I’m sure we have ALL heard that eating chocolate can help raise our mood, but what other foods can we eat for a similar result? Let’s have a look at 5 foods that ‘make you happy’ and join me for a 5 day challenge…
This post NOT meant to be the most comprehensive source of nutritional information about these 5 foods. I could go on and on for pages to share what I know and believe about their nutritional values but it is NOT my point here. I am keeping this type of information in this article as simple as possible on purpose. My main hope is to inspire you to take up the challenge and see the results for yourself.
I challenge you to have at least one of these 5 foods at least once a day for 5 days in a row. Tell me in the comments if you are willing to take up that challenge, and then come back to this page after your 5-day challenge to share your experience. Which foods did you prefer? And did you notice any difference?
- My Personal Experience
- Bananas
- Avocados
- Controversy About Eating Avocado Pits/Seeds
- Pumpkin Seeds
- Almonds
- Carrots
- Take the Challenge
- My Secret
My Personal Experience
I LOVE to eat! I am French and eating is just a cultural thing for me.
2-hour-long meals for big occasions like weddings, communions, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, were very normal when I was growing up, and still are…
I even remember that during the first internship I did when I was studying in France in the early 90s, there was a break for lunch and some people would actually go back home to have lunch and then come back to work in the afternoon! Now it’s more like eating a sandwich in 30 minutes in front of the computer!!
Little did I know back in those times that certain foods could actually help my body produce certain substances related to the feeling of happiness…
Bananas
Bananas contain tryptophan, one of the primary components of serotonin — a neurotransmitter responsible for maintaining mood balance.
Bananas are also rich in potassium, an essential mineral in the body for regulating blood flow and blood pressure.
The beauty about bananas is that they are so easy to carry around and eat anywhere any time. They are also very easy to store outside the fridge and for a long time… You can buy them green and wait until they are ripe. And they are cheap!
Ripe bananas are easier to digest. You can recognize them by their dark spots on the skin. I usually get them as ripe as possible. I have gotten kilos and kilos of bananas for a discount or for free because the store keepers thought they were too ripe to sell at a full price.
Apart from eating plain bananas, I LOVE crushing them with a fork into a paste or mixing a few with a blender into a banana smoothie.
What about you? Do you like bananas very ripe or almost green? What’s YOUR favorite way to eat bananas?
Avocados
Like bananas, avocados also contain tryptophan, one of the primary components of serotonin — a neurotransmitter responsible for maintaining mood balance.
Avocados are also rich in fatty acids and vitamin 6, among other elements essential to our body’s health.
Avocados are trickier to choose… they can get too ripe if you wait too long, but they can also be hard and tasteless if you don’t wait long enough. By now, you have hopefully developed your own test to choose your avocados. I gently press the avocado looking for the skin to bend under my fingers but not too much. I have learned to run away from air bubbles in avocados.
I love eating my avocados cuts into small pieces with a bit of salt, and sometimes with a bit of freshly squeezed lemon juice. I shall address the salt question in another post as my personal view and experience tend to differ from the mainstream view…
I also ABSOLUTELY LOVE a smoothie with an avocado, a banana and a mango! Yummy! You have to try it yourself to understand why! 🙂
What about you? What’s YOUR favorite way to eat avocados? And have you ever tried a banana/avocado/mango smoothie?
And did you know that there is a controversy about eating avocado pits/seeds? In case you would like to try it for yourself, here is an example of how to eat avocado pits/seeds.
Pumpkin Seeds
Like bananas and avocados, pumpkin seeds also contain tryptophan, one of the primary components of serotonin.
Pumpkin seeds are also rich in magnesium, an essential mineral for our health, and one that we often need more of.
I have tried soaking pumpkin seeds before eating them but the results were not satisfactory so I just eat them plain or with raisins. There is something about mixing pumpkin seeds and raisins that I cannot explain here. The sensation I get when I eat them together really makes me feel that they somehow belong together but I have not yet found a nutritional explanation of why that could be.
What about you? What’s YOUR favorite way to eat pumpkin seeds? And have you ever tried mixing pumpkin seeds and raisins?
Almonds
Almonds are rich in tryptophan (like bananas, avocados and pumpkin seeds), magnesium and vitamin E.
