Hippocrates’ words to let food be our medicine and medicine our food still rings true today. While we are able to purchase an over-or-behind-the-counter medication for every ailment under the sun, sometimes finding healing and relief can come from something as simple as a meal. Struggling with mood disorders or feeling down in the dumps? Check out these mood boosting foods to give your body a healthy, happy lift with an increase in essential vitamins and minerals.

Vitamins B6 and B12

Hanna’s Anti-Fatigue combines B vitamins to give your body (and mood) a boost!

When we experience high levels of stress, the body’s natural supply of B6 is depleted, affecting our levels of serotonin. This feel good neurotransmitter is responsible for providing feelings of calm and happiness and is found primarily in the gut. Research on the link between our mental and gut health reveals an intense connection between the two, learn more about that here. To increase your intake of B6, try adding avocados, baked potatoes (with skin), bananas, chickpeas, steamed green beans, and yellow-fin tuna to your diet especially if you’re having a stressful week. Vitamin B12 also soothes the system because of its link to GABA production. GABA inhibits nerve transmission in the brain, calming nervous activity and anxiety as well as helping you fall asleep. Increase your intake of B12 with plain yogurt (fat free), salmon, clams, sardines, and chicken. Hanna’s Anti-Fatigue is rich in B vitamins, including B6 and B12, and nourishes the adrenal glands to give our bodies extra strength while also keeping our levels of serotonin balanced; we consider this vitamin to be a great choice for addressing stress, mental fatigue, and exhausted adrenals.

Vitamin C

Ever noticed a connection in feeling a little blue while you’re under the weather? Maybe it’s just the fact that you can’t get up and do everything you would like, or maybe it’s the connection between the health of the immune system and the brain. Studies suggest that when our immune system is over-worked and we are sick, our mental health takes a hit. Vitamin C plays a large role in the health of our immune system throughout the year, not just in the cold weather months. Aside from supplements or fizzy packets to add to your water, look to your meals to increase your intake of this immune booster. Some of the best foods to supply vitamin C are red and green peppers, strawberries, orange juice (no sugar added), broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. Aside from providing a boost to the immune system, vitamin C is also helpful in fighting brain-cell damage as a result from constant exposure to cortisol, a stress hormone. Keep your stress and immune system in check but note that the body readily expels vitamin C so “100% Daily Value” on a label isn’t true to this vitamin.

Magnesium and Folate (Folic Acid)

Asparagus is among the mood foods and supplies our bodies with natural folate.

Like the B vitamins, magnesium plays a role in the production of GABA but also helps to make dopamine, the neurotransmitter in the brain that is associated with pleasure; Folate, or Folic Acid, functions in the same way. Constant stress depletes the level of dopamine in our system and the sense of pleasure is lessened. Incorporate almonds, spinach, tofu, wild rice, sunflower seeds, and amaranth into your diet to increase your intake of magnesium, or consider a supplement. An additional bonus of having adequate levels of magnesium in your system is that it acts as a natural muscle relaxant so if that’s an issue you are attempting to address with over-or-behind-the-counter medications, consider adjusting the level of magnesium in your diet to see an improvement. Add asparagus, orange juice (no sugar added), dark leafy greens, lentils, chickpeas, and oatmeal to your diet to improve your intake of folate or consider a supplement.

If you decide on an increase in these good mood foods as well as taking a supplement, check with your health care provider to discuss the amounts you’ll be ingesting. While on their own these supplements or foods are a great benefit to the system, a dramatic increase can be too much of a good thing. Choosing foods that nourish and heal your body is a great step in maintaining a healthy system and by adding nutrients that soothe your nerves a holistic approach to health is possible through your diet.  If you are what you eat then be sure you’re choosing food to improve your mood!