April showers bring May flowers, but what does Mayflowers bring….pilgrims!! I have always loved that joke! The weather here in Florida has had showers, while others in the US have new fallen snow! Yuck!
I read an interesting article in our Orlando Health Choose Health Spring 2018 edition magazine. The theme for the spring edition was STRESS! I thought this was timely as I just wrote about stress and its effects on the mind and body.
The interesting article was related to the foods you eat and how they effect your mood. I had not thought about this previously, but as I read the article, it made complete sense. Cortisol is a hormone that is released during times of chronic stress and is known as a hunger hormone. Cortisol is also associated with weight gain or central obesity often referred to as the ‘spare tire’ around your waist.
Stress causes you to crave fatty and sugary foods that work quickly a well as cause a quick crash. This in turn causes you to then crave not only the foods again, but the quick energy from those foods. It’s a vicious cycle. There is now information on the way food enhances or inhibits your mood and is known as a 3R food strategy. Foods should be chosen to relax, regulate and revitalize your body and manage the effects of stress on your body.
There are certain foods that can help promote relaxation, reduce levels of Cortisol and provide energy and promote Serotonin (happy hormone). Other foods can be chosen to boost brain function, decrease neurological decline and improve memory and alertness! I will be following the grocery list for stress reducing foods and let you know how they are working!
To read more on ‘mood foods’ and reducing stress, you can find the article ‘The Food and Mood Connection‘ on http://www.Orlandohealth.com/ChooseHealth
Enjoy your dinner! I hope it literally makes you happy!!
Healing You 
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