I LOVE almonds!! I eat them in all their forms… whole almonds that I crack open myself, almonds that are ready to eat with or without the skin (I shall write a later post about why and how to remove that skin), almond powder, almond butter…
I really LOVE the combination of almonds and something sweet like maple syrup or honey. My ideal is a vegan diet, for idealistic reasons, but I sometimes have some animal products such as honey and cheese… well, I have not tried mixing almond with cheese yet but I’m sure it wouldn’t be bad… I have added almond butter to soups and it did give them a delicious taste and a smoother texture. So why not cheese?
What about you? What’s YOUR favorite way to eat almonds? And have you ever tried mixing almonds with honey or another sweetener?
Carrots
A Harvard study showed a link between high levels of carrotenoids and a better mood, although they were not sure which came first… Are people feeling happier because they have higher levels of carrotenoids or do happy people tend to be attracted to eat fruit and vegetable rich in that substance?
One thing I know is that in France, we say that carrots make you nice “Les carottes rendent aimable” (no, “aimable” does not mean “lovable”, although I guess we can be more lovable when we are nice to others. 🙂 ).
Carrots are also good for the liver. Chinese medicine links the liver with anger. So, better liver, less anger, better mood, more happiness? Why don’t you try for yourself?
Carrots are even easier to store and carry around than bananas. I have had a few accidents of crushed bananas in a bag… that never happened with carrots! 😉 You can also eat them any time and anywhere.
I personally LOVE grated carrots with a bit of olive oil and apple cider vinegar and good quality salt like Himalayan or Celtic salt.
I am also an adept of home-made carrots juice. Either just plain carrot juice or with a bit of ginger and/or turmeric and/or apples.
What about you? What’s YOUR favorite way to eat carrots?
Take the Challenge!
Well, that’s my selection for today.
As I said before, I invite you to join me for a 5 day challenge…
To keep it simple and safe, I challenge you to have at least one of these at least once a day for 5 days in a row. Tell me in the comments if you are willing to take up that challenge, and then come back to this page after 5 days to share your experience. Which foods did you prefer? And did you notice any difference?
Of course, like with everything else, it all depends on the quantities. Don’t start eating 30 bananas or 1kg of pumpkin seeds a day and expect your body to adapt well to this sudden change… experiment but make sure to listen to your body at the same time. 🙂
I look forward to reading your comments!!
To our joy and happiness,
Nathalie
My secret…
Want to share what you know AND explore ways to get paid for it? Then check out the training and hosting platform I have been using. Click here to TRY Your First Month Premium for ONLY $19 (instead of $49). ?
Hello,
Great article, relevant and informative!
I love all five food items and have at least one of them per week, but not one five consecutive days or even any five (each in any combination) for five days in a row. The health properties of bananas, avocados, pumpkin seeds, almonds, and carrots are enormous and easy to incorporate regularly in ones diets. I have to admit, I did not know that either one of them, if eaten daily could help create happy moods, I have heard of chocolate doing it (but I’m not happy about the calories).
Count me in, I am up for the challenge!
I will have at least one of the 5 food items you listed at least once a day for 5 days!
I have also bookmarked your site to return after 5 days to share my experience. Letting you know which food I preferred (I love them all) and inform you about the effects.
Question:
If I had one of each of the five suggested food items for five days, is it still possible to develop a happy mood?
Example:
Banana on Monday, Avocado Tuesday, Pumpkin seeds Wednesday, Almonds Thursday and carrots on Friday.
Thank you so much for your insight and informative article!
See you in 5 days!
Diane
Hello Diane,
Thanks a lot for taking the time to leave your comment here.
It’s great to hear that you love all the 5 foods listed in this article and that you are up for the challenge!
So? How did it go? Which food did you prefer? And what effects did you notice?
To answer your question, in my experience, you may start feeling that you are in a happier mood within minutes of eating any of these foods. I certainly do, and I can even feel it in my skin within seconds… especially with carrots and avocados, but maybe because I am used to listening to my body and noticing physiological and mood changes… 🙂 I am an explorer after all… 🙂
Your plan for 5 days sounds great! Alternating each day is a great idea!
Let me know how it went, okay?
