Food and Your Mood

I am always thinking about ways in which I can lead a healthier lifestyle in the most natural way possible. Although having a positive attitude about life in general was always important to me, and I worked at it, as I get older it is even more important.  So many bad things can happen to good people who get older!
I am delighted to report that I may be able to achieve my goals far more efficiently this year. It could be as simple as knowing what foods to eat and when to eat them.
Scientists are now proving that what’s in the foods you eat can effect the chemical composition of your brain. In other words, what you eat can affect your mood, including your alertness and even your perception of pain.

Apparently foods have this ability to change the production or release of neurotransmitters, those chemical messengers that carry information from one nerve cell to another. It is those neurotransmitters which are responsible for your brain telling you bits of information such as I am full, I’m nervous about this trip, I am anxious about my son driving.

Previous studies showed that populations in Mediterranean countries have less mental disorders than in those in northern Europe. Now there is a new Spanish study which suggests that part of the explanation may be the food itself, or what we have termed The Mediterranean Diet.

Scientists already know, for example, that foods high in protein tend to make you more alert. Carbohydrates, on the other hand, tend to relax you, which is why we have the term comfort foods. In this 4 year study, participants with the highest Mediterranean diet score were less likely to develop depression than those whose diets were the least in Mediterranean style. In fact, of the nine dietary components, fruits and nuts, legumes and monounsaturated fats were the most closely related to reduced depression risk.  Too much dairy and meat had the strongest association with increased risk for depression.

More on Happy Plates on my next post.

To your success at healthy aging,

Ruthan Brodsky

Tagged with: alert • depression • Mediterranean • Ruthan Brodsky

Filed under: Fitness and Nutrition • Mind and Body

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!