In The Kitchen With Dan

Hi, guys. You're in the kitchen with Dan. I hope you're having a great day. Thank you for checking in. So today we've got a lot to cover. I want to talk about how what we eat affects our stress levels, our anxiety levels, and talk about, you know, that old adage, you are what you eat. You know, when it comes to our mental health, it really is true that what we eat has a, has a major effect and can have a major effect on our levels of stress and anxiety. And so there's a lot to learn about what we're putting in our body and how it can affect us, especially when it comes to those of us, like myself, who struggle with stress, anxiety and depression.

So there are two things to talk about, two main things to talk about when it comes to our body and the chemicals in our body that affect our anxiety levels and our stress levels. Katie. Hi, Luke. Hi, Brian. Hello. I see you guys. Ah, yeah, I'm glad, Luke, thank you for checking in. So we're talking about food and how it affects our health and wellness and our levels of anxiety and stress. So the first thing I want to talk about is cortisol. Cortisol is probably, so many of us have heard about it.

It's the stress hormone. It occurs naturally in our body when you are stressed, when you are anxious. Cortisol is happening big time. And so we want to talk about foods that increase the levels of cortisol. And we want to talk about it because eliminating or reducing some of those foods are going to help regulate. They're going to help your body's ability to naturally regulate and give you natural levels of cortisol. So when you're eating processed meat and sugar and alcohol, all that stuff, they tell us not to eat.

Those all increase cortisol levels, and they make it difficult for your body to regulate and to keep a natural level of cortisol. So, cortisol, you know, they've done some research and increased levels of cortisol. They've linked to a bunch of health issues, obesity, metabolic syndromes, cardiovascular disease, type two diabetes, and depression. So we want to talk about the foods that help reduce stress and reduce anxiety, and there are quite a few. So there are things that we can do on our own first to try to, you know, keep, keep things regulated and keep things healthy for us.

So a mediterranean diet is one of the things THEY FocUS on a bunch when it comes to stress and anxiety. And the mediterranean diet is rich in omega three fatty acid. And so those omega three s are found in tuna in salmon, sardines, nuts, seeds, almonds, walnuts, flax seeds, chia seeds, avocados. Those are all foods high in omega three fatty acid, and that is known to reduce your cortisol levels. So I'm gonna go on foods high in vitamins a, c, and e, and high in antioxidants, beta carotene. So those foods include bananas and avocados and broccoli and spinach.

Get my notes together. Nuts and seeds like almonds and cashews and flax seeds. Pumpkin seeds. Again, chia seeds and beans, chickpeas and peas and dark chocolate. So write all these down and try to get these into your diet. All right, now we want to talk about too vitamin. We want to talk about vitamin D. It is. I had my blood work done, and I was major deficient in vitamin D. And vitamin D helps with depression. Go figure. Usually we are deficient in vitamin D when we're not getting enough sunlight.

So in the north, you know, where, where sun is, is at a minimum during the winter months, you know, february and March. I have always historically had a difficult time, you know, sad, the seasonal affective disorder. And sure enough, when I went to get my blood work done, my vitamin D levels were sinking. And so I take the vitamin D every day, and it has helped a great deal. So I try to remember to keep that in my medicine cabinet, make sure that I'm taking my vitamin D everywhere. Yes, Luke. Shopping the outside aisles in the grocery store, whole foods diets that have more whole foods in them are much healthier.

When you wander into the inside of the grocery store, it's where you find all of your processed things. You find them there because nothing needs to be refrigerated. Everything on the outside aisle, your produce, your dairy, all of that stuff, deli, all of those things need refrigeration. And I also want to talk about this. I just had a thought of something we talked about the other day in a meeting. But before I do get enough vitamin D and vitamin D foods, you've got a lot of your proteins. Chicken, fish, eggs, turkey, fortified cereals.

Nutritional yeast is another great thing. You can sprinkle it on foods. It's a flake. Nutritional yeast, and it tastes like butter almost. It's got a great taste to it. If you haven't tried it yet, try it. It's great. Great source of vitamin D. Now, another thing, magnesium, we talk about. There's so much to cover when it comes to, when it comes to health and wellness and what we eat. And I think it's why people get so confused, because there's so much to think about. But to minimize it and to make it more simple, you know, you just want to eat more whole foods, less processed.

You know, try to keep things as simple as possible. Foods that go through more steps from how you pick them or how, how they're grown, how they're harvested to where they end up either in a box or, you know, on the produce shelf, wherever. The more steps that food has to go through to be what it is, the more processed it is. That's, that's the process. Like a cheeto, you know, they've, it starts with whatever and it ends up a cheeto, and there's a whole bunch of steps to get it there, but, you know, a piece of cheese.

Less steps. All right. Probiotics is another thing I want to address real quick. Probiotics are that gut health? They're the, they're the. I'm sorry, I'm blanking out. Probiotics regulate your gut health. And if you have low, low levels, high levels of that, my gosh, you guys, I'm totally spacing out here. This is the deal. You want to have probiotics like that yogurt that Jamie Lee Curtis eats. You want good gut health. If you are eating a lot of processed foods and you're not getting that, that probiotic, the probiotic foods, it's going to jack up your, your mind and your gut.

So eat probiotics. Eat foods that are high in probiotics, like raspberries, whole grains, fermented stuff like kefir and aged cheese and sauerkraut. All right, so we went through all that. Now, this is, these are the things that you can avoid or should avoid to help eliminate stress and anxiety. You want to eliminate alcohol or at least minimize your alcohol consumption. Now, right, as I say, that this is all, this isn't all or nothing, right? We want to, you know, don't make any drastic changes.

If you, if you're experiencing depression and anxiety, just try the best you can to implement some of these changes in your life. And the more you do and the more often you do, the better off you'll be. So try to eliminate or minimize your alcohol consumption. Caffeine, sugary drinks, foods high in trans fats, fried foods, red meat, full fat, dairy, butter, baked goods, all of those things are going to increase stress and anxiety. It's kind of like, you know, like all that good stuff, chips and ice cream and, you know, the things that we treat ourselves with.

Next time you're looking for a treat. Think about your health and wellness. Think about your stress and anxiety, and think about what you're putting in your body. Are you really treating yourself? You know, maybe have a big bowl of fresh berries, you know, with a little bit of, I don't know, 2% milk on it. Try to make small changes, add to em every day. And the more you focus on what you're putting in your body, the more control you're gonna have over your overall health and wellness. We really are what we eat.

So apparently, I didn't get enough brain food this morning, a little foggy. So I'm gonna make sure I am practicing what I preach here. This is all great information. Think about what you're putting in your body and how it's affecting your health and wellness. Of course, don't ever rely on food alone. If you are experiencing depression, anxiety, stress, make sure you reach out to professionals for the help that you need, and there's a wealth of that here on Cadre. So thanks for checking in again this week with me in the kitchen.

I hope you all have a great week. Thank you, Carrie, congratulations. It's great to see you all, and I will see you next time right here on Cadre. Bye.