ADD COLORFUL POTATOES TO YOUR DIET

Before you gasp, yes, you read that title correctly.  I did say add potatoes to your diet.  But not just any potatoes!  And, as with everything, eat potatoes in moderation.  Since I became diabetic, I have had to totally change the way I eat potatoes.  The good news is that I am healthier for it!  Potatoes get a bad reputation, especially here in America where we seem fixated on french fries.  We also love our potatoes, peeled and mashed with loads of fattening ingredients.  But there are healthier ways to enjoy potatoes.  Would you believe that potato skins, the part we usually discard, have as many phytonutrients as broccoli especially if we eat the more colorful varieties.  Some unusual nutrients found in potatoes, known as kukoamines, can lower blood pressure and that protects the heart and the brain.  Iodine is also found in potatoes.  Did you realize one of the first things doctors check in a patient suffering from depression is the thyroid which needs iodine to function properly?  And how about this little surprise?  Iodine deficiency is the most common cause of preventable brain damage in the world!

The next time you go to the grocery store or market, check for the colorful varieties of potatoes.  Buy a few and experiment with healthy ways of preparing them.  And don't peel them!

If you grocer doesn't carry a big variety of potatoes in the produce section, check for healthy varieties in the frozen food section.  

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THE NUTRITIOUS EGG IS A HAPPINESS FOOD

In spite of the negative press eggs received several years ago, the standard barnyard egg is a nutritional powerhouse!  If you wanted to create the perfect brain food, you would find most of what you need in the egg.  Here is a list of these "happiness" compounds found in the egg:

• Vitamin B12 - This vitamin is crucial for the nerve cells and deficiency in vitamin B12 causes irritability, depression, and cognitive decline!
• Folate - Needed to keep the brains neurotransmitter factories humming along.
• Iodine - Iodine is essential for proper thyroid functioning.  This is important because an underactive thyroid causes lethargy, depression, and weight gain.  And weight gain also has an effect on happiness.
• Vitamin D - When your supply of vitamin D gets low, chances for depression, dementia, PMS all increase.

The above list is only a partial nutrition list of the egg, but it is the main nutrition in the egg that does play a role in your happiness!

Did you ever think that a simple egg could be so important to your "Happiness Quotient?"

HAPPINESS AND FOOD

What you eat does affect your happiness!  Food is what fuels everything about your body and what you eat controls your body from head to toe!  Food is directly linked to three areas of brain function that create our ability to be happy!  The first is the capacity to think, focus, plan, and remember - what we will call "foods for thought."  The second is emotional regulation - foods for good mood.  The third is the ability to control anxiety and the power to push through to a deadline, etc - foods for brain energy.  Yes, what you eat does control all these parts of your life.  Here are some ways you can control these areas.

• Cut back on eating processed foods.  Most processed foods are loaded with sugar.  Too much sugar contributes to shrinkage of key brain areas involved in mood regulation.
• Eat more whole-grains, vegetables, and fruits.  Plant foods contain minerals and phytonutrients that are scientifically known as the "Essential Elements of Happiness."  These consist of vitamins A, B12, D, E, Folate, iodine, magnesium, calcium, iron, fiber, and omega-3 fatty acids.  These are substances the brain needs to function optimally.
• When possible, opt for grass-fed meat.  Grass fed meat typically has more omega-3s.  Omega-3s promote formation of new brain connections.
• Eat a variety of whole foods.  Branch out and eat healthy foods you may not particularly enjoy or are not used to.  Keep variety in your diet so you don't "burn out" on the healthy foods you eat.  Remember this; the greater range of whole foods you eat, the broader the range of brain-boosting nutrients your diet will contain to help your brain keep you happy!

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