Foods to ease anxiety (which are not salmon and avocado)

Image: Wix

Don’t get me wrong, I like avocado+salmon toast. It is just not for everyone.

Do you know this boring list of “foods for mental health” which usually includes dark chocolate, legumes, oranges, eggs, nuts and, of course, fatty fish. Feeling stressed? Eat poached egg toast with avocado paste and rucola salad. Add some nuts and don’t even think about coffee! Sounds familiar, right? Honestly, those kind of “healthy tips” make me even more anxious. Because, the moment we look at the meal will initiate emotional response and may bring back memories associated with the food in front of us. At that same moment our brain doesn’t give a damn whether the thing we see reduces anxiety or not. Biological part will turn on later. When food enters the mouth and passes through the digestive system, it sends a multitude of interacting signals to the brain bringing sensory and nutritive information. There is a part of the brain that lights up when we see food. That part is called “ventral food component,” and is located in a brain region known to play a role in identifying faces, scenes, and words.

So what is the food that helps with anxiety? Your mom’s special meal, favourite breakfast, travel snack - whatever brings you positive emotions counts!

Blueberries, seafood, grains, seeds among other “brain foods” offer plenty of benefits for mental and physical health. Try to include them in your eating routine as much as possible. Although, don’t be too harsh on yourself: preparing (and eating) those kind of meals when you’re feeling down might consume more energy than you can get. Let your brain decide what is best for it and leave trends behind.

Which came first: diet or depression?

Good food means good mood? Do you really believe that? Well, I do! And since we are getting more and more scientific proofs of food-mood connection, I wonder, how we can implement that to an actual support of our mental well-being 🤔

Image: Wix

It leads us to depression and some bad news: science hasn't discovered a dietary cure for depression yet. Although, recent research articles state that eating nutrient-rich foods will definitely help in improving depression symptoms.

🍎 Carbohydrates are linked to the mood-boosting neurotransmitter - serotonin. Sometimes carb cravings may be related to low serotonin levels. It doesn't mean you have to start pigging out on chocolate though. Choose complex carbohydrates, like whole grains, vegetables, fruits, rice and legumes.

🍎 Some foods like salmon, tuna, milk, oatmeal, pumpkin seeds and eggs contain tryptophan - an amino acid that is important for the production of serotonin.

🍎 Make sure you include protein source in each meal. It will surely help you to boost your energy. Good sources of protein include, among others, fish, seafood, yogurt, lentils, beans, quinoa, eggs, nut butter and tofu.

🍎 Another important aspect in treating depression is, of course, fish oil or OMEGA-3. The OMEGA-3 fatty acids found in fish maintain the brain through communication between brain cells. Studies suggest that either a deficiency of OMEGA-3 or an imbalance in the ratio of OMEGA-3 and OMEGA-6 fatty acids in the brain is linked to increased rates of depression. It makes the OMEGA-3 a quite good addition to antidepressant therapy.

🍎 After all, following Mediterranean “diet” is associated with much lower risk of depression.

Remember, everything is about balance and mindset, with food being an essential part of it. As long as it will be good food, your mental health will be improving.

Cheating on a mental health or why cheat days are a bad idea 🤨

Image: Wix

Food must provide nourishment and enjoyment. That's a fact. Now imagine that you’ve been eating fruits, oatmeal and tuna salad for six days in a row. Yes, you body is happy: you provided it with essential nutrients. In turn, it produced much more energy 😌 Seems perfect, right?

Now, what about the mind? 👀 You told yourself that your favourite French crepes are harmful. From now on you are going to eat them only on special occasions. Let's wait until birthday, New Year or when everything will be settled (and it is not just about crepes 🙃).

If you treat you favourite food as a bad choice, you won't feel any joy tasting it, even during those special occasions.

There is another important aspect 👇 At the end of the week, we all need to unwind, which also means (for some of us) eating whatever we want. And here comes the cheat day followed by a nasty guilt. Because you see, cheat days tend to make us believe that diet is all or nothing, and there's no middle ground. You rather succeed following the instruction … or you fail.

What we have to understand is that life happens. Sometimes circumstances require a glass of wine (or a bottle) to get rid of stress 🍷. And that's completely okay. We don't need any instructions to cultivate guilt inside.

Guilt isn't the worse what could happen though. Obsession with “healthy” eating may lead to extreme anxiety and mental health issues known as orthorexia nervosa.

So, instead of punishing yourself for eating crepes for dinner, think about it as something that makes you feel good ❤️