Today, we're exploring a fascinating new field in mental health, Nutritional Psychiatry, with Dr. Uma Naidoo. Not only is she a Harvard-trained psychiatrist, but she’s also a professional chef and a nutrition expert. Dr. Naidoo brings a unique blend of expertise to the table, and she’s here to share her insights on the powerful link between our diet and mental health.
Diet and Mental Health: The Powerful Connection
In this episode, we dive into how our eating habits affect our mood and mental well-being, especially in a post-pandemic world. Dr. Naidoo offers eye-opening perspectives on how changes in our lifestyle can impact our mental health, and shares tips for making changes to our routines gradually and with grace, so they become lifelong habits.
We unpack the connection between metabolic syndrome and anxiety, shedding light on how our physical health can reflect and influence our mental state.
Dr. Naidoo also outlines her new book, Calm Your Mind with Food, a full-body approach to relieving anxiety. With her anti-anxiety recipes and meal plan guidelines, Dr. Naidoo reveals how to effectively use food and nutrition as an essential tool for calming the mind. Definitely check it out if you’re looking for a trustworthy and accessible way to improve your mental health with your diet!
The Connection Between Diet and Mental Health: Episode Timestamps
(00:05:25) A New Field in Mental Health: Nutritional Psychiatry
- Triple threat background in cooking, nutrition and psychiatry
- The key to making changes in their routine or diet
- Exploring links between anxiety and food
- How the pandemic affected eating habits and mental health illnesses
- The cultural shift towards talking about mental health
(00:18:19) Identifying & Healing Metabolic Syndrome
- How anxiety affects metabolism
- Four prominent signs of metabolic syndrome
- What tests should you get to keep an eye on your metabolic health?
- Risks of not getting enough calories
- Ozempic’s potential side effects
(00:28:24) Six Pillars of Calming the Mind
- How to implement swaps and switches to slowly improve habits
- How long it takes to improve habits and mental health
- Tips for creating a new normal
- The importance of having grace with ourselves while building new habits
(00:36:25) Building Your Anti-Anxiety Eating Plan
- How Calm Your Mind with Food is structured to help you create better eating habits
- Tips for anti-anxiety eating
- How to navigate the different recipes and personalize them
- Cutting through the nutritional advice noise
- Recognizing individuality in our diets
- What foods you should prioritize and avoid no matter what
- Highlights from This Is Your Brain on Food
This episode is sponsored by Factor. Head to factormeals.com/thebigsilence50 and use code thebigsilence50 to get 50% off.
Guest Info:
- Website: umanaidoomd.com
- Instagram: @drumanaidoo
- Read: Calm Your Mind with Food by Uma Naidoo, MD
- Read: This Is Your Brain on Food by Uma Naidoo, MD
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“The Big Silence” theme song written and performed by James Nicholas Kinney.
Producer, Bobby Goldstein.
