Nutritional psychiatrist: 5 healthy foods that help relieve stress and anxiety

https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/09/05/dr-uma-naidoo-foods-to-eat-that-help-reduce-stress-and-anxiety.html

Published Sat, Sep 5 2020 9:30 AM EDT
Cory Stieg
@CORYSTIEG

While cooking comfort food and stocking up on frozen foods was common at the start of quarantine, you may find that six months into the Covid-19 pandemic, your eating habits have changed. On top of living with the threat of a deadly virus, many people are juggling working remotely and homeschooling children, which leads to unprecedented levels of stress and anxiety.

In stressful times like these, we tend to reach for comfort foods to cope with the negative feelings we're experiencing, according to Dr. Uma Naidoo, director of nutritional and lifestyle psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital, faculty member at Harvard Medical School and author of "This Is Your Brain on Food." As a "nutritional psychiatrist," she counsels people on how to integrate foods and nutritional habits into their lives to improve their mental well being.

What you eat can have a significant effect on your mental health, Naidoo tells CNBC Make It. In addition to mastering the perfect sourdough bread, the pandemic "can also be an opportunity to use tools and practices to bring yourself towards better mental well being," she says.

Here are five types of foods that Naidoo says you can eat to help reduce stress and anxiety.

The article goes on with much more information on foods that are helpful and the author explains in simple terms why the foods are helpful.

Categories include: omega 3's, fiber, Vit. D, spices, and fermented foods.