The connection between Nutrition & mental health

One of the most overlooked components of mental health treatment is our nutrition and diet. 

If dreary weather or another day of staying home is causing you to feel a case of the blahs, what you choose to eat can make a difference. Certain foods and nutrients help your brain to make chemicals that can impact your mood, attention and focus, while other foods can zap your energy.

When you stick to a diet of healthy food, you’re setting yourself up for fewer mood fluctuations, an overall happier outlook, and an improved ability to focus. Studies have even found that healthy diets can help with symptoms of depression and anxiety. Unhealthy diets have been linked to an increased risk of dementia or stroke.

While it's widely known that nutrition plays a key role in a person's physical health, it directly affects emotional well-being, too. "We tend to separate our brain from the rest of our body, but good health means good health from a holistic perspective – from head to toe," says Dr. Gabriela Cora, a board-certified psychiatrist. "Why wouldn't we think eating well would also impact our mental health?"

By integrating healthy eating habits and physical activity into your treatment plan, you will begin to see the difference. Although I am not a doctor, nurse, nutritionist, or dietitian, I have been trained to assist individuals with beginning to understand the connection between their diet and how it may be impacting their mental health symptoms.

Sources CC, Aetna