MENTAL and EMOTIONAL DISORDERS

Sometimes people shy away from changing to a healthy diet because they fear it will increase their stress. It is true that a change in diet is a change in lifestyle, but change doesn’t mean complication. Changes that improve our lifestyle decrease stress and increase our ease and simplicity. Research has found that individuals who change to a plant-based (vegan) diet enjoyed significantly decreased depression, anxiety, and fatigue, and improved mental health, emotional well-being, daily functioning, and general health (Agarwal et al; Katcher et al). Other great perks of a healthy diet include decreased food costs as well as increased diet satisfaction (Katcher et al) – meaning that healthy eaters actually enjoy their food more than unhealthy eaters!

What about a social life? It turns out that maintaining a social life while living a healthy lifestyle is not any more difficult than on a conventional diet (Katcher et al; Turner-McGrievy). Maybe you’ll even become acquainted with other like-minded people whom you can befriend in your healthfully improved lifestyle. If your lifestyle matters in your friendships, then choosing a good lifestyle will lead you to good friendships. In other words, if you want to eat healthy, do it! You can only benefit from a better lifestyle.