WBZ Boston reporter Michelle Roberts filed an interesting report this week titled Experts say food may contribute to anger, violent behavior.
In the report, Roberts quotes experts Nicolette Pace and Dr. Drew Ramsey.
Nutritionist Pace states, according to Roberts, that carbs can make you feel good but that feeling is temporary.
“They (carbs) don’t give your body what you need to cope with day-to-day stresses,” Pace explained. “Deficiencies in nutrients, magnesium or manganese, vitamin C or some B vitamins may make a person hyperactive towards a stressor, a short fuse so to speak.”
Roberts then reports that nutritionists’ claim that people who tend to eat a diet leaded with processed or packaged food could find themselves more easily irritated.
Dr. Drew Ramsey, according to Roberts, adds, “Without proper nutrients, the body can’t make chemicals like serotonin which is necessary for clear thinking and good mood. Deficiencies in these nutrients have been correlated strongly with either increases in aggressive behavior and/or violent acts.”
Roberts offers one supporting study. Oxford University researchers gave vitamin supplements to prison inmates. They found that those supplements led to less aggressive behavior.
So, should trainers, teachers and speakers feed their audiences vitamins? Hardly. A facilitator is not a doctor. And, even if you could get your participants to take their vitamins, the dosage would likely not work quickly enough to deliver timely results.
Perhaps it is enough to be aware of the temporary lift that carbs provide and the crash that quickly follows. Healthier, nutritional snacks like fruit, carrots and nuts may delver better results.
The smell of learning part one and Part two, the smell of peppermint and citrus enhances learning.
They may also reduce anger.
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