Striving4Zen

What To Eat When…

You’re Stressed

Modern life is a big, boiling cauldron of anxiety stew, and we get a heaping helping every day. Whether you’re talking to your boss about a promotion, talking to your spouse about the credit cards bills, or talking to your kids about a streak of bad behavior, there’s always a stress-soaked moment around the corner. So calm yourself quick with these natural nerve-settlers.

Eat This:

1 cup of low-fat yogurt; 2 tbsp of nuts
Scientists in Slovakia gave people 3 grams each of two amino acids—lysine and arginine—or a placebo and asked them to deliver a speech. Blood measurements of stress hormones revealed that the amino acid—fortified guys were half as anxious during and after the speech as those who took the placebo. Yogurt is one of the best food sources of lysine and nuts pack tons of arginine.

Red Bell Peppers
Researchers at the University of Alabama fed rats 200 milligrams of vitamin C twice a day and found that it nearly stopped the secretion of stress hormones. Add half a sliced red bell pepper to a salad or sandwich; calorie for calorie, no single food gives you more vitamin C.

A Cup of Peppermint Tea
The scent of peppermint helps you focus and boosts performance, according to researchers. In another study, they found that peppermint makes drivers more alert and less anxious.

A Handful of Sesame Seeds
Stress Hormones can deplete your body’s supply of magnesium, reducing your abilities and increasing your risk of developing high blood pressure. Sesame seeds are packed with this essential mineral.

Not That!

A Can of Soda
A study from the American Journal of Public Health found that people who drink 2 ½ cans of soda daily are three time more likely to be depressed and anxious, compared with those who drink fewer.

You’re Sad

Watch enough TV advertising and you begin to think the only answer to a bad mood is a bottle of pills. Wrong! Your next meal can have as dramatic an impact on your mood as your next prescription refill. So the next time you have a gnawing feeling that something’s amiss, try gnawing on one of these.

Eat This:
An arugula or spinach salad
Leafy greens—arugula, chard, spinach—are rich sources of B vitamins, which are part of the assembly line that manufactures feel-good hormones such as serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine. In fact, according to a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience Nursing, a lack of B6 can cause nervousness, irritability and even depression.

Tuna Sashimi or Grilled Salmon
A study in Finland found that people who eat more fish are 31% less likely to suffer from depression. And skip sweet, simple carbs (like the rice with you sushi)—the inevitable sugar crash can deepen depression.

1 tbsp of Ground Flaxseed Daily
Flax is the best source of alpha-linoleic acid, or ALA—a healthy fat that improves the working of the cerebral cortex, the area of the brain that processes sensory information, including that of pleasure. To meet your quota, sprinkle it on salads or mix it into a smoothie or shake.

Not That!
White Chocolate
White chocolate isn’t technically chocolate, since it contains no cocoa solids. That means it also lacks the ability to stimulate the euphoria-inducing chemicals that real chocolate does, especially serotonin. If you’re going to grab some chocolate, darker is better; more cacao means more happy chemicals and less sugar, which will eventually pull you down.

Excerpted from Eat This, Not That by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding. Rodale Books, 2007.

Labels: David Zinczenko, Eat This, eating healthy, food and mood, healthy eating, men's health, new book, Not That