How much food is in our moods?

In a span of at least two weeks this season, our bodies will be infused with all sorts of foods that are associated with what “festive” means. There will be all sorts of sweets, meats and concoctions that will gastronomically mark the season. They are supposed to up the ante in terms of our personal and collective moods – bringing cheer and delight to our senses.  How much of a role for food has science uncovered when it comes to our moods? In other words, how much food is in our moods?

The brain is a gregarious eater as well as housekeeper. This is based on the fact that considering its size, which is only about 3 pounds and an average of about 1195 cc in terms of volume, it consumes a fifth of the entire energy of the body.  Compare that with the skin which is about 20 pounds, followed by the intestines (large and small) which is about 7.5 lbs, both our lungs at 5lbs total and liver at 3.5 lbs. This energy is used by our brains not only for our neurons to send signals to different parts of the brain but it is also used to do some housekeeping, cleaning up some “dirt” produced in the process.

“Energy” comes from the food we take so it makes a lot of sense to study why what we eat would matter to how our heads would function. Different kinds of foods would contain different kinds and varying levels of nutrients which affect how the brains function, and therefore our moods. More and more, scientists are adding on to a relatively new field called “Nutritional Psychiatry” which studies the link between food and our mental well-being.

In a study that came out middle part of this year, it showed that a diet heavy on sugar from food and beverages is linked to higher instances of depression, although the evidence was more robust for men than in women. Many people who go on a sugar binge claim that a “heartbreak” or some other negative mental condition could have caused their sugar binge which aggravates their heartbreak. But what was interesting in the study was that they found that this did not hold. What the study found is that people who do not report any pre-existing negative mood, are more likely to get into one on a high-sugar diet. This makes us rethink before we indulge on all the sweets that we encounter during the holidays. We all know that they were created with all good intentions in mind, including uplifting our moods. However, it would seem that the neurochemistry that the high-sugar, high saturated fat feasts that the holidays are associated with, are most likely to give us “lows” than “highs”.

Another study has shown that people who even with just a moderate adherence (versus a strict one) to a Mediterranean diet have lessened risks of “cognitive impairment” – which is an umbrella term for the way you think (memory, judgement, language). A Mediterranean diet calls for more vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, beans, cereals, grains, fish, and unsaturated fats such as olive oil but with significantly low amounts of meat and dairy foods. The same study showed that a strict adherence to this kind of diet lessens the risk of depression regardless of age. A review of studies confirmed these findings as well.

There is also very good reason to start caring about the food-brain link early in life. A review of studies have linked unhealthy diets (saturated fats, high doses of refined sugar, processed foods) in children and adolescents with a host of mental conditions such as depression, behavioral problems and mood disorders. In the light of evidence from these studies, the fast food and processed foods that many children anticipate with glee may just do the opposite to them if these kinds of meals become habitual.

A most recent study further informs this food-brain link by revealing that our brains could need more or less of certain foods depending on our age. It found that young adults (18-29) seem to need more meat for mood regulation while the moods of those 30 years and above, count more on antioxidants (fruits) and refraining from food that “jolts” their system like coffee or high-sugar foods. This strengthens the argument that age would require us to change the way we eat, not just for our physical health but to keep our wiring up there, stable.

As has often been said, we are what we eat. Most take that to mean that what you eat is a clue to your identity. But what was hidden before, and is now increasingly being revealed is that what we eat also shapes who we are, not just our physical shapes but our psychological shapes.

But what we have to keep in mind is that food has to be habitual to be able to influence your mental shape. Any restaurant that serves food that touts to improve your moods would at best, give you some examples of the food that have been scientifically validated to improve your moods. But your mood will not instantaneously improve after eating those foods there. They have to be part of your life – in the way you eat.

So during the holidays, I wish you happy dining in the scientific sense – that you know you have a choice, knowing what certain foods do to how you think and remember. – Rappler.com