5 foods that will boost your mood

5 foods that will boost your mood

Feel better fast with these healthy pick-me-up foods, plus learn which foods will get you down

By Tara Nolan

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Avoid the sugar crash

It’s 3 o’clock and all you want to do is march to the vending machine and grab a bag of chips or a chocolate bar. Sure, you’ll feel good for a while. But then, as your body crashes off that junk food high, you’ll come to regret digging around for that spare change. However, there are foods that you can eat throughout the day that will give you a more natural pick-me-up.

“I want people to be able to put food to work for them so they can enjoy what they eat,” says Susan M. Kleiner, a registered dietitian and author of The Good Mood Diet. “Even the act of eating certain foods can make you feel better and improve your mood, because it makes you feel better and you know you’re helping yourself.”

Here are some foods that will leave you feeling energized—without the aftereffects or the guilt.