{"id":374,"date":"2020-08-25T14:46:44","date_gmt":"2020-08-25T14:46:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/?p=374"},"modified":"2020-08-25T14:46:44","modified_gmt":"2020-08-25T14:46:44","slug":"7-foods-to-boost-your-mood-and-uplift-your-spirit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/7-foods-to-boost-your-mood-and-uplift-your-spirit\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Foods to Boost Your Mood and Uplift Your Spirit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-375 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/pexels-daria-shevtsova-949069-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Photo by Daria Shevtsova from Pexels\" width=\"516\" height=\"688\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/pexels-daria-shevtsova-949069-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/pexels-daria-shevtsova-949069-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/pexels-daria-shevtsova-949069-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/pexels-daria-shevtsova-949069-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/pexels-daria-shevtsova-949069-1200x1600.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/pexels-daria-shevtsova-949069-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 516px) 85vw, 516px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do you notice that whenever you\u2019re getting the blues, you usually crave high-sugar, high-calorie foods like cake and ice cream? It\u2019s an all-too-common occurrence, and then your mood is better and the world is a happy place again.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Beware, though, because this can give you a sugar rush, which in the long term is likely to be helpful for your health. Instead, you should consume natural, raw, wholesome foods that have been proven to help uplift one\u2019s mood and promote overall health.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here are foods to help you get started on the positivity train:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Dark chocolate <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Chocolate isn\u2019t a certified happiness-inducing food for nothing. It\u2019s rich in mood-increasing compounds, including theobromine, caffeine, and N-acetylanolamine, which is a substance chemically similar to cannabinoids, a mood improver in a number of studies. It\u2019s also chock full of flavonoids, known to increase blood flow to the brain, slash inflammation, and aid brain health. Since most milk chocolate products are filled with sugar and fat, dark chocolate is your best bet for mood enhancement.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Fatty fish <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Omega-3 fatty acids have been linked to lower levels of depression. And why not, when they help the cell membranes of the brain become fluid and contribute to brain development as well as cell signaling? Omega-3s are found in abundance in fatty fish like salmon and tuna &#8211; feast on these a few times a week.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Oats and whole grains<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; These are fiber-rich foods that can help keep your blood sugar stable, versus when you eat refined sugar and flour products. A stabilized blood sugar level can help regulate brain neurotransmitter secretions. Oats, too, can be enjoyed in several forms, from oatmeal to muesli to granola bars.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Fermented foods <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Kimchi is a staple Korean food commonly seen in K-drama and shows. Like yogurt, kombucha, lassi, and sauerkraut, it undergoes fermentation, which allows live bacteria to thrive in foods that are able to convert sugars into alcohols and acids. This way, probiotics or \u201cgood\u201d bacteria are created, supporting health bacterial growth in the gut. The good news is the process may increase serotonin levels and therefore improve your mood.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>High-quality protein<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Grass-fed beef and similar high-quality protein sources aren\u2019t just a real treat for the palate. They are also an important building block for a mood-enhancing diet. Research shows that grass-fed beef has plenty of healthy fats like omega-3, which can help combat depression.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Bananas <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Many fruits and vegetables can help improve mood, but we\u2019re singling this one out for its high levels of vitamin B6, which helps synthesize neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin. When there\u2019s better mood control and stable blood sugar levels, you can avoid mood swings and irritability (especially when blood sugar goes too low).\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Nuts and seeds<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; We\u2019re capping off this list with these sources of plant-based proteins, fiber, and healthy fats. In addition, they also offer tryptophan, an amino acid that produces serotonin. You have a lot of choices around, including almonds, cashews, walnuts, and pumpkin and sunflower seeds You can even sprinkle sesame seeds on dishes to get your fix.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At a time like the coronavirus pandemic, it\u2019s important to take control of your emotional wellness. Start with helping improve your mood with the food you eat &#8211; like an instant and affordable mood and brain enhancement program! Add this to the things that you do with your time. Exercise, start a new hobby, meditate, and sleep well to fight the blues.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Do you notice that whenever you\u2019re getting the blues, you usually crave high-sugar, high-calorie foods like cake and ice cream? It\u2019s an all-too-common occurrence, and then your mood is better and the world is a happy place again.\u00a0 Beware, though, because this can give you a sugar rush, which in the long term is likely&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":375,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"psp_head":"<title>7 Foods to Boost Your Mood and Uplift Your Spirit - LumUltra<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Do you notice that whenever you\u2019re getting the blues, you usually crave high-sugar, high-calorie foods like cake and ice cream? It\u2019s an all-too-common occurrence, and then your mood is better and the world is a happy place again.\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index,follow\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/7-foods-to-boost-your-mood-and-uplift-your-spirit\/\" \/>\r\n","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/374"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=374"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/374\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":376,"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/374\/revisions\/376"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/375"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lumultra.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}