You are what you eat. This saying is truer than you might imagine because scientists can now prove a link between what you eat and the health of your nervous system. That is why choosing the right foods goes a long way to boosting your mood.
Your diet can have an effect on your mental health if you choose foods that don’t agree with your gut brain. When you eat emotionally it tends to be foods that are unhealthy which cause you to feel even worse. This is what we call eating instinctively, when you reach for the first thing that may make you feel better.
Instead, to boost your energy and restore balance, choose fruit and vegetables which will keep you hydrated. You will find your mood and behaviour will improve making it easy for your digestive system to function.
However, lifestyle for many people is a big factor in maintaining a healthy gut. Convenient, fast food is often more accessible than healthy products, but it is not doing your nervous system any favours.
How can you improve your gut brain to support a healthy nervous system?
A diet full of natural, fresh plant based food such as fruit, vegetables, wholegrains, oily fish, legumes, unsalted nuts and seeds have shown to boost your mood and mental health. Studies have shown that these types of foods promote happiness as well as reducing inflammation and stress on your body.
Fresh, natural foods also prevent leaky gut problems which can influence your brain and behaviour through the gut brain. These foods encourage the gut microbes to strengthen and boost their anti-inflammatory magic for a healthy mind and body.
Eating a variety of these foods are packed with nutrients that support a healthy nervous system to make you feel happier and improve your mental health. The nutrients and vitamins contained in these foods work to enable communication in your brain, sending neurological signals to instil a sense of calm and relaxation in the body. This is essential for healthy gut brain function.