July2016-Final-UR-IT

Eating
Healthy:
How it Effects Your Mental
And Emotional Health
e know that eating right
Wand maintaining a healthy
diet is key to attaining healthy
body weight. As well, it helps keep
lifestyle diseases away. Well, these
are not the only benefits of healthy
eating. Actually, different studies
have linked a typical western diet
filled with processed foods, sugary
snacks and packed meals, to higher
rates of bipolar disorder, stress,
anxiety and depression, among
other mental and emotional health
issues. These studies have shown that
deteriorating mental and emotional
health lead to more suicide cases.
So, how exactly does healthy
eating influence your mental and
emotional health?
Reduced Lethargy and
Crankiness
Some people prefer to skip meals
as a weight loss solution, and
instead eat one large meal in a
day. While this could be working
on your weight, did you know that
skipping a meal causes a drop in
your blood sugar?
Low blood sugar levels have
a negative impact on your
emotional health. In extreme
cases, people may avoid you due
to your moody nature. Yet, the
problem is in your diet choices.
Instead of skipping meals, you can
eat small amounts of food at least
6 times a day to maintain your
sugar levels.
In order to have longer-lasting
blood sugar levels, you need to
be careful on the type of sugar
foods you take. If you opt to eat
generally sugary foods, you will
experience an initial surge in
energy because they are absorbed
quickly in the bloodstream.
Unfortunately, they will wear out
as fast as they were absorbed.
Alternatively, take whole grain
cereals, fruits, and vegetables
which are more filling in the sense
that they are absorbed slowly,
making you feel full longer.
Boosted Feeling of
Optimism and Calmness
Research has showed that eating
foods rich in the amino acid
tryptophan increases serotonin
levels in the brain, resulting in
more positive feelings. As a result,
people who include such foods
in their diet have lower risk of
depression and anxiety.
To get tryptophan, include
bananas, avocados, dried
apricots, walnuts, sunflower
seeds, or pumpkin seeds in
your diet.
Higher Effectiveness of
Antidepressants
Omega-3 fatty acids are great
sources of healthy fats. In addition
to helping in the treatment of
depression by stabilizing your
mood, these fats also have the
ability to boost the effectiveness
of conventional antidepressants.
Therefore, it can help people with
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder (ADHD).
To boost consumption of foods
rich in omega-3, the American
Heart Association recommends
eating oily fish (salmon, trout,
mackerel, anchovies, and
sardines) at least twice a week.
In a different twist, lack of
maintaining a healthy diet can
be dangerous especially to
people taking certain psychiatric
medication. For example, if
you are taking MAOI, a type of
antidepressant, you should avoid
eating fermented, pickled, cured,
hung, dried or matured foods. This
is because when exposed to air,
these foods produce tyramine,
which when combined with MAOI
produces a dangerous mix.
Conclusion
According to the Mental Health
Foundation, 1 in 4 people are likely
to experience some kind of mental
health problem. Clearly, from our
discussion above, we can keep
this number constant or even
reduce it if we consider healthy
eating. Additionally, in case you
are taking any kind of psychiatric
medication, it is important to
check with your doctor to know
which foods to avoid and which
ones to take in order to boost the
effectiveness of your medication.
Article by: Vivian Achieng
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EATING HEALTHY: HOW IT EFFECTS MENTAL & EMOTIONAL HEALTH
EATING HEALTHY: HOW IT EFFECTS MENTAL & EMOTIONAL HEALTH
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