In a world filled with uncertainties, we all need effective coping strategies to manage our stress levels and keep our lives on track.
Self-care is a marketing buzzword, however, it’s filled with purpose. The notion of self-care is to avert stress and anxiety and foster positivity. Integrating self-care activities into your routine can bolster your mood and mental health and be better prepared to tackle difficult issues when they arise.
Having a toolkit of strategies seems to hold a key. But have you ever thought about how good nutrition can play a role in our self-care? It may just be another weapon in your arsenal to enable you to find your zen.
Research shows that eating well can profoundly impact our cognition, concentration, mood and stress levels. So, it’s evident that food not only nourishes the body, but can also nourish the mind and soul.
Nutrition and stress
Stress triggers our body to release a series of hormones – often known as ‘fight or flight’ mode – where our body prepares to handle the ‘threat’ at hand. This includes raising our blood pressure, heart rate and blood sugar levels to be primed to act.
Our bodies are designed to deal with short bursts of stress. But when we’re constantly living a stressful life, our ability to thwart our stress responses becomes fatigued. This can lead us to feel sluggish, run-down, and regularly reach for energy-dense foods as our body looks for a quick energy boost.
Foods such as lollies, chips, cookies and the like might make us feel energised in the short term, however, the metabolic response can cause our blood sugar to spike. Simple physics tells us that what goes up must come down. So, this subsequent energy drop leaves us feeling even more tired and sluggish. Regularly choosing highly processed, nutrient-poor foods can also impact our gut microbiome by limiting the diversity of our gut bacteria, lowering immune function, negatively influencing our mood and compromising our overall health.
In times of stress, opting for foods that nourish us and are metabolized over a more sustained period may help offset the stress response. Foods rich in B vitamins such as whole grains, vegetables and fruit, may also act at a neural level to reduce stress. And drinking black and green tea can also help, as they contain L-theanine, which may help us with mental focus and stress reduction.
Nutrition and mental health
New and exciting research shows that our long-term mental health can be strongly influenced by what we eat. Diet may be just one piece of the complex puzzle of mental health, but it is promising that we may be able to eat our way to better mental health.
It’s important to note that the overall quality of our diets matters most, not single nutrients or foods. We need to see nutrition and our diets through a wider lens.
Current research in nutritional psychiatry shows that adopting a healthy diet, particularly the Mediterranean Diet, can reduce depressive symptoms and boost our mental wellbeing in the long term. The Mediterranean Diet primarily consists of plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, oily fish, legumes, nuts and seeds and whole grains. The predominant fat source in the diet is extra virgin olive oil.
Much of the research focuses on how our diets impact the diverse bacteria colonies that live in our digestive systems. Studies are also examining the role of foods that appear to help fight inflammation and reduce the severity and prevalence of depressive symptoms. Adopting a Mediterranean diet approach that regularly features whole foods is proving beneficial for a range of health measures, not just mood. So, it’s a win-win.
Fostering a healthy relationship with food
For many of us, food itself can trigger stress. We are inundated with unhelpful and conflicting nutrition messages, creating unhelpful feelings toward food and our bodies. Yet, reconnecting with food and rediscovering the joy of eating can also help reduce stress at mealtimes. It is essential to recognise that food is so much more than a source of nutrition. It sparks memories, fuels conversation, connects us to our culture, and can transport us to the other side of the world one mouthful at a time. Fostering a healthy relationship with food is yet another example of good self-care. Becoming a more intuitive eater does take time, but the benefits can be liberating.
Nutrition science is constantly evolving. Research shows that what we eat can impact every facet of our wellbeing and health. Making conscious food choices that will fuel our bodies and affect our mood, concentration and stress can be another strategy to impact our health holistically. And being intuitive yet intentional with our dietary choices may reduce the burden that stress can cause on our relationship with food.
There are numerous ways to promote good self-care. But, next time you’re feeling the pinch, consider a cup of tea, a handful of nuts, a piece of fruit or a tub of yoghurt over a less nutritious alternative. It may give you the advantage to help keep stress at bay.