Wishing you and your loved ones all the best for 2019,
Nathalie
Phew! Thank god, I do eat 3 of the food out of that list! lol I eat banana everyday with my smoothies will some berries and Chai seeds. Now it’s winter time so I do make a lot stew it’s so comforting and hearty with some toasted baguette yummm. And I also eat dark chocolate covered almond 2 birds in one stone. This might the reason why I am happy most of the time. I will try to eat more pumpkin seeds, maybe with my salad… and add avocado on my salad as well. I will start this challenge after Christmas!
Happy Holidays
Hello Nuttanee,
Thanks a lot for taking the time to leave your comment here.
Mmmmm! Chocolate with almonds! Yummy! 🙂 I personally LOVE chocolate with hazelnuts. 🙂
I think it was very wise of you to decide to start this 5-day challenge after Christmas. 🙂
So? How did it go?
Wishing you and your loved ones all the best for 2019,
Nathalie
Hello Nathalie. Another good article from you! I really loved your post as it was a very interesting one at the same time a very informative and fun to read.
Personally I prefer two of the 5 you mentioned. First one is the banana. As it is a great mood lightener for me and I like to taste. Second one is the carrots. I love to eat it raw. There is nothing like the taste of a good fresh carrot inside your mouth. I also like the taste of freshly prepared carrot juice with a bit of beet and lime with a pinch of salt. It is simply divine.
Hello GeeEss,
Thank you for taking the time to leave your comment here. And thank you for your kind words! 🙂
Freshly prepared carrot juice with a bit of beet and lime with a pinch of salt? Sounds delicious! I shall give it a try next time I have all these ingredients! You got me curious here!
Many blessings,
Nathalie
Great post and good info.
I know there are foods that makes you happy, avocado is one of them indeed, and it is also healthy, what a great benefit it has, no?
For me personally, there are more of them that makes me happy, but honestly, they are not so healthy, but I don’t eat them too often, so that isn’t a big problem.
I will share this post because I really like it.
Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for your kind words, Emmanuel. It’s a pleasure to read your comments on my various posts. 🙂
You’re right about foods that are not so healthy… it’s about balance… as long as you don’t eat them all the time and more than the healthy foods, it shall be ok, right? Well, at least, listen to your body. IT knows better than anything anyone could say about food. 🙂
Thanks a lot for sharing my post. I hope many other people can benefit from it.
🙂
Nathalie
THANKS very much for the post!
I have a lot of knowledge about the positive effect of Banana in our system.
it helps in slowing down digestion and sustain you for a long duration of time, before the next meal. that’s why bananas are often included in a breakfast meal so that you can start about your day without having to worry about the next meal. Also, Banana is rich in Iron, which makes it good for those suffering from anaemia…Yes
Thanks once again. this is an informative post Nathalie.
Regards
Thank you very much for taking the time to leave your comment here, Bibian. 🙂
And thanks also for this extra information about bananas. They’re so healthy and sooooo delicious!! 🙂 Do you eat some regularly yourself or do you prefer other fruit?
Regards,
Nathalie
Hi Nathalie, What a great selection of foods, all of which I love and eat regularly. As you do I find them easy to carry around with me and have as a snack. Not the Avocados, HaHa. That would be a bit much. But the bananas, nuts, pumpkin seeds and carrots are easy to carry around without any problems.
Sadly, due to Doctors orders am not allowed to eat chocolate but can still eat all these other wonderful foods.
As a child, it was very special to have an enormous avocado tree growing in our back garden, I would climb up and collect fresh avocados for the day. It was at one time our staple diet.
Hi Jill.
Thanks a lot for taking the time to leave your comment here.
I’m sorry to hear that you may not eat chocolate because of your doctors… have you tried changing doctors? 😉 Are there any doctors out there who ever tell anyone they have to stop eating carrots or broccoli? 😉 Well, for whatever reason they told you to stop eating chocolate, I hope you get better soon and you can soon indulge again. 🙂
Oh my! You had an enormous avocado tree in your back garden!? You were SOOOOOO lucky! That’s one of my dreams! I would LOVE to have access to an avocado tree AND a mango tree!! Can you still go to your childhood house now? In which country was that?
Nathalie
Having moved to Northern Europe from sunny Africa in the last 2 years, I have taken a closer look at my diet and the way that I fuel my body. With the long months of little to no sunshine during the colder months, I have often found myself feeling a little down.
