Food can affect our moods. Having your favorite meal can make you the happiest person on the planet, but failing to eat on time while being busy can give that “hangry” feeling.
You become irritable when hungry. However, eating can also leave you in a bad mood.
Foods affect neurotransmitters in the brain. These important chemicals have been linked to emotions or feelings
For example, the neurotransmitter serotonin helps people stay relaxed. There is also dopamine that can increase focus.
What we eat plays an important role in how these brain chemicals function. Foods can either give the building blocks for the neurotransmitters or disrupt balance in the brain, which both affect mood.
Fast foods and baked goods are known for negatively affecting the brain. Studies showed that such highly-processed food products could contribute to depression, aggression, anxiety and other mental conditions.
There are also foods that people commonly consume without knowing their impact on moods.
I – Word Understanding
Hangry – a coined term derived from hungry and angry
Neurotransmitters – body’s chemical messengers that send signals from one part of the body to another
Serotonin – a chemical produced in the brain that affects the way we feel (happy, hungry)
Dopamine – an important chemical messenger involved in reward, motivation, memory, attention and even regulating body movements.
II – Have Your Say
1. What are some of the factors that affect your mood (good or bad mood)?
2. If you have a bad mood, what makes you feel better?
3. Foods that cause bad mood:
a. Sweetened food
b. Alcohol
c. Agave Nectar (glucose)
d. Margarine
e. Coffee (too much amount)
