Mood Foods

Your brain depends on neuro-nutrients to run smoothly. Here’s what you need to know.

If you could peek inside your brain, you’d find trillions of cells and a biological computer far more complex than anything ever made by Apple, Intel, or Microsoft. It grows, learns from experience, and adapts to new information.

To accomplish all this, the brain needs a variety of nutrients that form the foundation of its biochemistry. With an ample supply of these neuro-nutrients, the brain works normally, enhancing cognition and supporting healthy moods. Fill it with junk foods instead of fresh fruits, veggies, clean protein, etc.—or ignore nutritional deficiencies and imbalances—and the brain sputters and misfires, affecting our mood.

Decades ago, Nobel laureate Linus Pauling, PhD, observed that the brain was far more sensitive than any other organ to nutritional deficiencies or imbalances. For instance, when your blood sugar crashes, your mood usually does too, leaving you impatient and irritable.

Think Supplements

If you’re on a low-fat diet, you could be starving your brain’s gray matter. That’s because 60 percent of the brain consists of fat. Specific dietary fats are crucial for the developing brains of infants, and they help thinking and memory throughout life. These nutrients also play key roles in regulating neurotransmitters, chemicals that influence mood.