6 delicious tension tamers

Calm jangled nerves with tasty superfoods

Apples turn on happiness hormones

Apples get their distinctive sweet-tart flavor from

malic acid, a compound that stimulates your brain to release the calming, focus-enhancing hormone

dopamine. Reach for one of these crunchers when you’re feeling a bit scattered, and Spanish researchers say you’ll heighten your happiness, focus and energy by 50%

in 5 minutes.

Beef prevents mood swings

Great news from University of Connecticut investigators: Just keeping your blood-sugar levels steady has the power to reduce your risk of irritability and tension by 60% by preventing anxietytriggering blood-sugar lows. And protein-rich beef is so effective at steadying blood sugar and warding off fluxes that enjoying 4 oz. daily can help banish blah moods in as little as 72 hours!

Sweet potatoes soothe muscle tension

Add 1 cup of sweet potatoes to your daily diet, and you could feel as much as 33% calmer and happier in five days. That’s the word from Australian investigators, who say this colorful spud is brimming with nutrients (such as manganese, copper and beta-carotene) that soothe the central nervous system, keeping muscles relaxed and tension-free.

Peanuts trigger relaxation

Hectic day? You’ll feel 55% calmer if you stop for a peanut snack! Canadian scientists say the healthy plant fats in peanuts heighten your brain’s production of relaxing, mood-boosting alpha waves, often within 30 minutes of the first bite. The study-proven dose: 1⁄3 cup of peanuts or 2 Tbs. of natural peanut butter daily.

Spinach calms the anxiety center

Spinach boasts rich stores of unique plant compounds (carotenoids) that are study-proven to calm the anxietyproducing amygdala in the brain. Sneak 1 cup of this leafy green into your daily diet, and UCLA researchers say your edginess and tension could plunge by 50% in as little as three days!

Dark chocolate turns on tranquility

This sweet indulgence contains a rare plant compound (phenylethylamine) that latches on to brain cells and prompts them to release calming, mood-steadying serotonin. No wonder University of Arizona scientists say nibbling on 1 oz. of dark chocolate can help you de-stress in 2 minutes, and it can reduce even chronic tension by as much as 45% if you savor it daily.