C O L U M N S

Try this:
Light therapy
Spending half an hour to an hour under a 10,000-lux daylight lamp every day has been shown to really help lift your mood if you’re affected by the shorter days of winter or suffer from SAD (seasonal affective disorder). If you’re a “lark” use the light in the morning. “Owls” will find light therapy more helpful in the evening.

Exercise
Regular exercise boosts serotonin levels, so you feel more positive. Aim to get outdoors each day, even if it’s just for a short walk. And if you can manage 30 minutes’ exercise, three times a week, so much the better.

Good nutrition
Porridge is an ideal way to start the day giving you plenty of slow-release energy. Have home-made vegetable soup for lunch with a chunk of wholemeal bread to make sure you have enough complex carbohydrates to reduce stress and anxiety. To lift depression, eat foods rich in tryptophan (an amino acid that’s converted to mood-enhancing serotonin in the brain). Tryptophan-rich foods include chicken, sunflower seeds and spirulina (an algae).