I have supplemented using all of the items in your post with great success. I believe that nature does provide all the necessary supplements but it takes time and effort to learn about the best combinations.
Rich
Hello Rich,
Thanks a lot for taking the time to leave your comment here. 🙂
Wow! Yes! I can imagine how difficult it must be for you in Northern Europe during the winter months! It’s great that your body has naturally led you to these foods. Yes! I agree with you! I too believe that nature provides all the necessary elements for us, and it does take some time and effort to learn about the best combinations for ourselves. Very wise comment! 🙂
Thank you for sharing your experience and wisdom with me. Hope to read more of your comments on other posts on this blog.
🙂
Nathalie
The foods you have mentioned are now considered Health Foods and are in a lot of diet plans. I think that because they are natural and unprocessed they have all the minerals and nutrients your body needs. I think its great that these foods can actually make you feel happy.
Unfortunately for me my mom is severely allergic to bananas so i dont really eat them, but the carrots and pumpkin seeds are excellent snacks and work great in salads.
I have heard a lot about french culture.Is it true that a lot of French people eat exactly on time every day?
Hello Renton,
Thanks a lot for taking the time to leave your comment here. 🙂
Sorry to hear that your mom is severely allergic to bananas. Was it always like that or did she develop this allergy later in life? Good thing YOU are not. Yes, carrots and pumpkin seeds are excellent snacks and work great in salads. 🙂
Well… I have not lived in France for many years now, and I am not your typical French person because I have lived abroad for so long, but from what I can still see when I visit my family, they do like to eat around the same time every day. I find that some French people eat while watching TV. So they get ready to eat on time for their favorite lunch or dinner TV program… but again… this is only from what I see in my family when I visit them. I’m not sure if this is the way it goes in most homes…
If you’d like to see for yourself, maybe you should go to France one day? Check out my post about house and pet sitting and see how you could do that for free, or even get paid for it… https://nathalieu.com/house-and-pet-sitting-the-joy-to-travel-and-serve/
Let me know if you do go, ok?
Nathalie
Hi Nathalie! I really enjoyed your article! I’m English so I know just how good French food can be! 🙂
I really liked your idea of the challenge and eating one of the foods everyday for 5 days, great plan! I love bananas, they are great for after a workout or even a hangover! The other foods are all really tasty too, love avocados!
I’m going to take up your challenge and see how I go! 🙂
Hello Kate,
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your comment here! 🙂
Yes! French food IS delicious! 😉
It’s great to hear that you were willing to take the 5-day challenge. 🙂 I’m curious… How did it go?
Nathalie
OK, i will take up the challenge. We are an active family with what we think are healthy eating choices and these items in the challenge seem great so starting tomorrow my daughter and I will do it. I’m not much of a fan of Avocado so eat them as part of a spread which is not so good.
Bananas yes, almonds yes, but not so much pumpkin seeds so I will include them in the challenge 🙂
Hello Stew,
Wow! That sounds exciting! That both you and your daughter are planning to take this challenge! Do let me know how it went and how you felt after the 5 days, ok? I really look forward to hearing back from you!
Enjoy!
Nathalie
Hey Nathalie, I loved your post. Though I absolutely hate avocados (they just feel like butter with no taste), I absolutely love the other 4 – especially the pumpkin seeds. I used to eat lots of them in my childhood with my granny.
Does the pumpkin soup count in your challange? 🙂 if yes, it’s ma favorite soup ever.
Also, can I combine these 5 foods (except avocado)? Like making a smoothie from carrots and bananas and adding some almonds on top? I’d love that.
Thanks for this article. You’re an inspiration – only reading this made me happier 🙂
Hello Ashley,
Thank you very much for your kind words! They mean a lot to me! 🙂 I’m really glad that only reading my post made you happier. 🙂
Yes, I know what you mean about avocados… get a bad one and it does feel like butter with no taste… and there are mainly bad ones out there.
Nice to hear that you used to eat a lot of pumpkin seeds with your granny in your childhood! You must have plenty of fond memories associated with them then. 🙂
Well, the pumpkin soup does not count in my challenge but please do add it to your menu as often as you’d like! I absolutely LOVE pumpkin soup myself! Everything is so good about it! The color, the texture, the taste… it’s definitely one of my favorite soups ever. Actually, now that I am thinking about it, I cannot think of a soup I like more than pumpkin soup right now… so it could very well be my favorite soup too… wow! Never realized it!
