Eat Away Those Winter Blues

With yet  another snow storm happening, it's hard to get excited over the prospect of Spring.These cold , grey days make it hard to get happy over anything. However there are foods to chase these late winter blues away. Eat them and feel as happy as a lark on a warm day.

Naturally chocolate is a mood booster. Have a nibble during the day as a treat to alleviate mid afternoon boredom and give you energy. Stay away from  the milk kind and concentrate on the dark (in fact the darker the better). Don't go for the caramel or nougat filled candy bars. Stick to just a simple square  like GHiradelli Chocolate. Any kind of carb will also bring about smiles, however don't go wild with the cupcakes and cookies.Instead have a yummy rice bowl or a plate of whole wheat pasta for lunch or dinner. Start the day off with a slice of seven grain toast with warmed jam and a little butter. for a crankiness free morning.Another mood lifting dish sure to make you sing is risotto Milanese .It combines Arborio rice with  saffron, which is a natural Prozac. The spice has antidepressant fluoxetine and imipramine, two phytochemicals known to help depression.

It comes as no surprise that both fruits and vegetables help in lifting the late winter blues. Some citrus fruits and dark , leafy veggies such as spinach contain folate.Folate is one of the B vitamins affects the neurotransmitters that  impact our moods. To take advantage of this whip up a lemon vinaigrette for a spinach salad. Create dinners that are more veggie centric too. Think about pepper and tomato rich stir fries or meatless chilis with mood boosting beans.Snack on more fruit too, and even think of dipping  strawberries and bananas in rich dark chocolate = which just eating these brings about a smile. Fish , too, can improve moods.It has to be the oily fatty kind like tuna, salmon and mackerel and rainbow trout which are chock full of Omega-3's which alter brain chemicals such as dopamine and serotonin. Try a sunny salad Nicoise that's full of tuna and different veggies. It's a nice nod to summery days on the French Riviera. Another tropical mood booster is coconut, although sniffing it is actually more of a high than actually eating it. Wash any of these foods down with tea, black , green or oolong. The chemical in it , theanine, improves not just mood but attention and focus. Switch to  any soothing tea instead of the usual afternoon cappuccino.

Eat right and you won't experience any of those late winter blues. All that snow and ice won't get to you. You'll be a sunny as a Spring day.