Food for Mood:

Anxiety, depression, grief, sadness, frustration and just feeling down are all a part of life. But, emotions can be overwhelming and negatively impact your nutrition. In a time of crisis, you may not be sticking to your normal schedule, and you may feel down and unmotivated to go through the normal motions of food preparation. You might not have any desire to eat at all, or you might be turning to food extra to deal with your emotions. While I encourage everyone to get the support they need from family, friends, and mental heath professionals, and hold hope that the future will hold success, blessing, and connection, here are some functional and practical food ideas that may help. If you know someone struggling right now, consider providing some of the food suggestions below to help support them. 

• Consider taking an Omega-3 fish oil supplement to help support mood. Omega 3 is wonderful to reduce anxiety and depression, and provides an abundance of anti-inflammatory effects (it targets dry eyes too). I like Maxi health which have a lemony scent and they can be put in the freezer to further reduce a fishy taste. Females can double the recommended dose for a more therapeutic effect. Males should check with their Dr. before exceeding the dosage.

• Foods high in tryptophan (which is a precursor to serotonin, a feel good neurotransmitter) can make us feel good. These include: Dark chocolate, bananas, chicken/turkey, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts beans and oats. 

• Green Tea provides relaxation and has mood enhancing effects by boosting neurochemicals GABA, dopamine, and serotonin.

• Eat 3 meals daily with a protein and carb, bonus for a fruit or vegetable

• Buy prepared foods for when you don’t feel like food prep: ex, prepared wraps, bagel with tuna/egg, veggie pizza, soup, sushi, and traditional takeout including chicken/meat/fish with starchy and vegetable sides. 

• If you are short of options, or just not up to eating much, use an easy breakfast-y option like: cereal and milk or yogurt and granola, crackers and cheese, oatmeal with peanut butter, an easy sandwich or frozen pizza 

• If you can, make a nourishing pot of soup or stew that will last you a few days.

  
  

• Do not skip meals and snacks! Push yourself to continue eating as consistently as possible, because carbohydrates and fat are important sources of the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine, which make us feel good. In addition when we are hungry we can get hangry, or dysregulated. So use takeout and easy options as needed and your efforts will support mood stability.

• Feel and identify your emotions. When you are turning to food when you are truly not hungry, ask yourself: what am I looking for? Love? Something interesting? An escape from boredom or anxious thoughts? Something to make me feel better? Something warm and soothing? Once you know what you are looking for, see if you can find a way to address it that does not involve food, ex a bath, a walk outside, calling a friend, gifting yourself with something small that you have been wanting, a yoga pose, music, reading a book, writing poetry, doing a puzzle, get a massage or use a massage device to relieve tension and pain, use a heating pad on your neck or forehead. Even if you do end up using food as well, its a great idea to learn to use a variety of coping skills to address emotional discomfort. Once you develop other self-care habits, you will not rely on food as much. Of course, using comfort food is a valid and valuable coping tool, but let’s make sure we have other tools in our toolbox as well to ensure that emotional eating does not impact our health. 

Beyond food, getting sunlight and seeing greenery can be healing and support a positive and relaxed disposition. So go take a walk, or just sit outside. Exercise is an incredibly powerful mood-boosting tool. Any movement that you like is great. Dance, run, jump, lift weights, do yoga or turn on an exercise routine. 

Managing our emotions can be taxing, but as humans, we are lucky to have hearts and souls with the capacity to live and love with such incredible depth. Feeling emotional pain is a testament of our incredible ability to feel and connect. So let's eat well, feel our feelings and heal!

I’m here, if you ever need food support from a compassionate and fellow human dietitian while you are suffering. Let's eat for a better future.

Noa