Learning to control our stress by employing stress management techniques and adopting foods in our diet for optimal stress and anxiety reduction, can improve our overall health and wellness. These small lifestyle adjustments can make a big difference.
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Asparagus
This green veggie is high in folic acid, which can help stabilize your mood. When you’re stressed, your body releases hormones that affect your mood. Eating certain vitamins and minerals like folic acid and B vitamins can help keep your mood steady because they’re needed to make serotonin, which is a chemical that directly affects mood in a positive way.
Recommended Serving Size: 7 spears, 1/2 inch thick, cooked, 25 calories
Beef
Even though beef often gets a bad rap, it’s a great dinner option for a stressed-out family. Beef contains high levels of zinc, iron, and B vitamins, which are also known to help stabilize your mood. People think they should stay away from beef, but it’s very nutrient rich, even compared to chicken. Ask your grocery store butcher for a lean cut if you’re concerned about fat content.
Recommended Serving Size: Scant 1 cup of raw lean ground chunk, 137 calories Scant 1 cup of regular ground beef, 310 calories
Milk
Milk is high in antioxidants and vitamins B2 and B12, as well as protein and calcium. Have a bowl of whole-grain cereal and low-fat milk in the morning to start your day with a stress-fighting breakfast.
Recommended Serving Size: Whole cow’s milk, scant 1/2 cup, 66 calories Two percent cow’s milk, scant 1/2 cup, 46 calories
Read Effects of Stress on Your Body
Cottage cheese and fruit
Cottage cheese is high in protein and calcium. Foods with high protein content that aren’t loaded with sugar won’t cause a spike in blood sugar and will keep you satiated for a longer time. Try mixing the cottage cheese with a fruit that is high in vitamin C like oranges. Vitamin C plays a role in fighting stress because it’s an antioxidant that fights the free radicals that get released when you’re stressed. These free radicals have been shown to cause cancer.
Recommended Serving Size: Creamed cottage cheese, scant 1/2 cup, 79 calories One percent fat cottage cheese, scant 1/2 cup, 72 calories 1 orange, 60 calories
Almonds
Are you ever looking for something you can really dig your teeth into when you’re stressed? Try crunching on almonds to get some aggression out. A good source of Vitamin B2 and E, as well as magnesium and zinc, almonds are high in fat, but most of the fat is unsaturated. Like vitamin C, vitamin E has been shown to fight the free radicals associated with stress, and in particular, those free radicals that cause heart disease.
Recommended Serving Size: Shelled almonds, 1/3 cup, 306 calories
Blueberries
Very rich in antioxidants, blueberries offer a high-fiber, low-calorie fruit option that is also rich in stress-fighting vitamin C. Try them with cottage cheese or as a snack on their own.
Recommended Serving Size: Blueberries, 2/3 cup, 30 calories
Read How Does Exercise Relief Stress
Tuna
A great lunch option, tuna is high in stress-fighting vitamins B6 and B12. Tuna is also a good low-fat protein source. Don’t load tuna down with fat by using a lot of mayonnaise. Choose a light mayo instead.
Recommended Serving Size: Tuna canned in brine, 3.5 ounces drained, 99 calories Tuna canned in oil, 3.5 ounces, drained, 189 calories
Moringa
The amazing power of Moringa applies to stress-reduction as well. First, when you give your body the proper nutrients it needs – like those found in all-natural Moringa – you give yourself the opportunity to perform at your best. When your nutrition is balanced, your mental and emotional state is more likely to be in check. Moringa also stimulates hormones that help calm the body, even during stressful times, so you can better handle any situation that comes your way.
We hope you’ll decompress with a cup of Moringa tea and start working some of our dos and don’ts into your daily habits.
This article, written by Dorie Eisenstein originally appeared on Better Homes & Gardens
Posted by Sinta Ebersohn (Creator of fairdivorce.co.za – Cape Town RSA)