Healthy Meals when Stress Strikes

Eating Healthy Meals When Stress Strikes
This is the article that Polly shared about in the meeting and I believe it it is worth reading it.

When stress seems to have taken over your life, healthy meals and snacks are better for body and mind than that sugary brownie. Find out how good food can help you cope.
By Linda Foster, MA
Medically reviewed by Pat F. Bass III, MD, MPH


It’s natural to crave chocolate cake, ice cream, and other foods that seem to improve your mood when you’re feeling stressed, even though you know they’re not healthy snacks. The problem is, they may temporarily lift your mood, but they can also send you crashing when the sugar high goes away, and if the extra calories cause you to gain weight, you may have a whole new source of stress.

There’s no need to soothe your nerves with empty calories when you can be eating healthy meals and snacks that can help your body and mind fight the harmful effects of stress and improve your health in general.

Calming Your Brain and Body With Healthy Foods

“Ever wonder why you’re calm and somewhat sleepy after eating a big turkey dinner?,” asks Karen Hutton, RD, MA, LDN, patient services manager of food and nutrition services at Methodist Medical Center of Illinois in Peoria. It’s because turkey contains tryptophan, an amino acid found in many protein-based foods that can have a calming effect on the body.

Foods containing tryptophan, complex carbohydrates (not simple sugars, including fructose found in fruit), and vitamin B6 are all known for their positive effects on serotonin production. Serotonin is a chemical in the brain that has a positive effect on mood.

“It is commonly known as the ‘good mood’ chemical, and increased levels of serotonin can induce a sense of relaxation,” says Melissa Mietzner of the Illinois State University Graduate Dietetic Program. She says there are many healthy meals that may positively affect mood during times of stress. “Some of these foods can help with serotonin levels, while others help with muscle relaxation.”

What Foods Should You Eat to Decrease Stress?

“Good sources of tryptophan include milk, soy, animal proteins such as lean beef and poultry, and cottage cheese,” says Mietzner. Whole grains, such as oatmeal, whole-wheat pasta, and popcorn are some of the best sources of serotonin-boosting carbohydrates.

Good sources of vitamin B6 are spinach, avocado, wheat germ, bananas, tuna, and some fortified cereals — choose whole-grain cereals with a high fiber content, not a high sugar content.

Want a tryptophan-packed breakfast to start your day? Hutton recommends eating two eggs fixed however you like, and having a cup of soy milk and one serving of oatmeal or high-fiber, whole grain bread.

Mietzner says eating foods that contain magnesium and calcium have also been shown to have a relaxing effect on the muscles; getting too little calcium can cause muscle tension and spasms. The best sources are low-fat or fat-free dairy foods, like milk, yogurt, and cottage cheese. Good sources of magnesium include almonds, green leafy vegetables like spinach, oatmeal, soy, dairy products, and whole grain cereals.

Easy to make, healthy snacks that combine these foods include low-fat cottage cheese on whole-grain crackers, a layered yogurt and banana parfait, a simple smoothie made with low-fat milk or yogurt and your favorite fruit, and oatmeal topped with sliced almonds.v

When Eating Better Doesn’t Help Enough

While we all have had certain foods make us feel better or even worse, most of the scientific evidence for the mood-food relationship has been done in the lab rather than on people, so your response to these foods and specific nutrients may vary. If you feel that you’re experiencing significant stress or possibly depression, talk to your doctor about other treatments, such as medication, that may help get you through stressful times.