Yes! You can make all the combinations you want! Is your blender strong enough to blend raw carrots? They’re quite hard… maybe slicing them or grating them first? I know I have to upgrade MY blender… Anyway, I am very curious about your combination of bananas, carrots and almonds in a smoothie. Please do let me know how it went and if it was tasty. 🙂
I wish you a very happy and delicious day. 🙂
Nathalie
Hi Nathalie,
I enjoyed your take on foods that make you happy and I’m willing to take up the challenge. In fact, the timing is perfect because I’ve been telling myself I need to get back to drinking green smoothies on a regular basis. My favorite smoothie includes half a banana and some avocado with spinach leaves. And, almonds are one of my favorite snacks. So the 5 day challenge shouldn’t be hard at all. Thanks for the info!
Hello Linda,
Great to hear that you are willing to take the challenge and that the timing is perfect for you.
Oh, yes! Banana, avocado and spinach leaves sound delicious! Yummy!!
Do let me know how it went and how you feel after the 5 days are over, okay?
Enjoy! 🙂
Nathalie
Awwwnn.. This is a perfect list, I love almond and banana there’s a way it makes me sing when I eat them. I think almond is best for me, It gives instant energy sometimes when I’m on a task and I want to take a break to eat snack, then I add almond, getting on with the task becomes easier.
I have never eaten avocado, you said it’s rich in tryptophan a precursor of serotonin that stabilizes mood. Being a pharmacologist I know little about this, I think it’s gonna be a good try for me.
Hello Lok,
Wow!! I LOVE how you put it when you say that almond and banana make you sing when you eat them! That’s very poetic! I would love to see that! Want to make a video of it and send it to me? 🙂
So you’re a pharmacologist? Wow! Yes, the tryptophan and serotonin information must be interesting to you. 🙂
You say you have never eaten avocado. Where do you live? Have you been avoiding them or are they not easily found in your region?
Have a beautiful day,
Nathalie
Hello Nathalie and thank you for sharing this with us. I knew about healthy effects some foods have on our body, but never knew it can change our mood. I thought only cocoa and chocolate had this effect :).
However, I did notice that whenver I eat almonds or pumpkin seeds I have a feeling that someone is giving a backrub to my brain. I am not kidding. Feels so amazing and good. Now that I know it brings more then just pleasant feeling I will definitely eat it way more.
Strahinja.
Hello Strahinja,
Nice to hear that you learned something new thanks to my post. 🙂
I love how you put it when you say that when you eat almonds or pumpkin seeds you have a feeling that someone is giving a backrub to your brain! That’s a very creative way to put it into words! 🙂
Some people would say that this pleasant feeling you feel is a consequences of serotonin being produced… in short, our body’s sensations are usually a good guide to what is good for us… as far as unprocessed/natural foods are concerned… 🙂 It’s great that you took notice of your body’s sensations when eating almonds or pumpkin seeds. 🙂
Have a beautiful day!
Nathalie
Thanks for this little push toward choosing some healthy options each day!
I will definitely be taking you up on the challenge and have chosen Bananas and Almonds as my two foods to start with off of your list – here’s to the next 5 days with some extra delicious tryptophan, magnesium, and vitamin E! I already love bananas both plain, with peanut butter, and in smoothies so that one should be easy 🙂 Almonds are also a food i quite like and am excited to try some variations of as just plain roasted with sea salt has always been my goto in the past.
It was very cool to learn a little bit more about the french culture. Aside from major holidays I have always been used to a quick lunch on the go as you have started to get to know as well. I can imagine some major benefits to a longer break to eat, rest, and refresh midday though!
What is your favourite of the 5 foods you suggested here?
You are very welcome!
Great to hear that you are taking the 5-day challenge. 🙂
I’m glad you enjoyed learning a little bit about the French culture. Where are you from?
