DID YOU KNOW?
People who eat more fruit and vegetables score higher on every facet of mental health evaluations. Scientists aren’t quite sure the reasoning, but what has come to light is that many people with depression often have lower blood levels of folate, vitamin C and potassium - three vitamins that are found in high amounts in fresh fruit and vegetables. In a 2016 New Zealand study the data showed that eating more fresh fruit and vegetables enhanced positive mental health scores. Read the study HERE.
Feed Your Microbiome Good Carbs
A Varied Diet = A Happy Gut = A Happy Brain
In general, when you eat a varied diet of different types of fruits and vegetables, your microbiome becomes more diverse and quite simply, more joyful. A more diverse microbiome can translate to more balanced emotions, hormones, digestive energy, which all have an effect on mood. The challenge I pose myself, my clients and my cleansers alike is to ingest 30 different plants each day. Over time you will have grown a happy gut, a happy complexion, a happy mindset, and a happy body. Here is a list of some of the important types of starches that the microbiome thrives from.
Inulin - artichokes, garlic, onions, asparagus, chicory, dandelion greens
Fructooligosaccharides - banana, onion, garlic, asparagus
Resistant Starch - legumes, green bananas, oats, barley, sorghum, rice
Pectin - apples, apricot, carrots, oranges
Arabinoxylan - grains
Arabinogalactan - carrots, pears, corn, tomatoes, turmeric
Don’t Worry, Be Happy
The Earth Element, aka Stomach and Spleen, thrive on mindful eating and suffer when there are prolonged periods of worry.
In Chinese medicine, it is the Earth element that governs the complexity between mindset and digestive health. One way to improve common digestive complaints that relate to a weak microbiome or perhaps a stressed out digestive tract is to add in mindful eating strategies to that list of happy gut carbs. It took me a few meditation retreats to make the connection between my chronic gas and bloating and mindful awareness of how I was eating, along with when I was eating. Three square meals per day, eaten with intention over 5 days was the Ahh-ha moment for me. See some strategies below that I have found to be helpful in regulating many of my longterm digestive issues. In my Eastern Nutrition classes we learned the following:
Eat until you are 2/3’s full
Eat with intention, meaning, solely focus on eating when you sit down for a meal
Eat at regular times/intervals, the stomach likes regularity
Eat slowly. Put your fork down between bites and spend time chewing your food, noticing the flavors, textures, etc
There is no one size fits all method to finding the right mental wellness path for everyone. If you are suffering from anxiety and depression, please speak with a professional, and consider including food medicine as one of the many approaches to your mental wellness journey. Need help connecting with someone? Please reach out.