Mediterranean Diet May Help You Feel Less Stressed and Improve Your Mood

If you’ve spent any amount of time online reading about diet, you’ve encountered the Mediterranean diet, rich in vegetables, whole grains, and heart-healthy fats like fish. Its myriad benefits include improvements to heart healthTrusted Source, blood sugarTrusted Source, and cognitive functioningTrusted Source.
Now, researchers in the field of nutritional neuroscience, which examines nutrition through the lens of neurochemistry, have found that the Mediterranean diet also appears to play a role in improving mood and dealing with stress. On the other hand, the Western dietTrusted Source, known for highly processed foods, red meat, and high-glycemic index foods, appears to exacerbate negative feelings associated with stress.

“Our results showed that the Mediterranean diet reduced feelings of distress as well as increased feelings of eustress [positive stress]. Whereas the Western diet lowered the perception of the positive stress and promoted distress,” she said.
How food can affect your mood
Inflammation, hormones, and neurotransmitters all affect mood and are directly influenced by diet and gut health.

Serotonin, for example, your body’s “feel-good” hormone and neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood, is almost entirely formed in the gut.
“Remember that 95% of your serotoninTrusted Source is coming from your gut. So in the gut, the microbiome is responsible for helping you metabolize and have that serotonin available,” Eva Selhub, MD, a physician and author who specializes in mind-body medicine, told Healthline.
Begdache points out, “Blood sugar fluctuations are the main cause of mental distress and the stress response because serotonin levels become unstable. Consequently, there is loss of appetite control when blood sugar falls.”

Stress increases the hormone cortisol, which can affect weight gain and inflammation.
“A possible nutrient shortage or unbalanced diet (when adhering to a Western diet) may encourage a prolonged cortisol release in order to create a new normal state based on the current dietary circumstances,” said Begdache.
How to begin adopting a Mediterranean diet
“A Mediterranean diet is focused primarily on lean protein, high intake of fresh fruits and vegetables. It can also include fresh fish as a lean protein source that is high in omega-3s.

Getting started on the Mediterranean diet may feel daunting, but it shouldn’t.
Selhub recommends the “۸۰-۲۰ rule”, which simply means to eat nutrient dense foods (like those on the Mediterranean diet) 80% of the time, while still leaving room, the other 20%, for less nutritious foods.
Think about adding color to your plate: plants, vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, lean proteins, healthy grains, and fatty fish,” said Selhub.
“Start with foods you love from a Mediterranean pattern while reducing ultra-processed and empty-calorie foods. This may begin by swapping white bread for whole grain bread, swapping a piece of fruit or healthy fats for snacks that don’t contain nutrients,” Kirkpatrick added.