Love Your Brain – Mood Boost Menu
References and Resources
All tips on the Mood-Boosting Menu are evidence-based. Check out the references and additional resources to learn even more
Resources
Appetizers
Quick and easily accessible, for whenever you need a break.
Entrees
Longer activities that require more time, but can be more rewarding.
- Catch-up face-to-face with a friend or family member. (19,20,21)
- Go on your favourite hike in nature – or try somewhere brand new. (15)
- Prepare a healthy meal. (22,23)
- Help a friend or family member with an act of kindness. (24)
- Wind down and prepare for a good sleep – avoid stimulating activities, screens, alcohol, and heavy foods before bed. (25,26,27)
Desserts
Things you love which are best enjoyed in moderation.
Reference List
- Extend an Embrace: The Availability of Hugs Is an Associate of Higher Self-Rated Health in Later Life | Research on Aging | September 2020
- Reducing anxiety with a HUG | Design for Dementia, Mental Health and Wellbeing | June 2024
- Hugs: Benefits, Research, & Quotes | Berkeley Well-Being Institute | August 2022
- Why a Simple Act of Kindness Is Not as Simple as It Seems: Underestimating the Positive Impact of Our Compliments on Others | Society for Personality and Social Psychology | August 2020
- Why don’t people give enough compliments? Underestimating the positive impact of compliments | Academy of Management Proceedings | August 2019
- Effectiveness of Progressive Muscle Relaxation, Deep Breathing, and Guided Imagery in Promoting Psychological and Physiological States of Relaxation | Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine | July 2021
- How Breath-Control Can Change Your Life: A Systematic Review on Psycho-Physiological Correlates of Slow Breathing | Frontiers in Human Neuroscience | September 2018
- Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis | JAMA Internal Medicine | March 2014
- Psychobiological mechanisms underlying the mood benefits of meditation: A narrative review | Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology | May 2021
- Meditation: Evidence Map of Systematic Reviews | Frontiers in Public Health | December 2021
- Cardiovascular and affective responses to speech and anger: Proactive benefits of a single brief session of mindfulness meditation | Journal of Applied Biobehavioral Research | April 2019
- Mindfulness-based interventions to reduce anxiety among Chinese college students: A systematic review and meta-analysis | Frontiers in Psychology | January 2023
- Health Benefits of Exercise | Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine | May 2017
- The Friend Who Keeps You Young | Johns Hopkins Medicine | June 2024
- Health Benefits from Nature Experiences Depend on Dose | Scientific Reports | June 2016
- Reading for pleasure: A research overview | National Literacy Trust | November 2006
- Reading from paper compared to screens: A systematic review and meta-analysis | Journal of Research in Reading | January 2019
- The benefits of reading for pleasure | InnovAiT: Education and inspiration for general practice | February 2021
- The Connection Prescription: Using the Power of Social Interactions and the Deep Desire for Connectedness to Empower Health and Wellness | American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine | October 2015
- Less in-person social interaction with peers among U.S. adolescents in the 21st century and links to loneliness | Journal of Social and Personal Relationships | March 2019
- Connecting with close friends online: A qualitative analysis of young adults’ perceptions of online and offline social interactions with friends | Computers in Human Behavior Reports | August 2022
- Canada’s Food Guide | Government of Canada | February 2025
- Current Evidence on Healthy Eating | Annual Review of Public Health | March 2013
- Happy to help? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of performing acts of kindness on the well-being of the actor | Journal of Experimental Social Psychology | May 2018
- Sleeping Better | HealthLink BC | November 2022
- Your healthy sleep checklist | Heart and Stroke Foundation | May 2020
- Getting a Good Night’s Sleep | Anxiety Canada | December 2019
- Does the Combination of Finnish Sauna Bathing and Other Lifestyle Factors Confer Additional Health Benefits? A Review of the Evidence | Mayo Clinic Proceedings | June 2023
- Sauna use as a lifestyle practice to extend healthspan | Experimental Gerontology | August 2021
- Longitudinal associations of sauna bathing with inflammation and oxidative stress: the KIHD prospective cohort study | Annals of Medicine | August 2018
- Short-, medium-, and long-term impact of watching humorous video clips on stress and well-being: An experience sampling method-based field experiment | Computers in Human Behavior Reports | May 2023
- Emotion regulation, procrastination, and watching cat videos online: Who watches Internet cats, why, and to what effect? | Computers in Human Behavior | November 2015
- When “the Next Episode” Is Too Much? Watching TV Series as a Non-Adaptive Coping Strategy | Psychological Thought | April 2024
- Understanding the Phenomenon of Binge-Watching—A Systematic Review | International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health | June 2020
- How the Entertaining Effects of Movies Help People to Reduce Chronic Stress and Increase Happiness | International Journal of Social Science and Humanity | November 2021
- The Effect of Ventilation by Window Opening on Stress, Anxiety, and Depression of Female High School Students | International Journal of School Health | April 2019
- Acute effects of tea consumption on attention and mood | The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition | December 2013
- The Rewarding Aspects of Music Listening Are Related to Degree of Emotional Arousal | PLoS ONE | October 2009
- Emotional sounds and the brain: the neuro-affective foundations of musical appreciation | Behavioural Processes | November 2002
- What works for wellbeing? A systematic review of wellbeing outcomes for music and singing in adults | Perspectives in Public Health | January 2018
- How Do Music Activities Affect Health and Well-Being? A Scoping Review of Studies Examining Psychosocial Mechanisms | Frontiers in Psychology | September 2021
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