Good food, Good mood!

Emotions need our ‘guts’

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Pop quiz! What is the function of the Gastrointestinal tract? If you said digestion then you are correct-ish. Not your fault. Most people say the same thing. It is quite natural to see the connection between food and health. A less obvious connection is that between food and our mood.

Somewhere in that bunch of organs, there’s a hormone that affects your mood. Don’t worry I’ll tell you more. 

Storytime

Back when I was an undergraduate in Psychology, one of my very good Masters friends was telling me about his thesis and he wanted to show a link between depression and our Gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The GI tract is basically the road that swallowed food follows all the way from the mouth to the anus. I asked him the same question that you are probably asking too; “what does food have to do with depression?” I never got to finish that conversation with him but I decided to take a deeper dive on my own. Now I am in a much more informed place about how what we eat and when we eat can affect our overall emotions. Let me share some of my findings with you. A disclaimer is also important here- I am not talking about eating disorders. If you think you or one of your friends has one, please seek professional help.

 

The other function of the GI tract

As I was saying, the GI tract is wonderful. It is home to bacteria (both bad and good-yes good!). If you are curious about how good and bad bacteria live together happily in your digestive system you can check it out here. It is also home to serotonin. Serotonin is a natural hormone that has various functions but the major ones are mood regulation, sexual desire, and digestion.  You already know the reasons why eating right is good for your body but let me share with you why it is also good for your mind.

Serotonin balancing

 Organic food with little or no processing sugar helps prevent inflammation in the GI tract by maintaining the balance between good and bad bacteria. Wondering what inflammation means? It is essentially the bacteria in your gut that are fighting each other. The symptoms usually include swelling in your internal organs.

 The production and transmission of serotonin are controlled by good bacteria and any imbalance can affect our mood negatively. Normal levels of serotonin keep our mood stable. Lower levels are associated with lower mood and depression.

We are Nigerians and we know better than to go about our day in a bad mood because of our eating habits.  Don’t be a hard guy and continue wasting money on Ibuprofen or Panadol.

Improved sleep

Eating right helps you sleep better and prevents grumpiness in the morning. If you usually drink coffee or you eat Amala at night before bed, you can relate to how food affects our sleep quality. (Hey, I’m not judging everyone's snacks at midnight)

While you may know that late-night meals are bad for you, there are some that are worse than others because of their dense starch concentration. Of course, the usual suspects are sugary foods. If your job or lifestyle makes it difficult to stay away from eating at night, please eat veggies and fruits. If you don’t sleep well, you might be grumpy and unproductive in the mornings. These things add up. 

 

Improved self-confidence

A body that feels unhealthy is a reason for discomfort and continuous emotional distress. This could range from diabetes to weight problems. But the feeling of not being able to eat the foods we crave is not a nice one. It could raise anxiety or depression levels. It is even more cruel to realize that unstable mental health increases the  likelihood of eating ‘junk’ or just overeating in general.  

 

The results from eating right give us better confidence and improve our self-esteem. We all feel better when we look in the mirror and see oily pimples disappearing or your retreating FUPA. Medication and therapy are getting costlier. Healthier food is the best medicine. Sounds cliché but most clichés are true anyway. 

 

Conclusion

Well, it would be unfair for me to just tell you all these things and leave you with bad vibes. No, I won’t. I have a sure plug for your affordable and healthy foods. If you already patronize them, well I just gave you more reasons to keep buying food from them.

If you haven’t heard about them, the name is So Fresh. And you should check them out here. Their products have minimal processing and Fresh smoothies, salads, parfait, name it. You can either get it fresh at their location or order from them online. Thank me later.

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