5 Ways to Boost Your Mood Naturally

5 Ways to Boost Your Mood Naturally

As your Portland Personal Trainer here are some examples on how to boost your mood naturally.

1. OMEGA-3S - Omega 3 fatty acids are commonly found in seafood, nuts, and spinach. There are 3 types of omega 3s, alpha-linolenic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid. Both EPA and DHA are found in seafood, while ALA is a plant based nutrient found in walnuts, flaxseeds and other foods. Its shown to be most effective in combating depression. If you are a vegetarian or vegan, focus on increasing your intake of walnuts, spinach, flaxseed oil, hempseed oil, canola oil, and microalgea oil.
2. ADAPTOGENS - Adaptogens are a unique class of medicinal plants that have healing effects on the body while also supporting its ability to adapt to stressful situations. The fruit of Schisandra chinesis, a plant native to china, has been shown to have antidepressant- like effects by supporting numerous neuroendocrine pathways. Schisandra can be eaten as fruit, taken in capsule or tincture form, or made into tea, just infuse 2-3 grams of fruit into a cup of water for about an hour.
3. VITAMIN D - Also known as the sunshine vitamin, its critical to many of our bodies functions. A deficiency in vitamin D 3 has been associated with anxiety and depression. Research shows that healthy women who have low vitamin D levels were more likely to suffer from depression than those with adequate vitamin D levels.
4. MULTIVITAMIN - Having a strong nutritional foundation is critical for maintaining a healthy mood. Ideally you get a full range of nutrients from your diet, but thats not always that easy to do. Even the highest quality multis wont make up for a poor diet, but they can help fill in the gaps with your nutrition plan. A multivitamin could decrease depressive symptoms in healthy older men. Supplementation with a multivitamin, mineral and herbal formulation may be useful in improvinng alertness, and reducing negative mood symptoms and may also improve feelings of general day to day well being.
5. LIGHT BOX - Light therapy works by stimulating natural sunlight with full spectrum light during the darker winter months. Light boxes encourage the brain to reduce the production of melatonin, "the hormone that makes you sleepy" and increase the production of serotonin ," the hormone related to mood". It has been found that light therapy demonstrated a significant effect on seasonal affective disorder. Benefits included increased energy, improved mood, decreased depression, and better sleep, Try using a light box every day for 30 minutes, ideally in the morning, to see the results yourself.

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