You Are What You Eat

With stress a big buzzword for these economic times, what you eat can make a difference in how often you feel it

By Dana Carman
CTW Features

The economy is in the tank; there�s a war going on; job losses are rampant; and the housing market still stinks � how on Earth is anyone smiling?

They may be eating chocolate, according Dawn Jackson Blatner a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. She says that research has shown that when we are stressed our desire for high fat and high carbohydrate foods really does increase and, should we indulge, it may actually stimulate serotonin, a neurotransmitter linked to regulating mood.

�The two foods people will choose are chocolate and chips,� Blatner says. And because those items may help make you feel better, especially in times like these, she suggests healthy ways to indulge, such as eating dark chocolate and baked versions of chips (which can save you 30 calories and three times the fat per ounce as full fat chips). She also recommends putting the chips on a plate rather than eating out of a bag to regulate your portion control and to purchase small chocolate bars. �It�s about being smart about your stress cravings,� she says.

Additionally, Blatner said making sure the following five vitamins and minerals are in your diet routinely can also keep your mood up: B6, which is found in white potatoes (and perhaps explains our craving for French fries or mashed potatoes as �comfort food�); B12, which is in skim milk, so that warm cup of milk before bed �might not just be an old wives tale,� Blatner says; folic acid, which can be found in high contents in lentil soup; selenium, which you can get in some tuna for lunch; vitamin C, which Blatner recommends getting from a red bell pepper as that�s the highest source. And go for a walk, she says. Exercise improves mood, but the sun�s vitamin D does too.

On the flip side of that coin is not eating things that can make you feel sluggish or worse when the chips are already down. With less employees to do more work, it�s easy to fuel up on things like sugar and those extra afternoon lattes but drinking caffeine in the afternoon can keep you awake at night and be counterproductive. Registered dietitian Monique Ryan also notes that caffeine can keep you from relaxing. She also notes that if you let your diet go during times of stress and rely on fast, grab-and-go types of things, you�ll have less energy to cope with situations that arise.

�It�s a vicious cycle,� Blatner says. So while time may be tight and stress may be high, before you pick up that carton of take out or down that late-afternoon coffee, remember that what you eat may be making you feel worse. Curb that desire with comfort � healthy comfort.

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