Mood and Food - Is There a Connection?

It was over 12 years ago when I was giving my very first public talk on Positive Psychology. I'd been learning so much that I couldn't wait to share! To me, these were life-changing insights!

I ended with Wayne Dyer's famous quote, "When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change." Feeling energized and a little nervous, I asked for questions. I was speechless when someone asked me how different foods might affect our positivity. Hmmm. I hadn't come across any information on that during my training.

Wow! I've learned so much on this in the past few years. There's even a field called Metabolic Psychiatry that's exploding because they are seeing such profound results! What we eat has a direct impact on issues like anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, ADHD, and more.

And our lunch also impacts our day-to-day mood.

• Too many carbs (especially refined carbs) can cause blood sugar swings, which can result in irritability, brain fog, and fatigue.
• Junk food messes up our gut microbes. These little friends produce neurotransmitters, hormones, and metabolites that can affect our emotions, thought processes, and behaviors.
• Many foods (trans fats, seed oils, but also sometimes gluten and dairy) can cause inflammation in our bodies and brains. These also interfere with our neurotransmitters and hormones, affecting our motivation, focus, and emotional balance.
• Even mild deficiencies in certain nutrients can leave us foggy and unmotivated. Think B vitamins, magnesium, omega-3s, vitamin D, and A.

The takeaway is that "thinking about what we think about" is super important. But what we eat can make this harder or easier. So, be sure to consider what you put in your mouth.

Focus on whole, real foods (avoid boxes, cans, and packages). Include healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, grass-fed butter, unrefined coconut oil, full-fat dairy from grass-fed and finished cows, sheep or goats. Get enough quality protein. Eat a variety of plants (organic when possible). Include fermented foods.

The more I learn, the more I realize that everything is connected, including our physical, mental, emotional, and social health.

To browse past positivity tips, visit this page.

Tina Hallis, Ph.D., is a thought-shifter! She is a professional speaker and founder of The Positive Edge, a company dedicated to helping individuals and organizations increase their positivity to improve the quality of people’s work lives and the quality of company cultures.