Does my mood afect my nourishment?

Just like what you eat can infuence how you feel, how you feel can infuence the quality
of nourishment that you gain from the foods that you eat. The following are some of the
ways in which mood and nourishment are interrelated.
When you feel stressed a cascade of diferent stress hormones (including glucocorticoids)
can be released. These chemical messengers hae modulating efects u!on a ariety of
body systems that can im!act nourishment. "ll of us feel stressed at certain moments,
but if this stress has become an ongoing, chronic !art of our life, the im!act on our
nourishment can become !roblematic.
#utrient de!letion and blood sugar regulation
$ne of the outcomes of chronically increased glucocorticoid leels is !otential de!letion
of certain nutrients, including %inc, !otassium, and &'com!le( itamins. What this means
is that if you e(!erience chronic stress, you will want to !ay s!ecial attention to these
nutrients in your diet. )tress hormones, if e(cessiely secreted oer a !rolonged !eriod of
time, can interfere with the functioning of insulin and !romote insulin resistance. )tress
can create blood sugar imbalances that hae a host of outcomes u!on the body, including
reducing the ability of cells to be nourished by the glucose !roided in the diet.
*aing low moods, or e(!eriencing de!ression, may also im!act nourishment. +hronic
de!ression is associated with a ariety of nutrient de,ciencies, including that of itamin
&-, itamin &./, folate, choline, !rotein, and omega'0 fatty acids. " !erson e(!eriencing
ongoing de!ression would want to take s!ecial ste!s to ad1ust his or her meal !lan in
relationshi! to these !articular nutrients.
2eaky gut
While an e(act cause'and'efect relationshi! has not been identi,ed, chronic stress has
also been associated with increased !ermeability in the intestinal wall, a condition
referred to as 3leaky gut.3 $ne of the !otential outcomes of leaky gut is com!romised
nutrient absor!tion from the digestie tract, since the intestinal wall can no longer
regulate the moement of nutrients in and out of the digestie tract !ro!erly.
&ene,ts of a rela(ing meal
4n addition to looking at how mood afects nourishment from a biochemical !ers!ectie,
you can also look at this question from the !ers!ectie of !ersonal e(!erience. Think
about a recent meal that you ate while being stressed, angry, or an(ious. #ow think
about a meal that you ate when you were rela(ed, !eaceful, and ha!!y. +hances are in
the latter e(!erience you felt better, more itali%ed, and more nourished from the foods
you were eating and were therefore en1oying the true ful,llment and nourishment from
those foods. 5emember that your mood is something you don6t 1ust e(!erience on an
emotional and !sychological leel, but something that also takes !laces in your muscles,
nerous system, and circulatory system. "ll of those body com!onents im!act your
digestion and nourishment.