In a world where stress dominates our daily schedule, coffee our source of energy, and shortage of sleep, seems to be quite a very common phenomenon. We find ourselves in a life prone to illness and unhealthy decisions. In the post today, we will talk about some physical and mental foods to help reduce stress and improve on our decision making.

There is no doubt that a healthy diet helps our body to function correctly, let us not forget that we are not robots and exposing the body to a constant state of stress is definitely not good for our general health and wellbeing. But, to what extent does eating influence our mental state of health?

Have you heard of this famous saying that ‘we are what we eat’? Do you agree with it?

We need to fuel our body with vital nutrients and minerals to produce a healthy mind free from stress and sharp to make important decisions in our lives.

Recommended Read: 10 foods high in vitamin C  

Stress and decision making

Unlike the television, our brain is always on and working, even when we are sleeping. According to studies by the World Health Organisation (WHO), living in a state of chronic stress can lead to physical, mental, and emotional imbalance. The result? Including demand and pressure will lead to, bad relationships, insecurity, lack of sleep, anguish, anxiety, and depression.

Identify the factors

Knowing yourself is essential and a vital element. Listening to the body and feeding it healthily is the basis for generating a good quality source of energy.

Here are some symptoms to recognise when in a state of stress:

• Low energy, headaches, stomach upsets, insomnia.
• Frustration, mood swings, and feeling overwhelmed.
• Having difficulty relaxing, both mentally and physically.
• Constant concern, disorganisation, inability to focus, poor judgement, pessimism.

Read: 10 ways to sleep better naturally

Get underway

Starting with a good diet is the basis of the much-needed change towards a new mental and physical configuration.

Why change? Because when our personal and professional decisions are defined in an instant, we must be in our best state of wellbeing to influence on the decision-making process.

The keys

Currently, there is a trend to adopt healthy lifestyles, but we are far from recommending you to make a Kardashian change, the goal is to modify small habits to create healthier ones, within your given possibilities.

We must avoid those foods that trigger stress hormones, including cortisol. Therefore, some recommendations for the foods to reduce stress and improve decision making are:

1. The refined ones:

Preferably discard processed products, since they have low nutritional quality and can cause changes in moods, headaches, insomnia, etc. For example: Replace canned foods for fresh foods, eliminate sugary drinks, replace white sugar with muscovado sugar. If you are a heavy drinker, it might be a good idea to reduce on your alcohol consumption too.

2. The power of greens:

Green vegetables are healthy, taste good, and bring a lot of colour to your plate, are low in calories, but packed with nutrients. They contain a large amount of fibre, which are important, amongst other things, for a well-functioning digestion and a healthy intestinal flora.

Green vegetables contain an abundance of antioxidants, which can reduce the so-called oxidative stress in the body and are therefore considered to be excellent in promoting a good physical and mental health.

3. Meditation:

It is a mental food, spending 5 to 10 minutes or more a day to find a quiet place in our house and release the thoughts that overwhelm us, is essential for our mental health.

4. Coffee or Tea?

Reduce your coffee intake and alternate with the types of tea that provide energy with less caffeine.

Read: The 5 best teas in the world and the benefits they bring to your health

5) Probiotic:

According to specialists, the health of our intestines is linked to the state of stress of our body, so they recommend incorporating probiotics into our diet.

Conclusively, we always recommend consulting with a nutrition specialist or your doctor when making any lifestyle changes. This article is for general information purpose only. Never disregard your medical advice or delay in seeking treatment.

Thanks for reading and see you in the next post.