Feel-Good Foods

I am pleased to be part of the iFeel Good series, both onlinewith you, and for a Today Show segment.

What are "feel-good" foods? While we all need food to survive, and know the basics of eating to promote good health, are these really the same foods that make you feel good? Foods make us feel good for so many reasons—whether it's comfort, great taste, pleasant memories, social situations, nutrient values, or even ways to use food as beauty products. I'd like to share my favorites, and also learn about yours.

Sometimes when I think of food, I'm reminded of a really old Saturday Night Live skit (one of the fake commercials), when a couple is arguing over whether some product is a dessert topping or a floor wax. The moderator (Chevy Chase) intervened and suggested it was both.

"Yumm. Tastes terrific" said the husband (Dan Aykroyd), as he took a spoonful from the container while the wife (Gilda Radner) mopped the floor and remarked, "And just look at that shine!"

So, what does this have to do with feel-good foods? Foods can have more than one use—and while we all know about the help we get on the inside of our bodies with healthy foods, here are some other uses, to also feel good on the outside:

Avocado
Healthy fat, vitamins B,E, fiber: Skin moisturizer and makeup remover

Cucumbers
Vitamin C, fiber, water, molybdenum: Reduces eye puffiness

Oatmeal
Fiber, omega-3-fats, B-vitamins: Skin exfoliator

Olive Oil
Heart Healthy Fat: Hair conditioner

Lemons
Vitamin C: Hair-lightener

So many beauty products contain these foods as a tiny part of the ingredient, but I say, why not use the real thing? Do you have other "feel good outside" functional foods to add?

Another important part of feel-good foods is the association between taste, smell, and comfort. Just look at the variety of candles available that have scents said to relax you and help reduce stress. There is some good science behind some of this, but much is also the situation in which you find yourself.

While smells like vanilla, cinnamon, and lavender have been shown to be "stress-relieving" scents, others like pumpkin pie or "Christmas cookie" (seen around the winter holidays), trigger what I call "smell memory." These are hard-wired imprints that your brain remembers as pleasant, and you get the recurring feel-good sense when you smell these things.

What's great is that this is different for everyone...and has no calories! Feel-good food smells range from chicken soup to meatballs to apple pie to barbecued foods, and whatever else you can imagine. This falls into the range of "comfort" foods or foods that soothe, which can be a very good tool when done in moderation.

Another feel-good food group is one that forces you to change your behavior, and results in a short amount of down-time to relax. Hence, the stress-reducing benefits of green tea. (In addition to all the fabulous antioxidants for inside health.) We need to take a few minutes to brew it, and then sit and drink it in a more relaxed setting, which gives us a breather for the day. It's the same with making soup at home.

I have a friend who makes vegetable soup for herself and other loved ones when she's stressed. The act of cutting vegetables, stirring the soup, and creating a wonderful warm dish gives her a sense of calm and helps her to de-stress.

Then there are the feel good foods that, for me, are a treat to the taste-buds, fun to eat, and good for the body. These are the foods that are good for the inside and out. For me, these are juicy summer berries (a treat I wait for all year) and fresh nuts—especially almonds and walnuts. I always look for the freshest nuts, so I can get the most flavor "bang" for the calories.

For me, in the perfect world, nuts would have the same calories as grapes. Oh well, I'll just keep working on portion control! The combination of nutrients, texture and taste are a real pleaser for my taste buds. Don't get me wrong, my taste buds also enjoy a little stimulation from a square of dark chocolate, or a slice of my own homemade apple pie, but I monitor those portions more carefully and use them as a special treat food, and not part of my daily eating. There's not a lot of hard science to this, but the specialness of the food because of the infrequent consumption is a particular treat for me.

What are some of your favorite feel-good foods? Do you know why? Just writing down my thoughts has made me think more about why some foods really make me feel good. We all need to make friends with food since we all have to eat to survive!

Food serves so many wonderful purposes, and it's a shame that in our culture so many of us only feel bad and guilty about food. Time to revisit this and feel good about eating!

Watch the iFeel Good segment from TODAY:

Click image to view.

Comments

Great topic! My fav feel good foods at the moment are oatmeal (every day for breakfast!), cranberry juice, hummus, asparagus, applesauce, nectarines and plums. The other not so healthy for me feel good foods include aged cheddar cheese and crackers.

Great topic! My fav feel good foods at the moment are oatmeal (every day for breakfast!), cranberry juice, roasted red pepper hummus, asparagus, applesauce, nectarines and plums. The other not so healthy for me feel good foods include aged cheddar cheese and crackers.

I guess they make me feel good because they just taste delicious!

Are there particular foods/supplements that make you feel good? Like for example foods with Omega-3, & magnesium? I heard this??

My favorite feel good food is peanut butter. I especially love extra crunchy and have recently started using the natural kind. Food of the gods!

To good information,Thanks a lot

I am 5ft and weigh 93. How can I gain weight?

My favorite feel good food is kiwi, gratefruit, strawberries, salads with avocado. I love california rolls- I heared they are healthy is this true? Cranberrie Juice, low fat yogurts and wheat breads sure do the trick...

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I smiled when your site opened as I clicked it from Google (looking for food that makes us feel good). There's a picture of an avocado. That's my feel good food, especially the one from a region here in the Philippines where the avocado they produce has no bitter aftertaste.