If ever there was a time to eat with purpose, it is now.
COVID is spreading like a bullet train through our communities and…
every bite we take can help us fight this virus or invite it to take hold.
Over the last week, Thrive has been featuring COVID-busting shopping lists & meal ideas aimed at boosting your immunity and strengthen your respiratory system.
Today, we’re going to be looking at how to eat to support your mental health & emotional resilience during this anxious time of high stress & uncertainty.
And before you start thinking that nutrition has nothing to do with mental health…
Nutrition is as ESSENTIAL to mental health as mindfulness and exercise. Why?
Neurotransmitters like serotonin (your happy hormone!) are made in your gut. Unfortunately, a nutrient poor diet that is high in sugar feeds the bad, opportunistic bacteria in your gut, which in turn sabotages your serotonin production. And as a result, we might start to feel our anxiety creep up. We might start to sleep worse because without a good amount of serotonin, we can’t make melatonin. We begin to feel less optimistic, and our concentration levels and our patience decreases. And this then feeds in to patterns of stress eating or drinking, which then continue to feed this army of bad bacteria and to compromise serotonin levels.
Plus, there is clear, clinical evidence that ties nutrient deficiencies (specifically, omega-3 fatty acids and B vitamins) to mental health issues like depression & anxiety.
Finally - and this is a big one: blood sugar! Have you ever wondered why you can’t meditate and why despite going to the gym constantly, you still feel down on yourself? From a nutritional and body chemistry perspective - blood sugar is generally part of that answer.
If you are snacking between meals or eatings foods high in carbohydrates or sugar - you are forcing your blood sugar to spike too often throughout the day. Continuous blood sugar spikes put you in fight or flight mode and create inflammation - all of which in turn fuel a state of anxiety and keep the body in a constant state of stress.
It is impossible to detoxify and repair the body in this state - as a result, it is harder to let go of everything from negative emotions to excess weight.
You can eat your way to improved mental health.
Here’s how:
In the supermarkets, the pasta and baking shelves are bare and our wine cupboard is well stocked.
We turn to the fridge or pantry for a mental break and use these long shelf-life, highly processed, carbohydrate heavy, sugar-rich comfort foods as a replacement for the physical interactions and connection we crave.
In parallel, our bedtimes are slipping, our patience is thinning, our exposure to social media and negative news is increasing and our productivity is compromised.
This is the perfect recipe for anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances and outbursts of rage, frustration and temper tantrums. And I hate to break it to you, but no amount of gratitude journaling, exercise or lavender scented pillows can restore your balance -
UNLESS YOU ALSO WORK ON FIXING YOUR NUTRITION.
So, if you are struggling during this time - like most of us are - eat with purpose.
Eat for gut health, eat to de-stress the body.
Eat slowly, mindfully.