Eat Your Stress Goodbye - Stress-Reducing Diet

When you’re stressed out, the foods that you’re turning to are most likely going to be traditional ‘comfort’ foods – think big meals, take-out, fatty foods, and sweet foods. Let's face it – we've all found some comfort in a tasty meal when we've been stressed out or upset about something. However, this isn't the right permanent solution.

When you're turning to unhealthy foods, you can feel better temporarily, but you will feel worse in the long run. When your body isn't getting the right nutrition, you can begin to feel less energetic, more lethargic, and in some cases, less able to concentrate and focus. All of this can lead to even more stress.

Foods that Fight Stress

If you've been feeling more stressed out than usual lately, it's essential to know which foods are best to choose and which to avoid when it comes to combating stress and helping you to deal with feelings of stress and anxiety. The best way to fight stress is to have a healthy, balanced diet, which includes a moderate amount of each of the different food groups.

Filling up on foods such as whole grains, leafy vegetables, and lean proteins as the basic staples of the diet is the best way to ensure that your body gets the optimum amounts of nutrients to fight both physical and mental health problems. When it comes to choosing the foods to eat, some have a range of excellent properties which help the body to combat stress. Choosing these stress-busting foods will help heal and calm your mind permanently, rather than provide a temporary fix.

Some of the best stress-fighting foods include:

• Avocado

• Blueberries

• Chamomile Tea

• Chocolate

• Beef

• Oatmeal

• Pistachios

• Green leafy vegetables

Putting Together Your Diet Plan

Planning your meals wisely is key to not only staying physically fit and healthy but also to staying mentally sharp and being able to manage your levels of stress best. Knowing which foods to avoid and which are the best to reach for to snack on when you're feeling worried and anxious is vital to help you control your emotions and fears.

When you’re feeling stressed, you may be tempted to reach for classic ‘comfort foods’ – usually foods laden with sugar, very starchy, or greasy. However, although these foods can make you feel momentarily better, they will worsen in the long run.

Having stress-busting snacks such as fresh berries, dark chocolate, yogurt, walnuts or pistachios, or even a fruit smoothie with avocado and leafy greens can help you to feel better in both the short and long term when it comes to stress. When it comes to combating and dealing with stress in the long run, it's essential to make sure that, for the most part, you are eating a diet that is healthy and balanced.

To stay on track, it's a good idea to make a meal plan for your week and plan to make sure that you have a good selection of these stress-busting foods in your kitchen to prepare meals and snacks from when you're feeling like stress-eating. Making sure that the majority of your meals include foods such as lean proteins and leafy green vegetables will not only make you feel healthier overall but can improve your mental health and stress levels, too.

A good example of a healthy, stress-busting menu would be:

Breakfast: Oatmeal with berries or a fruit smoothie with avocado and berries

Mid-morning snack: Natural yogurt with fruit or a handful of pistachio nuts

Lunch: A quinoa salad filled with plenty of leafy greens

Afternoon snack: Dark chocolate

Dinner: Grass-fed beef with vegetables

Before bed: Chamomile tea

Of course, you don’t need to stick to this menu – but it gives you a good idea! Remember to exercise proper portion control when eating nuts, chocolate, yogurt, or avocado! As the saying goes, you are what you eat – so make sure that first and foremost, you're filling yourself up with foods that are good for your mental health.