Can you really improve your mental well-being by choosing the proper diet? Based on new information appearing in the just released book The Happiness Diet (Rodale Press) the answer is yes.
Everyone talks about the pursuit of happiness – who knew that what you eat has a direct effect on how you feel, how you think, and how healthy you are?
Based on guidelines in The Happiness Diet, there are four basic rules to happiness through proper nuitrition:
- Eat less processed food. Processed food often contains oodles of sugar. Sugar actually impacts your mood by altering your brain chemistry (in a bad way – and may even cause brain shrinkage). Read the labels on anything you buy. Look for sugar, it comes in a variety of forms – a few things to look for are cane or beet sugar, HFCS (high fructose corn syrup). fructose, sucrose, dextrose, glucose and starch (turns to sugar easily).
- Try to get more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains into your diet. To get the essential amino acids, phytonutrients, and minerals your brain needs for peak performance. As far as fruit and vegetables go – fresh is best, but frozen is also great if fresh isn’t available. There is actually some evidence that on average frozen might be healthier since is tends to be harvested and flash frozen when the fruits and vegetables are at their nutrional best.
- Eat grass fed meat as much as possible. Grass fed meat is much higher in omega-3 fatty acids (brain food at it’s best). By increasing your intake of omega-3′ s, your brain is actually able to form new brain connections. While we don’t have a cure for Alzheimer’s, there is emerging evidence, based on a UC Davis study, that food high in omega-3′s can help prevent the disease. If you’re a vegetarian, or just trying to cut back on the amount of red meat in your diet, organic flaxseed oil will add omega-3′s to your diet as well – just add two tablespoons a day to your diet.
- Make variety in your diet a goal. By eating a large variety of foods of different colors and type, the your body will be better able to get the nutrients it needs to feed your brain which can help boost your energy and improve your mood.
Follow these guidelines and see if your number of happy days don’t start to multiply.
