Cebu City – Nutrition is a pivotal concept, and over the years has always highlighted its role in maintaining and improving physical health. With the recent studies published, providing your body with good nutrition has also been shown to have effects on your mental and emotional well-being. With food as a source of energy for how our bodies cope with daily activities, it also fuels the brain to secrete chemical compositions to keep our nervous system at its optimum function.
Our gut, or what others refer to as our second brain, partially determines the fate of our moods. In physiology, the GI or the gastrointestinal tract is home to millions of microbiomes, in which the production process greatly influences the secretion of chemical messengers that carry signals from the gut to the brain (like serotonin and dopamine). Consuming foods that are nutritionally dense is shown to promote the production of good bacteria in the gut, and directly affects the production of previously mentioned hormones to improve the mood. Halting the production process of these chemical messengers would negatively affect your mood. Feelings such as evidence of energy slumps, irritability, and even difficulty in sleeping are shown to be associated with one's poor choices of food.
So, what foods should you include in your diet to help give your mood a boost?
Eat whole foods. Whole foods refer to foods that have not been processed, refined, or adulterated. These include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and wheat bread. Legumes, nuts, fresh meat, and poultry are also considered whole foods which can potentially provide nutritive qualities. Overly processed foods, especially those loaded with additives can potentially disrupt the gut microbiota.
Prioritize your fiber intake. Fiber is abundant in most whole foods, especially fruits and vegetables. Including them in your daily intake can promote the production of good bacteria in your gastrointestinal tract, which can significantly better your mood!
Incorporate probiotics in your diet. Probiotics such as fermented foods like sauerkraut, kefir, the famous Korean staple, Kimchi, and even our favorite drink in childhood, Yakult are good for the gut. Probiotics help boost intestinal flora, restoring balance in the environment, especially after the presence of illness.
Take your dose of vitamin B plus. Vitamin B complex is widely available in different food groups, especially in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and meat. They play an important role in maintaining bodily functions, especially in the body’s metabolism process which directly boosts our energy levels. In addition, vitamin B6 helps in the synthesis of neurotransmitters, thereby improving our mood.
Attaining good health would mean that our body and mind are both at their optimal state. One can’t function at its best when the other is not provided with equal attention. What you consume directly affects how you feel, so practicing mindful eating would help improve your mood. However, it is important to remember that seeking professional help is advisable for those that have severe mental conditions. // DMO II Patricia B. Dalan, RND
Resources:
Food & your mood: How food affects mental health - aetna: Foods that help your brain health. Aetna International. (n.d.). Retrieved January 2023, from https://www.aetna.com/health-guide/food-affects-mental-health.html
Nutrition Australia. (2022, March 8). How food can affect your mood. Nutrition Australia QLD Division. Retrieved January 2023, from https://nutritionaustralia.org/fact-sheets/food-and-mood/#:~:text=When%20you%20eat%20can%20have,you%20feel%20tired%20and%20lethargic
Selhub, E. (2022, September 18). Nutritional psychiatry: Your brain on food. Harvard Health. Retrieved January 2023, from https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/nutritional-psychiatry-your-brain-on-food-201511168626
