How to boost your confidence part 1 - diet
How to boost your confidence part 1 - diet
A few weeks ago, I've watched a video about confidence. It was everything I needed to hear in that moment. When it comes to personal confidence, I'm fine, thanks to God, I met with the right circumstances to cure my insecurities. On the other hand, from the work and job aspect, I've been dealing with a huge pile of insecurities. I often feel like I will never be enough. Imposter syndrome. Always feeling like whatever I offer it will never be good enough.
In that video, unfortunately, I can't share it because it was unlisted and I don't remember the website...sorry for that. Here's another video from the authors:
So, in that video, they were talking about how women lack confidence in work. Men and women were asked in college about how much money they wanted to earn later in life. Women aimed for 20% less than men. Studies show that women are not less smart or hard-working than men, still, they struggle at work because they talk less, they are not as pushy, and they wait until they are perfect. And it hit me. Hard.
Don't get me wrong, I don't wanna make this post about 'poor women' and 'evil men'. In that video, those women were authors of the book 'The Confidence Code' and I immediately wanted to start reading it because I knew I had to change in this area.
At the moment, I'm only halfway through this book and I've already learned so many things about confidence, gender, and not gender-related. In this part I would like to talk about the brain chemistry that supports confidence.
It turns out that happy hormones have a HUGE impact on how you feel about yourself and how much anxiety you have to deal with daily.
Serotonin is one of the key factors in confidence. In studies, those monkies, which have less serotonin in their brain, had a bigger tendency to worry and be less confident. It helps to calm down your amygdala, a more primitive part of your brain, that's linked to stress and anxiety.
Similar results came out for dopamine and oxytocin. Dopamine has an influence on how adventurous your are and how much you are willing to explore new things. Oxytocin, the love hormone, is liked to positivity and confidence in general.
If we know that these hormones play such an important role in your confidence, why not increase them, by diet or other activities?!? I've known about this possibility for a long time because you can actually relieve your depression symptoms a LOT by eating the right foods, and boosting serotonin is one of the main targets from this aspect.
So, how to boost serotonin?
Tryptophan
Tryptophan is an essential factor at serotonin synthesis. Eating more tryptophan-containing foods is linked to higher serotonin levels. Eggs, nuts and seeds, pineapple, oats, leafy greens, bananas, soy and soy products are high in this nutrient. I wouldn't recommend you consuming more soy because it can have negative effects on your hormonal system, but you can eat the rest of the foods without limitation.
Omega-3
Omega-3s are also linked to serotonin synthesis. Chia seeds, hemp seeds, flaxseeds, sesame seeds are great sources of omega-3s. Eat more of them. The fun part is that omega-3s also increase dopamine production.
If you want to boost your dopamine levels...
Because lack of dopamine can lead to depression, passivity, and lethargy...
Bananas
Eating more bananas will prevent you from going bananas. It's that simple. Eat more bananas, they will raise your dopamine levels.
Curcumin
Turmeric is well-known to have numerous health benefits, one of them is to help with depression by increasing dopamine in the brain. It's also a strong anti-inflammatory agent with a mild pain-killer effect. If you want to know a fun way how to consume turmeric, check out this recipe.
Magnesium
Lack of magnesium is related to depression and low dopamine levels. This mineral also plays a role in many other processes in the body. The RDA if magnesium is 400 mg per day. You can eat more leafy green vegetables, bananas, nuts and seeds, or take a magnesium supplement.
Vitamin D
Lack of vitamin D also causes depression. This vitamin regulates your dopamine levels. Make sure to spend more time in the sunshine or take a vitamin D3 supplement. You can take 1800 i.u. daily if you are living in an area that doesn't have a lot of sunshine, for example, England, or during wintertime. If you already have a health problem, you can go up to 4000 i.u. per day for a few weeks. Vitamin D is also crucial for your immune system and it has anti-cancer effects as well.
Dark chocolate
The easiest and most delicious way to boost dopamine is to eat some dark chocolate.
Probiotics
Gut flora imbalances are linked to depression, insomnia, and many other issues. Consuming probiotics and prebiotics are equally important. Probiotics like yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, tempeh, kombucha, kefir, natto, and other fermented veggies help you to get in some good bacteria. Prebiotics like oats, bananas, and most of the raw fruits and vegetables feed the good bacteria while starving the bad ones.
In case you want to maximize your bowel and gut health, make sure to check out my recipe book Everyday bowel cleanse + 3-week bowel cleanse diet plan here. It contains delicious recipes combined with the right supplement to optimize your gut and get rid of toxins. It'll not only help you to boost your dopamine levels but also to lose weight, have clear skin, and stay young for a long time.
Ginkgo Biloba
Ginkgo Biloba is an herb for the brain. It improves mental performance, boost memory, and nonetheless, your dopamine levels.
Oregano oil
This oil is an excellent natural antibiotic, it also has antiviral, and antifungal benefits. Its main ingredient, carvacol is also able to raise dopamine and serotonin levels. You can take oregano oil internally in smaller doses. On mine, it's said that you can consume 2 drops in a teaspoon of coconut oil 2 times as day. Make sure not to mix it with probiotics at your meals because you are going to decrease its antibiotic effects. Probiotics can be and should be consumed 2 hours later.
Ginseng
Consuming this herb is linked to higher dopamine levels.
Lose weight
A higher body fat percentage is linked to a lower number of dopamine receptors. If you want to know the healthy way to lose fat, make sure to check out my 'Happy and Lean' course and I'm going to teach you how to lose weight without starvation in a sustainable way.
I hope this was helpful!
Have a blessed day! <3
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