Can You Eat Better To Feel Better

Poor nutrition has a clear effect on our physical wellness, making it hard for us to concentrate and feel energetic if we’re not eating well. Our diet also goes beyond our physical wellbeing though, and if we don’t eat a varied diet we could leave ourselves open to all kinds of mental health issues.

 

Long-term malnutrition

 

Although in the West we mostly have access to lots of different foods from many different places around the world, we can still suffer from malnutrition if we don’t prepare meals with our wellness in mind. Studies show that long-term poor nutrition can lead to chronic energy deprivation, which may result in problems with our immune systems and hormone regulation. This is because when there is a lack of nutrients and sugars in our blood stream those bodily systems that need energy the most use it all up, so nothing is left for other process in our body. This may have an impact on our physical health and emotions.

 

Feeding our brain

 

Our brain uses up nearly a third of our energy when we are at rest, showing that we need to fill our selves with nutrition even if we’re not particularly busy all the time. Getting the right balance of proteins, fats, vitamins and carbohydrates means that we’re giving our brain most of the molecules it needs to make neurotransmitters. These help our body to send important messages and even affect the way we feel. Serotonin is thought of as a chemical mood regulator and it is made by the brain. Tryptophan (found in dairy products and fish) and other proteins help us to create this important neurotransmitter and without it we may feel low in mood and experience other changes to our behaviour, such as aggression.

 

Think about fats

 

Omega 3 and 6 fats have also shown to have an impact on serotonin levels in our brain, although not all experts are convinced of this. So, all this research suggests that when we’re looking at ways to improve our health with our diet, we can benefit from including those foods that can influence our mental health, as well as those that give us an energy/nutrient boost.

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