Mood Food

Feeling sad? Angry? Tired? Wired? Read on for eight fantastic foods that can improve your every mood.

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If you've got food on the brain, maybe you should see a nutritional psychiatrist. Yes, there's such a job. "Psychonutrition," writes William Vayda, M.D., in the introduction to his book Mood Foods, "is the popular name given to the branch of medicine that deals with nutrition and its effect on the mind." Those in the mood for love, for instance, might try celery—perhaps in a delicious celery slaw with soybeans, a recipe from F&W's Grace Parisi (who created all the dishes that follow). Celery contains androsterone, which Vayda suggests makes the eater sexually irresistible. And, as he points out, celery stalks are cheaper than perfume. The vitamin B1 in poultry (as in Parisi's chile-spiced fried chicken) and beef (as in her gingery jerky) might be just the thing to quell your anger or snap you out of a funk. Or maybe not. You don't need to trust the research, or to be depressed, to appreciate the uplifting properties of the chocolate and the yogurt in Parisi's decadent cake. Its taste alone will make you happy.

Published January 2001