Let's face it: how many times during the day do we get hit by sudden "cravings"? And especially, how many times are our desires called comfort food? Food is the true thermometer of our happiness and this has already been ascertained for years. Since we were children, we could cry in front of a vegetable soup and rejoice for a chocolate cookie magically brought to us through a little plane.

"The bravest decision you can make every day is to be in a good mood" said Voltaire in the not too close eighteenth century (who knows if at the time they had already tasted the goodness of chocolate and peanuts?). In fact, an unbalanced diet can make us restless, sad and in a bad mood, while the right mix of "good" food can give calm and joy to our spirit. 

The idea of having to impose a predetermined quantity of grams of that food or taking away another one, affects our day. Every evening we all want to sit at the table in front of a tasty dish and finally relax. Some substances contained in food or produced during digestion, act directly on mood serving as a basis for creating chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. There is a wide range of them, more than 40, but among the main ones it is useful to know: serotonin, dopamine and endorphins.

If the level of serotonin is adequate the mood is good, you eat well and sleep quietly. So how can we increase this ally of good humour? Dark chocolate, milk and honey, oilseeds/nuts, whole grains (rich in omega), banana (rich in magnesium), pineapple and all foods rich in vitamins of group b favor this production. Tryptophan is important to keep serotonin high (more simply called amino acid). Dopamine, on the other hand, is found in all protein foods such as turkey, eggs and legumes (and a lot in soy!) Endorphins are produced from foods such as chili pepper. The capsaicin that is contained inside is responsible for the spiciness that generates the burning sensation and causes the effect of the release of adrenaline and endorphins.

Before moving on to the last ingredient for a good mood, why not start the day right away with our Chocolate Boost bar? Inside you will find small pieces of chocolate and toasted hazelnuts, all covered with a thin layer of dark chocolate. Click on the image to check them out!

Of course, the last ingredient, if not the most important, is physical activity, which is fundamental to putting hormones into circulation and provide a feeling of generalized well-being. The truth, you know, is always in the middle and to the right extent, the imposition of not eating some foods or eating only others is not good for our body, first of all, and secondly for our mood. The variety fortifies us and makes us more and more curious to experience new super foods that are comfort for our heart and especially for our body.

By: Alessandra Grimaldi
Content Editor