These 7 Superfoods can Actually Make You Feel Happy
Can Healthy Eating Make You Happy?
It’s not unusual in science studies to link healthy eating with feeling well, but does eating good food actually make you happy? It sure feels good to sink your teeth into a gooey slice of pizza, or crunch on some salty chips. A carrot stick just doesn’t have the same appeal. Yes, foods that are high in fat and sugar, or highly processed foods may make your bad mood dissipate in the short term, in the long-term research suggests it has detrimental effects on happiness. Can healthy food actually make you happy? Yes, according to researchers, healthy eating, particularly fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and quality sources of protein can make you happy.
7 Superfoods that can Improve Your Mood
Get ready – to put a smile on your face. Here are 7 superfoods that can actually make you happy?
- Lettuce
- Blueberries
- Dark Chocolate*
- Green Tea
- Mushrooms
- Apples
- Salmon
*Small potential benefits are possible from eating small amounts of dark chocolate (80% or more cocoa) – this is NOT suggesting it is healthy to eat chocolate bars, chocolate ice cream, or that a food is ‘healthy’ because it contains chocolate.
References
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- Evolution of well-being and happiness after increases in consumption of fruit and vegetables.
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- Do the types of food you eat influence your happiness? UC Merced Undergraduate Research Journal 2017; 9(2).
- Lettuce be happy: a longitudinal UK study on the relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption and well-being. Social Science & Medicine, 2019; 222:335-345.
- Effects of acute blueberry flavonoids on mood in children and young adults. Nutrients 2017 Feb; 9(2):158.
- The neuroprotective effects of cocoa flavanol and its influence on cognitive performance. Br J Clin Pharmacol 2013 Mar; 75(3): 716-727.
- The science of tea’s mood-altering magic. Nature 2019 Feb; 566, S8-S9.
- Acute effects of tea consumption on attention and mood. Am J Clin Nutr 2013 Dec; 98(6 Suppl):1700S-1708S.
- Vegetarian diets are associated with healthy mood states: a cross-sectional study in Seventh Day Adventist adults. Nutrition Journal, 2010 June, 9(26).
- Efficacy of omega-3 PUFAs in depression: a meta-analysis. Translational Psychiatry 2019;9(190).
- Depression in the U.S. Household Population, 2009-2012. Center for Disease Control, 2015.
- Dietary inhibitors of monoamine oxidase A. J Neural Transm. 2011;118:1031-1041.
- B vitamins and the brain: mechanisms, dose and efficacy – a review. Nutrients 2016 Feb; 8(2): 68.