Take advantage of the fresh summer produce
Susan J. Noonan MD
Source: og-vision at Bigstock.com
Feed your body, feed your brain. It sounds trite, a bit of a cliché, but it’s a very important concept. Our brains depend on the nutrients from a balanced diet in order to function optimally. This function includes managing our emotions and our mood disorder. Remember that one of the basics of mental health involves following a good nutrition plan: having three balanced meals a day of healthy foods including lean protein, grains, fruits and vegetables, and a small amount of low fat dairy and fats. Eating well-balanced healthy meals is one way of taking care of yourself that actually makes a difference in your mental health, and it’s something that you have control over, something you can do. Skipping meals or eating poorly can make you feel irritable, fatigued and more depressed. It’s in your own best interest to nourish your brain in the most beneficial way. You can read more about the importance of nutrition in depression in my book, Managing Your Depression: What you can do to feel better. Basic nutritional information is also available on the interactive website Choose My Plate.
I know that eating well is really difficult to do when you’re depressed, whether it’s major depression or bipolar depression. Your appetite may be gone and when that happens your interest in food and nutrition is lower and takes on less importance. Favorite foods or a nice meal may not bring you the same pleasure it once did. You may be so fatigued that grocery shopping and cooking, and even eating, is a major struggle. Skipping meals or choosing fast food or take-out then becomes an easier, tempting choice. You have to remind yourself that this is not healthy for you or your brain. You need the nutrients from a healthy diet as fuel for your body and brain to operate at their best. This is particularly important when you’re dealing with a disorder such as depression. So, how do you do it? One way is to plan ahead and make an effort to shop for and cook healthy meals as part of your daily routine. Schedule it in and just do it anyway, even when you don’t feel like it. Or you can do what I do sometimes, which is to cook larger amounts of food in batches on a day when you have more energy, like a pot of stew or a whole package of chicken. Then I freeze individual portions for use later, on days when I don’t feel up to cooking.
The summertime makes it a little bit easier because there are more fresh food choices that taste and smell better, which can be an incentive. This may get you out of the same old cooking rut. Grocery stores are full of local produce at this time of year. In addition, many cities and towns have freshly picked local fruits and vegetables sold at a farm stand or farmer’s market. Sometimes these stands are only open one day a week, so you have to check what’s available in your neighborhood. Tomatoes always taste better fresh from the farm, as do vegetables such as corn on the cob or zucchini, and fruits such as blueberries, peaches or, later on, squash and fall apples.article continues after advertisement
Take advantage of the fresh produce available in your area and try to be creative with your meals at least twice a week. If you can’t decide what to cook, aim for different colored foods (reds, yellows, greens) on your plate. Have fresh salads with low-calorie vinaigrette dressing, or cook fresh vegetables with grilled or broiled chicken or fish for dinner. I don’t have an outdoor grill – it’s too much work for me anyway – but I use a stovetop grill pan or my broiler to get the same effect. Add berries to your morning cereal or yogurt. Snack on a piece of fresh fruit instead of junk food in the afternoon. Savor the flavors that you get at this time of year. They taste so much better as compared to the hothouse tomatoes or fruits that have been shipped for two weeks to your grocery store in the midst of winter. Enjoy it as a summer pleasure, and in so doing know that you are doing something good for yourself.
Stay well!
A version of this article first appeared on my website blog www.susannoonanmd.com.