It is a well-established fact that diet plays a fundamental role in overall health and wellbeing.
But now we are learning that diet plays an important role in social, emotional, and mental health too.
This article by leading nutritionist and dietician Avni Kaul decodes how diet, especially the Mediterranean diet, boosts mood and mental health.
Are diet and mental health linked?
Traditionally, mental health issues have been treated using psychiatric therapies such as counseling, medication, and at times hospitalization. But now an emerging field named nutritional psychiatry stresses how diet and nutrition impact the way you feel mentally.
One reason why food choices impact our brains so potently is that our gastrointestinal system or the gut is closely linked to the brain.
Your gut is home to trillions of living microbes that have several functions in the body, like synthesizing neurotransmitters that send chemical messages to your brain to regulate sleep, pain, appetite, mood, and emotion.
Dietary patterns associated with improved mental health
There is evidence that specific dietary patterns may help decrease symptoms of depression or anxiety. The Mediterranean diet is one such diet.
Mediterranean diet for mental health
While it is known as heart-healthy, its proponents have long been known, the Mediterranean diet’s mental health benefits are also becoming clear. The colorful plant foods and healthy fats of the Mediterranean diet are vital components of a brain-healthy diet.
Eating plenty of different vegetables and berries provide the body plenty of gut-nourishing, inflammation-lessening fiber, besides a host of essential macro, micro, and phytonutrients that optimize our brain health. In the same way, healthy fats like those present in extra virgin olive oil, nuts, seeds, and wild-caught seafood work as a powerful anti-inflammatory component in the brain to resist the damaging impact of exposure to toxins, ageing, and free radicals, and thus, maintain healthy tissue.
Research has provided evidence for those brain-boosting claims. A new study in Australia saw that following the diet plan lessened symptoms of depression in young men.
One study found that a diet high in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and legumes and low in red and processed meat was linked with around 10% lower chances of depressive symptoms.
To follow a Mediterranean diet increase your consumption of:
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Nuts
- Fish
- Legumes
- Olive oil
- Dairy products
The same diet restricts the consumption of:
- Fried foods
- Baked goods
- Processed meats
- Sweetened beverages
Keep in mind that opting for an eating pattern based on a Mediterranean diet does not mean you have to give up on your cultural foods. It is important that one’s eating habits incorporate those foods that are easy to access locally and meaningful to you culturally and locally.
Also, it is important to keep in mind to check with a professional psychiatrist and dietician before you decide to shift your dietary pattern for mental health issues. A specific diet that has worked for one may not necessarily work for others.
Know more about the KET, PALEO, and other diets read here: Benefits of Keto Diet, Benefits of PALEO Diet Diet for PCOS
