Boost your mood: The power of complex carbs for energy

You’ve just walked your last mile in a mall or shopping center – at least until those “after-Christmas sales.” You’ve struggled, fought, and won the good fight against hordes of Black Friday shoppers. Your prizes may already be brightly wrapped beneath a tree radiant with shimmering ornaments and glowing lights. It’s time to take that break that you probably should have taken much earlier and much more frequently during the holiday season.

If you think you’ve had it rough during the holiday season, others have too. As any psychiatrist will confirm, the holiday season can be a downer – both physically and psychologically – for many people. They don’t give themselves the time to stop and take a break from the rush, to appreciate and enjoy the season and its true meaning. Instead, they fret and worry over superficial activities like shopping for gifts and the guest list for the big Christmas party. Anxiety and stress develop and eventually can take their toll on the emotions.

Poor eating habits add to the problem because people tend to eat “on the run”, never stopping to relax and enjoy their meals; they eat “fast foods” or other processed foods that don’t provide the nutrition to maintain adequate energy levels for a very active time of year. When you feel run-down, tired, and listless because you lack certain nutrients in your diet, it will also affect you emotionally.

The premier foods to help get you out of the doldrums are complex carbohydrates, like those found in cereals, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, and other whole grains, because the body converts them to glucose, the body’s basic energy supply. The fiber in fruit also provides high levels of complex carbohydrates, and ultimately, glucose. Glucose is particularly important to the brain, the “seat” of emotions because it is the brain’s only fuel. A drop off in glucose will cause brain-related functions to slow down; reflexes to slow, and concentration to weaken. The person is apt to feel weak, hungry, dizzy, lethargic, grouchy, or even hangry.

So now that the Christmas shopping fever is almost over, we’d like to add one more very important “event” to your list of things to do before Christmas Day. Take a break this evening or next, turn on the Christmas Tree, put some soft Christmas music on, and enjoy a warm meal (one high in complex carbohydrates like the recipe below).

From us at the Heart and Vascular Center, have a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday Season!

Spinach Lasagna

2 pounds fresh spinach, washed well
1 pound lasagna noodles
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
3 tablespoons pure olive oil
6 cups marinara sauce
1 cup onion, chopped
1/2 pound fat-free mozzarella cheese, grated (optional)
2 to 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
2 pounds “fat-free” ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons “low fat” Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, oil a 13 x 9 x 2 in. baking dish or lasagna pan.
2. In a large pot, cook the spinach, with only the rinsing water clinging to the leaves, for 2 minutes.
3. Drain the spinach and chop fine. Set aside.
4. In a small skillet, heat the olive oil, then add the chopped onions and chopped garlic to the hot oil and sauté for 3 minutes. DO NOT BROWN.
5. In a large mixing bowl, combine well the ricotta cheese, sauteed onions and garlic; chopped parsley, salt and pepper.
6. Add the chopped spinach to the ricotta cheese mixture. Toss together well.
7. Put 3 or 4 spoonful’s of the tomato sauce in the bottom of the oiled pan and spread it out.
8. Place in the pan 4 uncooked lasagna noodles. Let the noodles overlap by about 1/2 inch.
9. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta-spinach mixture in a layer over the noodles.
10. Sprinkle on 1/3 of the mozzarella. Then top with another layer of tomato sauce.
11. Repeat the layering process two more times, ending with the tomato sauce.
12. Sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese and oregano over the top.
13. Cover the dish and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
14. Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting it.

Serves six to eight.