My favorite of the 5 foods in this post? That’s a good question… let me think… well, if the avocado is perfectly ripe and tasty, and I add a little bit of celtic salt, I would say the avocado… but if it’s not a good avocado, I would go for the almonds. I do prefer them without the skin though… give me some freshly soaked almonds (I soak them for about 12 hours) where I remove the skin just before eating them and I just cannot stop until they are all gone! 🙂 I kid not! My body is telling me “More! More!” Hahaha!! But the same almonds with the skin, I would not eat more than a handful, I think…
Let me know how your 5-day challenge went and how you felt afterwards, okay?
Have a beautiful day,
Nathalie
This is really fantastic info to know on foods that make me happy, I am a farmer so most of the time i eat my own fruits, as for me i also love eating bananas when they are completely yellow and ripe, not when greenish and as for avocados i love pasting them on bread and it is such a nice meal for me, i do not like using salt like you do i just love having the natural and pure meal. I will very much love to see your post on how to remove the skin of almonds.
I never knew that even pumpkin seeds can be eaten, hey there is really nothing to throw away when it comes to such foods.
Hello Nkhosingiphile,
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment.
You are soooo lucky to be able to eat your own fruits!! Where are you? Here in Belgium, people mainly grow apples, pears and grapes. They are delicious too, don’t get me wrong!
Yes! Stay tuned for my post on how to remove the skin of almonds. It is coming up soon…
And yes! Sometimes, it’s quite amazing what we learn we can eat that we did not know… 🙂
Nathalie
I love eating! It’s great to see that 4 of the foods you listed are among my favorites. I’m not much for pumpkin seeds, but I’ll give them a try. One can never be too happy. I make banana nut muffins or banana nut bread with my ripe bananas. I use them in smoothies as well.
I haven’t used avocados in a smoothie. I like adding it to salads and I use avocado slices on my burgers.
Now, almonds I can eat all day long. I use it in my baking a lot. I also love sitting down for a Netflix binge while I crack open a couple of almonds to eat.
I often snack on baby carrots. I also like shredding it and adding it to my salad. I also add it to sauces and stews when I cook.
I’ll take that five day challenge. I’m not sure which one I’ll pick though. 🙂
Hello Margarette,
Thank you so much for leaving your comment here.
Banana nut muffins and banana nut bread sound delicious!!
For the five day challenge, you do not have to pick only one for the 5 days. You can have banana on day 1, almonds on day 2, etc… and you can also pick more than one per day. Be creative! And please let me know how it went afterwards. I’m curious! 🙂
Thanks!! 🙂
Nathalie
I love this list, and it also makes a lot of sense why these particular foods improve your mood.
My favorite thing to do with bananas is to mash them up and freeze. Instant delicious healthy and guilt free ice cream.
With carrots I love to grate with either pineapple or oranges. I will definitely look into trying it your way too now with the olive oil and apple cider vinegar.
Hello Michel,
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your comment here.
Yes! Frozen bananas make a great guilt-free ice cream. When we had a freezer, I would cut up bananas in slices and then freeze them up. And when we had some other fruits at room temperature, I would put the 2 together in a blender and that would make some delicious ice cream too.
Now that we don’t have a freezer, the other way we do it is to get some frozen fruits from the store, like strawberries, and blend them with bananas at room temperature. It works very well too! Delicious!! 🙂
Grated carrots with pineapple or oranges? Great idea! I shall give it a try!
Let me know what you think of the grated carrots with olive oil and apple cider vinegar once you’ve tried it, okay?
Thanks again for stopping by,
Nathalie
This is great. I love how you have tied all the foods together. I will take you up on the challenge. But personally I prefer bananas because they taste great, but avocados are also great as they seem to melt in my mouth.
There is too much of anything which is good for you. So I agree overeating one thing can lead to not liking it later on, as well it takes time for the healthy feedback to develop in our body. Great list of foods to eat.
Hello Jagi,
Thank you very much for your words of appreciation.
Yes! I also love the fact that avocados seem to melt in my mouth.
Let me know how you did on the challenge, okay?
Thanks!! 🙂
Nathalie
Hey Nathalie! How are you? I really enjoyed reading this article as it was informative, interesting and fun. From my perspective, I tend to think that almonds are certainly best compared to all the others. I love to add almonds to my snack times as they are tasty and give you instant energy. It’s actually said that eating less almonds makes you lose weight whereas eating a handful can help you to gain weight.
Hello,
Thank you for your kind words and for this extra piece of information about almonds. Good to know!
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Nathalie