Mental health is now beginning to take a prominent place in our lives and as a society we are talking about the importance of this to our overall wellbeing. There is a lot of research emerging looking at how a well-balanced and healthy diet ties into the way we feel. The age old saying of “you are what you eat” comes to mind.
More and more nutrition gurus are talking about good gut health and how this is important for both mind and body. We can do this simply by adding certain foods to our diets especially those that are high in fibre. These include lots of vegetables, beans and fruits such as peas, broccoli, chickpeas, lentils and raspberries. We should also try to eat more fermented foods that are rich in lactobacilli-a type of friendly bacteria. These are things like Kombucha, Sauerkraut and live yoghurts. In Punjab and Punjabi households worldwide live yoghurt is a staple and is made daily. Another tip is to try and avoid processed foods and refined sugars, these can be the cause of the all too familiar sugar rush and crash. Over time this cycle perpetuates which can leaving us feeling low in energy and it can have a negative effect on our mood. This is all the more reason to eat foods that release sugars slowly into our bloodstream (low GI foods), typically they are also foods which are high in fibre.
Ingredients in Hiya bars like chickpeas, mixed seeds and unrefined sugar means that they are both low GI and high fibre, so, a win win for your health! These really are one of the best low GI snacks available!
Read more about the importance of diet and making us feel good on the inside!