Wellness

Eat Your Way to a Better Mood

By  

Just Thrive

. 8 min read

From fresh green salads to salty crisp potato chips, the foods you eat have a huge impact on the way you feel.[1] Some foods – and the nutrients they deliver – help produce brain chemicals that make you feel happy, calm, and focused. Others can cloud your mind, sap your energy, and increase your risk of depression and anxiety.

So how can you tell which is which? Here’s a clear list of what to eat for mood support… what to avoid so you don’t hit a slump… plus a special “serenity now” secret ingredient that can help you feel calm, cool, and collected.

10 Foods That Can Support a Balanced Mood

Nutrient-dense foods provide the building blocks your body needs to produce feel-good brain chemicals like serotonin, dopamine, and GABA.[2] These neurotransmitters help you feel joy and calm. In fact, you can’t experience positive emotions without them.

Making some simple dietary changes can support your mood and help you fight depression and anxiety.[3] Here are 10 of the best foods for promoting positive moods:

  1. Dark chocolate, well-known for its mood-lifting effects, contains dozens of compounds that contribute to emotional health.[4] A study that included 13,626 adults found that eating dark chocolate reduced depressive symptoms by 57%.[5]
  2. Fatty cold-water fish like salmon may not seem like comfort foods, but they contain high levels of omega-3 fatty acids known to fight depression and anxiety.[6]
  3. Bananas, famous for their potassium content, also contain a healthy helping of tryptophan, an amino acid necessary for creating neurotransmitters like serotonin.[7]
  4. Blueberries are packed with nutrients and special brain-boosting plant compounds called flavonoids. Research shows that blueberries can have improve your mood within 2 hours of eating them.[8]
  5. Broccoli contains a powerful compound called sulforaphane that helps reduce depression and anxiety symptoms.[9]
  6. Oats contain a special kind of fiber called beta-glucan that has positive effects on mental and physical health. A clinical study showed that eating oats for 4 weeks reduced gloomy thoughts, anxiety, inner tension, and fatigue.[10]