Nutrition and Mood

When you are stressed or down, it is easy to live on tea, bread and sugar, or to forget to eat at all. Then your energy crashes and your mood follows. This is very common, and small changes to what and when you eat can help.

What is happening

Your brain uses a lot of energy and needs steady fuel. Long gaps between meals and very sugary food cause blood sugar to rise and fall quickly, which can bring irritability, shakiness, poor focus and cravings. Eating regularly, with some protein and fibre, keeps energy steadier.

Your gut and brain are in constant contact. Fibre from vegetables, beans, whole grains and fermented foods like maas or amasi feeds helpful gut bacteria, which may support mood. Research suggests that eating patterns rich in vegetables, fruit, beans, whole grains and fish are linked with lower rates of depression, while diets high in processed foods are linked with higher rates. Food is not a cure for depression, but it is a useful part of looking after yourself.

Mood also changes eating. Stress can kill appetite or drive cravings. Low mood can make cooking feel impossible.

Signs to notice

• You skip breakfast or lunch and feel shaky or snappy later
• You rely on sugary drinks, energy drinks or lots of coffee to get through the day
• You crave sweets or fast food when stressed or tired
• You rarely eat vegetables or fruit
• Your appetite has changed a lot along with your mood
• You feel sluggish after heavy meals

30-second self-check

Answer yes or no for most days in the past two weeks.

• Do you go more than five hours awake without eating?
• Do you have sugary drinks or energy drinks every day?
• Do you eat vegetables or fruit less than once a day?
• Do you drink more than three cups of coffee or strong tea a day?
• Do you eat mostly to cope with stress or boredom?
• Has your appetite gone up or down a lot along with your mood?

0-1 yes: Your eating supports your mood fairly well. Keep it steady.
2-3 yes: A couple of changes could lift your energy and mood. Pick one to start with.
4 or more yes: Food and mood may be pulling each other down. A dietitian, plus support for your mood, could help. Someone qualified can help with this.

What you can do next

• Today: Eat something within a couple of hours of waking: oats, an egg on bread, or maas with a banana.
• This week: Add one budget vegetable a day: cabbage, spinach, carrots, pumpkin or frozen mixed veg. Add beans, lentils or pilchards to stews and pap for cheap protein.
• This month: Plan and cook in batches on the weekend, for example a big pot of bean and vegetable stew, to avoid takeaway on tired days.
• Keep easy snacks nearby: peanuts, fruit, boiled eggs, plain popcorn.
• Cut back slowly on sugary drinks and energy drinks. Replace with water, rooibos or diluted juice.
• Share meals with others when you can. Eating together is good for mood too.

Your tool

Lifestyle Health Check - a short self-check across eating, movement, sleep, alcohol, smoking and stress that shows which small change could help most.

When to get professional help

See a doctor or nurse if you have lost weight without trying, have no appetite for more than two weeks, or feel very tired all the time; blood tests can check for problems like anaemia, thyroid issues or diabetes. If your mood has been low for more than two weeks, or you have thoughts of harming yourself, please reach out; the Suicide Crisis Helpline is 0800 567 567. If you are in danger right now, call 10111 or 112. If eating feels out of control, or you are making yourself sick, speak to a doctor or psychologist.

Who can help: dietitian, doctor, nurse, psychologist, counsellor

Getting help in South Africa

Public clinics can do basic checks and refer to a dietitian where available. Registered dietitians can be found through the Association for Dietetics in South Africa (adsa.org.za). For mood support, the SADAG Mental Health Line on 011 234 4837 and the Cleared Mind 24-hour Careline, 0800 212 146, can guide you to counselling.