The "Happy" Foods

Do you ever find yourself eating a favorite comfort food when you’re sad? Do you eat different foods when you’re happy? Your mood really does influence what foods you choose to eat. Experiments conducted at Cornell University found that when people are happy, they tend to choose foods with higher nutritional quality. But when they are sad or depressed, they reach for foods that taste good but typically aren’t the healthiest. But the good news is that the food-mood connection is a two-way street! Researchers can now identify foods that elevate mood as well as those that depress it. Choosing healthy mood-enhancing foods on a regular basis can improve your overall well-being, energy level, and outlook on life.

Try these four simple tips to lift your mood, feel better, and keep brain cells functioning at a high level:

• Eat more foods high in omega-3 fatty acids. The easiest way to do this is to eat salmon, tuna, or sardines two or more times a week. Mixing ground flaxseed into your morning cereal, in a salad, or in yogurt are other ways to increase your omega-3 fatty acids.
• Drink more water and fewer beverages that contain caffeine or sugar.
• Choose brightly colored fruits and vegetables (blue, purple, green, red, and orange) at every meal and snack. These foods are high in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Adding blueberries to cereal and snacking on purple or red grapes are good examples.
• Swap processed low-fiber grains for whole grains packed with mood-lifting nutrients. Use whole-grain bread for sandwiches, substitute whole-grain pasta for white pasta, or try whole-grain pizza crust.

Once you feel the difference from choosing mood-enhancing foods throughout the day, you’ll likely want to eat that way every day.

Source: Grieger, Lynn. “Your Mood: What’s Food Got To Do with It?” Today’s Diet & Nutrition. May/June 2008, 60−63.