I have images in my mind from my childhood of commercials, television shows, and magazine ads depicting a person, clad in a robe, standing in front of an open fridge, late at night, reaching for cold pizza, ice cream or a sandwich; or sitting on the couch with a bag of potato chps and eating a candy bar. The message was that they were feeling down – perhaps lonely, bemoaning a break-up from their lover, or just bored and looking for something to eat. At times like these, it was commonplace to comfort ourselves with food – especially carbs, sugar, and salt.
I get it — in essence, they were mood food — foods we gravitate towards when were down . . . as a way to comfort and make us feel better. Its well known that when we feel stressed, bored, or have low energy or mood, we reach for carbs, sugar or salty foods. And, I have to agree, chocolate and potato chips have helped comfort me in the past.
Decades later, science tells us that the mood food of yesteryear may not be the proper way to combat our moodiness. In fact, it may being more harm than good. You see, the sweet, salty, carb mood food make us feel better in the short term, but research has increasingly shown us that the long-term effects of eating these foods can be detrimental to our health – physically and mentally.
Instead, we should be increasing our consumption of nutrient-rich food to protect our bodies, brains and mood. These foods include nuts, whole grains, fruits and veggies – and omega-3 foods.
It can be hard sometimes especially as we are more isolated and working from home. Too often the pantry calls. We’re bored and moody because we aren’t out and about like we used to be – we are not socializing as much, exercising as much, or just play being out in the world as much.
Lately I’ve been paying attention to what I eat, and making a mental not as to how it makes me feel. And most recently, I have been feeling the mood food haze – which was more apparent as we were on the road for a month.
My Road Food Mood
As typical, I set out on our camping adventure with a cooler stocked with food and a notebook filled with our meal plan. We fixed quick meals at campsites, as we were on a schedule and spending only one night at each campsite. We’d arrive, pop open a beer, set up camp, make dinner, clean the dishes, answer emails and head off to sleep. When we woke, it was coffee, breakfast, breakdown, and back on the road.
Our road trip took us to Oklahoma, then Ohio, to visit with family, and then back again to California. For 28 days, I was eating out of someone else’s kitchen, and I felt it. Yes, vacation time means doing things a bit differently, and indulging in a few things one might not otherwise indulge in, but by week 2 on the road I found myself craving things from my kitchen – more grains, less meat, and definitely fewer snacks. I needed something to give me energy, and give me a bit a mental clarity (we were, after all, doing a lot of traveling in the van every day).
Now that I’m home, and had the chance to do a bit of meal planning and shopping, I am happy to see my fridge and pantry filled with foods we are used to – those foods that truly make me feel in a better mood. Of course, I will miss my Mom’s baking.
Here are a few of my Good Mood Foods
