7 Foods That Improve Your Mood

Do you want to know what are the foods that improve mood? Food not only determines your appearance, it also influences your thoughts, emotions and actions.

Many of the foods you consume can damage your nervous system, resulting in moodiness, fatigue, anxiety, and depression.

So if you find yourself always in a bad mood or feeling annoyed, try the following mood-boosting foods. This is a healthier, cheaper and easier option than using medications.

Just keep in mind that  if your emotions don’t stabilize, it’s a good idea to visit a psychologist . Sometimes problems have nothing to do with what we eat, but with the people around us and the situations in which we live.

Mood Boosting Foods

1. Cocoa or dark chocolate

The first of the mood-enhancing foods is cocoa. It has a happiness-stimulating effect due to theobromine. This chemical helps to:

• Increase serotonin and dopamine levels in the body.
• Relax the nervous system.
• Decrease anxiety and depression states.

Cocoa also  contains  tryptophan, a chemical that promotes the release of serotonin . For all its benefits, we recommend eating a little dark chocolate or cocoa a day to improve depression and anxiety.

The only thing you should keep in mind is that you should choose a chocolate that is rich in cocoa. Ideally, it should be above 65% cocoa concentration.

2. Nuts

The second of the foods that improve your mood are nuts. They supply the body with omega 3 fatty acids, which are not naturally produced by the body, and that is why we must acquire them through our diet.

When your body doesn’t get enough omega 3, you usually go into depressive states .

Nuts also contain tryptophan, which we talked about earlier.

• We recommend consuming 5 nuts a day to maintain a more stable mood.
• Remember, you can add them to your juices and smoothies, to your desserts, or just eat them as a snack.

3. Bananas

Banana is another food that improves your mood and that you should include in your diet daily or at least twice a week.

Its benefits for your emotions are due to its high vitamin B6 content . It interferes with the process of transforming the protein compounds of serotonin.

Furthermore, by containing folic acid, vitamin C and vegetable fiber, it improves your defenses.

4. Sesame seeds

These seeds are one of the mood-enhancing foods because they provide threonine. This is an essential amino acid that the body cannot produce and synthesize naturally.

When there are low levels of threonine, you may experience   chronic sadness .

• To get this nutrient, we recommend that you include a teaspoon of sesame seeds in your salads or use their oil as part of your dishes.

5. Salmon and other fish

Other foods that improve mood are fish, especially salmon, tuna and sardines, as they are rich in omega 3 fatty acids.

These directly affect the movement efficiency of some neurotransmitters whose deficiency can cause depressive states.

• It is advisable to include at least a portion of these fish in your weekly diet.
• If you can, add them three times a week with vegetables.

Make sure  the fish you buy is of good quality and free from contaminants .

This is especially important for salmon, as some specimens obtained from farmed farms are fed chemicals that can affect their mood.

If you choose to eat tuna, try to choose the options in natural steak. While canned tuna is very economical to consume, it does contain high levels of salt and chemicals.

6. Fiber-rich foods

Foods rich in soluble fiber help fight bad mood when it comes from changes in blood sugar levels. If you are a diabetic, check your corresponding levels  .

Remember that high blood glucose doesn’t just affect the functioning of your internal organs, it also causes you to experience various negative emotions in a matter of minutes.

When you feel this happening, check your glucose levels to determine if this is the problem.

7. Lean red meats

The last foods that improve mood are lean meats. These are rich in linoleic acid, a natural fat that  helps fight stress and the accumulation of fat in the body.

These meats also provide iron and omega 3s, which help improve brain health.

• To obtain these benefits, it is important that when cooking meat, you do it with as little salt and fat as possible.

A special vitamin to improve your mood

A simple option to include foods that improve your mood in your diet is through juices and vitamins. You  should be careful not to exceed your servings  as it is very easy to cause spikes in glucose.

Try this option; you will find it delicious and very easy to prepare.

Ingredients

• 1 cup skimmed milk (250 ml)
• ½ banana
• 5 nuts
• 1 teaspoon of cocoa or a piece of dark chocolate (5 g)

Preparation

• Blend all the ingredients in a blender until you get a homogeneous mixture and drink it straight away so as not to lose its nutritional properties.