Mood Food - Feeling Good Naturally

Studies find that what you eat plays a huge role in lowering your anxiety and boosting your mood. The more you choose a healthy, whole-food treat over a nutrient-empty, quick fix, the more you'll reap the benefits - both now and later. Here are a few snacks that can bring you the boost you're looking for.

Not Any Old Chocolate
Let's start with an easy one... chocolate. Loaded with antioxidants and capable of delivering the endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin that your brain needs to regulate your mood, chocolate also provides assistance to the cardiovascular system. But beware - not all chocolate is created equal! The act of processing raw cacao can remove or change most of its healthy compounds, and nearly all conventional chocolate includes detrimental additives like soy lecithin. Look for raw chocolate that uses natural sweeteners such as raw coconut sugars, stevia, or raw honey. The fewer ingredients listed, the more likely you are to reap the benefits of a midday sweet treat.

Study Shows The Benefit of Pickles
Social anxiety can be a major downer, but according to a recently published study, people who consume fermented foods might be less prone to anxiety. Looking at young adults enrolled in a psychology class, the students who consumed naturally fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, and pickles exhibited fewer symptoms of social anxiety. In addition, traditionally fermented foods also benefit your nervous and immune systems, provide beneficial bacteria, making several nutrients easily digestible. It's important to choose fermented foods that have been fermented with lactic acid to get all of the benefits from these foods.

Natural B Vitamins in Versatile Avocado
Who doesn't love fatty food? We are biologically engineered to want to eat fatty things, which can sometimes lead to diet woes! Sometimes experts can't agree on which fats to eat, but pretty much everyone is cheering on the avocado. Filled with protein, loaded with serotonin boosting monounsaturated fats, a great natural source of B vitamins, avocados have a stacked deck when it comes to promoting a good mood. They're a versatile addition to any menu - smoothies, salads, tacos, guacamole or simply cut in half and served with a spoon.

Make Simple Switches for Big Benefits
There are numerous references all around us on TV, on the internet and in glossy magazines to suggest that the latest depression medication is all you need to live the life you've always wanted. Choosing natural health over immediate chemical gratification appears to be a slow process when there is always a new version of Big Pharma’s magic mood pills readily available but it is a relatively small step to swap out conventional, low nutrient processed foods for healthy, whole food choices - and every step toward better overall bodily function is also a step toward elevating and stabilizing your mood.

Natural Supplements Can Help Improve Your Mood
As well as the foods options mentioned in this article, Natural Supplements can help provide the essentials for feeling good and are a much better choice than Big Pharma’s synthetic chemicals. There are a number of natural dietary food supplements readily available that can help including Amino Boosters, especially those that are combined with other carefully selected natural extracts to enhance their performance.

Thanks to Kristina Martin.