Nutritionists know the old saying “You are what you eat” is even more relevant when it comes to feel good foods that can help boost your mood. Discover the most important foods for a feel good diet that makes you happy.
Chocolate
The no-brainer of feel good foods, chocolate can have an instant effect on your mood. Research has shown that the most powerful effects in a feel good diet come from dark chocolate, with at least 70% cocoa.
Mussels
Sea food is good for your body, but mussels are one of the staples of a feel good diet. The high iodine content regulates mood by helping out the thyroid gland, while vitamin B12 helps strengthen your brain cells.
Coconuts
Medium-chain triglycerides, healthy fats that can be found in coconuts, promote brain health and can fuel good moods. You can’t get the same effect with coconut milk or water, so go for unsweetened coconut shavings.
Greek Yogurt
Rich in calcium, even more than milk, Greek yogurt delivers this mineral to your bones, but also to your brain. An important part of a feel good diet, calcium regulates neurotransmitters and promotes happiness.
Honey
While honey can reduce inflammation in your entire body, it’s also one of the most important feel good foods because it contains ingredients like quercetin and kaempferol that help honey get on the list of foods that prevent depression.
Tomatoes
When eaten with olive oil, tomatoes offer the precious antioxidant, lycopene, and the oil speeds up its absorption. Fighting inflammation in the brain, lycopene is an important part of a healthy feel good diet.
Eggs
Keeping your energy levels high, eggs make for one of the best feel good foods thanks to tryptophan, a compound found in egg whites. Whether boiled or cooked in oil, eggs contribute to the production of serotonin and melatonin, hormones that can make you happy and help you sleep.
Green Tea
A lower content of caffeine than coffee, combined with the powerful antioxidants in green tea, help this drink be part of the feel good diet, enhancing your mood and giving you energy for longer periods of time.
Lentils
Rich in folate, lentils are one of the best sources of this substance that can improve your mood. Folate deficiency has been linked to depression, so don’t ignore one of the most useful feel good foods.
Wild Salmon
Salmon gets a great rep thanks to the healthy Omega-3 fats, but this fish is also rich in vitamin B12 that aids in the production of serotonin, making it one of the best mood enhancing foods that make you happy.
