Why healthy food is crucial for mood!

When we think about food we don’t necessarily think about mental health, what usually springs to mind is therapy or medication or a combination of both, to treat mood disorders, but think about it, your brain is always “on.” 

It alone is responsible for your thoughts and movements, your breathing and heartbeat, your senses — it works hard 24/7, even while you’re asleep. 

For this to happen your brain requires a constant supply of fuel. That “fuel” comes from the foods you eat — and what’s in that fuel is crucial. 

Put simply, what you eat directly affects the structure and function of your brain and, ultimately, your mood.

Now just like anyone with an expensive car who has queued for hours recently to get their premium ‘fuel’, your brain functions best when it gets only premium fuel, with no queuing needed ;-). 

Eating a diet full of foods that contain lots of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants nourishes the brain and protects it from oxidative stress — the “waste” (free radicals) produced when the body uses oxygen, which can damage cells.

Unfortunately, just like your car, your brain can be damaged if you ingest anything other than premium fuel. 

If your diet is high in refined sugars or processed foods, the substances from this “low-premium” fuel make its way straight to the brain, which has little ability to get rid of them. 

Refined sugars for example also worsen your body’s regulation of insulin, thus promoting inflammation and oxidative stress. 

Multiple studies have found a correlation between a diet high in refined sugars and impaired brain function — and even a worsening of symptoms of mood disorders, such as depression.

For years, doctors have not fully acknowledged the connection between mood and food, not until health psychology started asking these all important questions through research.

I would love to know whether you have ever considered how what you eat could be harmful to your brain?

As its World Mental Health Day today, what ONE thing could you do to help your mood with healthy food this week?