The Right Food for the Right Mood by Functional Nutritionist Nikki Burnett
Nikki Burnett MS MNT CNTP is a Functional Nutritionist at Taste Life Nutrition. Nikki works with ambitious professionals to help them overcome hidden barriers to both health and success. Challenges such as chronic stress, brain fog, low energy, and stubborn chronic issues frequently have their roots in unhealthy foods and unknown inflammatory conditions. Functional nutrition is based on the science of functional medicine. The goal is to understand the body through functional lab testing, genetic testing, environmental factors, stress, and lifestyle. Nikki writes about ‘The Right Food for the Right Mood.
Have you ever had an exciting meal that left you in a funk an hour later? Or, you were in a funk then ate a healthy meal and your mood totally changed? Maybe you didn’t think about it then but hopefully, after reading this, you will in the future.
For clarity, let’s talk about what food is to your body. We often see food as a way to fill our belly; it’s social and fun; for some, it’s like heaven. For others, it can feel like an evil trick. Food, at its essence, is a language. The nutrients within tell our cells and genes what to do. If we eat healthy food, there is a clean line of communication to our cells and genes. If we eat unhealthy food, there is a broken line of communication and our cells and genes become confused. This miscommunication is often the beginning of dis-ease.
Most conditions we suffer from are “lifestyle” conditions. When we have aches, pains, fatigue, brain fog, anxiety, depression – our body is talking to us, telling us something is wrong. If we don’t listen, dis-ease takes over. If we do listen, we can change the impact of the dis-ease process and bring our body back into balance.
We know that inflammation is the root cause of all disease, but we must ask the question – What caused the inflammation? When looking for a root cause we want to consider 5 things:
1. Sleep and relaxation
2. Exercise and movement
3. Nutrition
4. Stress
5. Relationships.
How is this connected to our mood? You’ve heard the saying “I had a gut feeling” or “Go with your gut”. There is a reason for these phrases. We have what has been termed, the Gut/Brain Axis. Our gut and brain are connected in multiple ways.
I’m going to throw some science at you now! The vagus nerve extends from our brainstem to our gut and is sending constant bidirectional signals. Another pathway is via our gut microbiota. These microbes interact with the Gut/Brain Axis through the vagus nerve, gut hormones, neurotransmitter metabolism, and the immune system. Interestingly, 95% of our happy neurotransmitter serotonin is produced in the gut and 70% of our immune system is located in the gut. All of which can be affected by healthy or unhealthy gut microbiota.
Feeding our microbiota the proper nutrients is critical to our mental and emotional health. Different fruits and vegetables feed different types of beneficial bacteria. The greater the diversity of fruit and vegetables, the greater the diversity of the healthy bacteria.
Unhealthy foods are more likely to feed opportunistic and pathogenic bacteria leading to dysbiosis, an imbalance of beneficial bacteria, which can lead to negative physical, mental, and emotional manifestations.
Other things that can affect our microbiota are antibiotics, pesticides (if they kill bugs on plants, they kill bugs in our gut!), herbicides, chemicals we “clean” with and personal hygiene products (chemicals) we put on our skin.
Stress, fear, negative self-talk, self-doubt, trauma, and difficult relationships can create inflammation which changes our biochemistry affecting the microbiome, neurotransmitter production, and immune system. These factors lead to physical, mental and emotional disorders and the vicious cycle continues.
Beneficial foods for a healthy mood:
1. Vegetables feed our microbiome and contain vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, antioxidants, and phytonutrients. All of these are necessary to support a healthy mood.
2. Omega-3 fatty acids decrease inflammation while supporting brain health and mood.
3. Fermented foods contain probiotics and prebiotics. Probiotics are bacteria and prebiotics feed them.
Foods to avoid for a stable mood:
1. Gluten is inflammatory. It has the potential to disrupt the cell wall in the gut and brain which can severely affect mood.
2. Sugar increases blood glucose which can damage brain function, increase mood swings and fatigue.
3. Preservatives, coloring, and artificial sweeteners may lead to brain fog, fatigue, anxiety, headaches, seizures, and mood disorders.
Mindful eating modifies the body’s biochemistry from the sympathetic (fight or flight) to the parasympathetic (rest and digest). Inflammation increases stress (and vice versa) which damages the brain.
Things to consider for mindful eating:
1. Eat without outside influence (i.e. television).
2. Smell and appreciate the food.
3. Say a prayer and show gratitude for the food.
4. Eat slowly, chew thoroughly, and Taste Life in every bite.
