually has the ability to boost our moods and make us feel more content. Here’s the scoop: Fat, sugar and an endorphin-releasing substance called phenylethylamine, all found in chocolate, raise both serotonin and endorphin levels in the brain. The result? Your mouth-and the rest of you-will be happier.
Stabilising mood swings: Do you go from laughing to crying in a matter of seconds? Curbing mood swings may be as easy as drinking water. That is because dehydration can play a big part in our emotional stability. If you don’t get those recommended 8 to 10 cups of water a day, you might just find yourself sweating the small stuff. If you find it hard to get water down, try drinking it at room temperature. It is easier to guzzle that way.
Don’t be nervous: Feeling stressed, nervous or anxious? Calm down with some low-fat dairy or a handful of almonds. Both foods are rich in calcium, and calcium is great for reducing anxiety and making you feel calm and relaxed.
Hot temper: Feeling angry? Instead of lashing out at the cat your house-help or a co-worker, reach for a grapefruit, some grapes, or some carrots! All three of these yummy and healthy foods are rich in pectin, a soluble fibre that lowers cholesterol. Another pectin plus? When you’re angry, your body kicks into fight or flight mode; and your heart rate, adrenaline levels, and blood pressure increase. Pectin reverses the effect anger has on the body and helps your system return to normal.
An additional list of foods to add to your diet to support your mood are vegetables, fruit, swimming fish, nuts, beans, non-fat dairy products, egg whites and whole grains. Bad foods to avoid include caffeine, alcohol, sugar and white flour.
