Leading a healthy and active lifestyle has tremendous benefits for both your mental health as well as your physical health. There is a direct relationship between nutrition and mood; the healthier diet and lifestyle that you lead, the better your mind and mental health will be.
Exercise, fitness, and healthy eating all support your mental health and your physical health and can lead to you live a prosperous life.
Food Affects Mood
By exhibiting a diet that is healthy and balanced, you are taking steps to enhance your mood. Our bodies activities are affected by our brains and when our brains are not getting the proper nutrients, they may not function to their fullest capacity.
By eating healthy foods and leading a balanced lifestyle, your concentration levels will get better, your heart rate will regulate, and you will be more in tune with your emotions. Healthy foods release dopamine, a pleasure chemical, into the brain which, in turn, enhances your mood. Foods that work to release dopamine are beans, fish, lentils, milk, and various meats.
Leading a healthy lifestyle can help alleviate the feelings of anxiety and sadness. It can also help you better manage your sleeping patterns and having ample sleep each and every night is essential to a healthy lifestyle and a better mood.
A Balanced Diet
When your body is craving a ‘cheat food’, your mood levels generally spike for a short period of time. Unfortunately, that sugar crash can leave you feeling quite horrible about yourself. This is how food is directly related to mood. Eating healthy foods, on the other hand, can help you keep a stable blood sugar level without the feeling of a sugar crash afterward. It will also help you manage your weight and keep you from developing any sort of diseases or illnesses.
Not all foods that you may think are a guilty pleasure are really all that bad for you. Dark chocolate that has a cocoa percentage of 70 or higher has many health benefits for both your mind and body. A few small pieces of dark chocolate is known to boost your mood and lower your cholesterol.
Take the time to plan a healthy diet so that you can work to enhance your mood and your overall wellbeing. The key to a great mental outlook is eating well and eating wisely.
