By Tanya Armolea

Life's inevitable twists and turns can send stress levels soaring. A new position or project at work, divorce, death in the family, your kids getting sick, holidays, even planning for a vacation can send you spiraling out of control.

What does the food you eat have to do with this? Everything. When your body does not get the nutrients it needs to function properly, you will end up trying to do too much with less energy.

Stressful life events often cause poor food choices. We tend to consume too much caffeine to increase our energy and help us function. Unfortunately, too much caffeine can cause poor concentration and sleep disturbances, resulting in the opposite effect than you had intended.

Cravings for fat, sugar and salt often are increased during times of stress. People tend to reach for fast food, chips, sugary baked goods and soda to soothe their cravings. Mindless munching in front of the TV or at your desk seems to be common among those with high stress levels. This type of eating is most likely the result of emotions running high.

Skipping meals and crash diets are often the result of a stressful day. When you are moving and thinking all day, full speed ahead, you often choose to skip meals or just forget to eat. Sometimes, it is the result of wanting to lose weight; at other times, it is due to time constraints. Either way, skipping meals or a calorie intake that is too low causes blood sugar imbalances, resulting in mood swings, fatigue and poor concentration.

Have you ever noticed that when your stress level increases, you tend to get sick? When life gets tough, your immune system often takes a plunge for the worse. This lowered immunity brings colds, flu and other illnesses. Life's changes play a major role in your health. Learning to deal with these changes in a positive manner can help your body cope. Nutrition plays a key role in this coping mechanism.

The food we eat determines how our body handles change and stress. By modifying our food intake, we can cope and function in a more positive manner.

It is essential to begin the day with a healthy breakfast. You may not feel hungry first thing in the morning, but skipping this meal will cause your blood sugar level to drop, making it difficult to power through your busy morning. Choosing foods such as whole grains, low-fat protein and fresh fruits and vegetables will help you get the best results from your mind and body.

If you are a coffee or soda nut, it is essential that you wean yourself from large levels of caffeine. This step alone will lower your stress level. Try drinking decaffeinated green tea, which adds loads of antioxidants to your diet, or sparkling juice. Be sure to eliminate any caffeine after 2 p.m. Caffeine intake later in the day can affect your sleep at night. Drinking six to eight glasses of water throughout your day is also very important, both physically and mentally.

Many people often go out to fast food restaurants and choose less-than-healthy items and often eat too much. By bringing your own lunch to work, you not only save money, which is always a plus, but you are able to control portion size and choose items that make you feel good rather than foods that zoom your stress level into high gear.

Choosing fun and interesting foods helps you feel like you had something special for lunch. Pack items like edamame, hummus, whole-wheat sesame crackers, star fruit, persimmons, pomegranate seeds, nuts, sunflower seeds, baby sweet peppers, snap peas -- anything new and different so that you don't have the same boring sandwich and then stray toward the vending machine down the hall.

Ridding your home of unhealthy foods -- and replacing them with healthy selections -- helps you reevaluate the way you eat and forces you to make better choices. When you don't have cookies or chips in your cupboards, then you likely won't put them in your body at all. It is all a matter of learning a new habit. Start searching for new foods and try at least two new foods a week.

You will be surprised by all the interesting flavors and textures that you have never discovered. These often replace the humdrum of high-fat, low-flavor cravings. If you are stuck in the rut, rotating through the same dinners each week, try some new recipes. Look through cooking magazines; they often have recipes with seasonal fruits and vegetables, making it easier to find the ingredients you will need.

When things get difficult and your stress levels start rising, focus on yourself, your mind and your body. By choosing to eat nutritionally, you give your mind and body the advantage of coping and functioning at an optimum level. Healthy food choices will put you above it all -- often making that situation not so stressful after all.

How food-savvy are you?
Take one of our interactive online quizzes to test your nutritional know-how. Please visit www.IchooseNNMC.com and click on "Health Information" then "Interactive Tools." You will find fun and informative quizzes on diet, fat, fiber, sweets and treats, and trans fats, among others.

Tanya's top 10 healthy snack suggestions

1. String cheese wrapped in prosciutto and a few kalamata olives
2. Fat-free yogurt with fresh fruit and a sprinkle of nuts
3. Low-sugar whole-grain granola bars with at least 3g fiber
4. Cucumber and baby carrots with hummus
5. 1/2 sandwich made with whole-wheat bread, sliced banana and any nut butter
6. 1/2 cantaloupe filled with cottage cheese, a dash of cinnamon and berries
7. Pistachios and dried pineapple
8. Graham cracker with almond butter
9. Whole-wheat crackers with peanut butter and sliced strawberries on top
10. Almonds with dried apricots

Mediterranean diced salad
Try this recipe for a quick and nourishing dinner salad.

Ingredients
1 19-ounce can of chickpeas (also called garbanzo beans)
1 red pepper
1 cucumber
2 stalks celery
1 cup halved grape tomatoes juice from one large lemon, about 1/4 cup
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Drain and rinse chickpeas and put in a large mixing bowl.
2. Core red pepper and dice into half-inch squares. Add to bowl.
3. Peel and chop cucumber. Slice celery lengthwise and chop. Add to bowl. Add halved grape tomatoes.
4. In a measuring cup or small bowl, whisk lemon juice, vinegar and olive oil. Pour over salad ingredients.
5. Toss well to coat all ingredients. Add parsley and mix again.
6. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Season to taste.

Serves six.
Each serving contains about 142 calories, 4 g protein, 6 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 18 g carbohydrate, 5 g fiber and 208 mg sodium.

Tanya Armolea

Tanya Armolea is physician relations coordinator for Northern Nevada Medical Center. She has taught nutrition and cooking classes for a local culinary center and at the high school level. For more information, you can email Tanya at tanya.armolea@uhsinc.com.

Northern Nevada Medical Center 2375 E. Prater Way, Sparks, NV 89434 775-331-7000