Did You Know There Is a Surprising Link Between Nutrition and Mental Health?
As you’ve probably heard, our physical health can considerably affect our mental health and vice versa. Often, when you’re physically unwell, it can have an effect on your mood, making you feel frustrated, stressed, sad, and/or angry, and the reverse is true as well. Mental stress can manifest physical symptoms such as headaches, body pain, high blood pressure, loss of sleep, and/or changes in appetite. This means that your mood can influence your eating habits, and what you eat can impact your mood and mental well-being in a cyclical pattern. Therefore, nutrition plays a crucial role in this cycle.
The foods we eat provide the raw nutrients we need for body and brain function.
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The Role of Nutrients in Body and Brain Function
The foods we eat provide the raw nutrients we need for body and brain function. Your body relies on a combination of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fats, carbohydrates (sugars), salts, protein, and water to function. These raw nutrients are turned into hormones and neurotransmitters, which are chemical messengers that carry information between nerve cells, muscles, and glands that help the body and mind regulate themselves.
The Effects of Poor Nutrition on Mental Health
Without getting these nutrients, the body works to conserve what is available to it, which means it prioritizes keeping you alive while sacrificing mental well-being, energy levels, and mood regulation. This means that when you’re not getting proper nutrition, you might feel very stressed in a situation that you usually would not have a huge reaction to. You may also turn to less healthy foods for comfort or to save time to lessen those stressful feelings or because of lowered energy levels. This continues the cycle of eating unhealthy foods, which provides your body with less of the nutrients that it needs, leading to poor physical and mental well-being, which in turn causes you to eat more unhealthy foods. A way to break this negative cycle is by improving your overall diet and nutrition behaviors.
Tips for Using Nutrition to Boost Mental Health
- Start your day with a balanced breakfast to stabilize your blood sugar levels.
- Build your diet around a variety of whole foods rich in fiber, vegetables, fruits, legumes, healthy fats, and fish.
- Incorporate mood-boosting foods into your meals, like dark chocolate (in moderation), berries, and leafy greens.
- Limit processed foods high in sugar and unhealthy fats.
- Stay hydrated by drinking more water; even mild dehydration can affect your mood and cognitive function.
- Consider consulting a registered dietitian or nutritionist for personalized guidance.
Small Changes, Big Impact
Making small changes to your diet and nutritional habits can help improve your physical and mental health and strengthen your whole body’s well-being.
References:
- Diet, Nutrition & Mental Health | mclean hospital. Mass General Brigham McLean. (2024, May 24). https://www.mcleanhospital.org/essential/nutrition
- Food and mood: Is there a connection?. Harvard Health. (2021, February 15). https://www.health.harvard.edu/mind-and-mood/food-and-mood-is-there-a-connection
- How to boost mental health through better nutrition. American Society for Nutrition. (2023, April 18). https://nutrition.org/how-to-boost-mental-health-through-better-nutrition/
