I have to confess something embarrassing: for years, I was convinced that happiness came in the form of a chocolate cake or those brownies with ice cream served warm at fancy restaurants. That instant dopamine hit, the sugar rush that makes you feel invincible for exactly 37 minutes before sending you straight to the depths of a sugar crash.

My life couldn't be imagined without a sweet treat after lunch, or also mid-morning, mid-afternoon, and hopefully at night too. 

Turns out, the microbial world has something different to say about where to find real happiness, the kind that I'm so obsessed with.

A Hormonal Soap Opera

Going back to our hate for cortisol, remember? This HPA axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal) is an elegant hormonal communication system that gets deregulated by chronic stress. 

(We're going to really hit cortisol hard in this chapter)

Your adrenal glands don't "get tired" as some Instagram gurus claim. They can produce hormones almost indefinitely. What gets messed up is the sensitivity of the feedback system.

Every time you indulge in a craving, particularly a sweet one, or junk food, you trigger a violent glucose spike that activates a vicious six-step cycle: 

1. Everyday stress raises cortisol.

2. Cortisol increases sugar cravings.

3. You eat the sweet and experience temporary relief.

4. Glucose skyrockets and then crashes brutally (reactive hypoglycemia). 

5. The crash is a new stressor that releases more cortisol.

6. Back to step 1 with more anxiety.

Refined sugar completely deregulates your cortisol production, while foods as economical as some vegetables stabilize these levels. 

The difference is stark: a bland cake can totally throw your hormones off balance while a well-thought-out salad can open a portal to another dimension.

Let me tell you why.

Your Gut: The Real Factory of Happiness

Somewhere between 90-95% of your serotonin—the happiness molecule—isn't produced in your brain but in your gut. The enterochromaffin cells of your belly are the true architects of your mood.

Intensely, it's amazing for how it approaches our mental health, but if we were to bring the bacterial world into the mix, that would be another intellectual property on its own.

Our gut houses a hundred trillion microorganisms forming your microbiota. This bacterial community regulates your mental health through the gut-brain axis, a two-way highway between your gut and your brain. Bacteria ferment fiber producing short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) like butyrate, which literally tell your gut to produce serotonin.

Processed sweets are a nuclear bomb for this ecosystem. Refined sugar:

• Starves beneficial bacteria like Akkermansia muciniphila (keeps your gut barrier healthy).

• Promotes pro-inflammatory bacteria.

• Emulsifiers (polysorbate 80, carboxymethylcellulose) damage the protective mucus layer, creating "leaky gut".

• Allows lipopolysaccharides (LPS) to leak into your bloodstream, generating systemic inflammation.

Fiber-rich salads do exactly the opposite: they feed butyrate-producing bacteria, strengthen your gut barrier, and create an anti-inflammatory environment. Stanford showed that fermented foods have a more significant impact on microbiome health than just high-fiber diets.

The Secret Connection: Electrolytes, Aldosterone, and Happiness

Your adrenals don't just produce cortisol; they also secrete aldosterone, a hormone that regulates sodium/potassium balance. Chronic stress suppresses aldosterone, causing sodium loss and potassium retention. Result: dizziness, fatigue, brain fog, and those crazy salt cravings.

Snacking on sweets worsens this imbalance. Spike in insulin alters your electrolytes, especially potassium, affecting adrenal function and causing more fatigue and irritability.

Green leafy vegetables are magnesium bombs—the "relaxation mineral"—crucial for over 300 biochemical reactions. A well-put-together salad provides.

• Magnesium: Regulates cortisol and calms the nervous system.

• Vitamins B5 and B6: Essential for adrenal function.

• Vitamin C: The adrenals have the highest concentrations in the body.

• Zinc: Fundamental for HPA axis negative feedback.

• Potassium: Balances sodium and supports aldosterone.

Ever felt that dumb sadness, that random Sunday melancholy? Your body is screaming for specific nutrients. Every emotional symptom can be a disguised deficiency.

• Constant irritability = lack of magnesium

• Mental fatigue = omega-3 deficit.

• Social anxiety = microbiome asking for help

• Baseless sadness = tryptophan deficiency

The Plants That Will Hack Your Brain Chemistry

I don't want to fall into the trap of offering miracle foods, or talking about superfoods. 

Any food that fulfills its role of nourishing is ultimately a superfood, when compared to things carrying hidden logos of Nestlé, PESICO, P&G, Mars, Johnson & Johnson, Kellogg's, Coca-Cola or UNILEVER.

We’ll have the chance to talk about how to eat well and all that, but for now, some killer combinations come to mind to cheer up your belly, so playing around with Chat–GPT and based on nutrients and minerals, something funny came up:

When you feel like you could kill someone

Symptoms: Irritability, insomnia, bad temper, tense jaw.

Mix:

• 2 cups spinach (magnesium to calm your nervous system)

• 1/2 avocado (monounsaturated fats that stabilize mood)

• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds (zinc to regulate stress)

• 1/2 cup blueberries (neuroprotective anthocyanins)

• 2 hard-boiled eggs (choline for acetylcholine, the calming neurotransmitter)

• Dressing: olive oil, lemon, salt to taste.

Effect: The heat turns down. The magnesium-healthy fats combo calms excessive brain electrical activity. Eat one of these for 5 days and tell me.

For sadness that comes out of nowhere

Symptoms: Seasonal depression, anhedonia, recurring dark thoughts.

Mix:

• 2 cups mixed greens (base for neurotransmitters)

• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa (tryptophan precursor to serotonin)

• 1/4 cup cherry tomatoes (protective lycopene)

• 1/4 cup chia seeds (omega-3 for neuronal fluidity)

• 1/2 cup pineapple (bromelain that enhances tryptophan absorption)

• Dressing: olive oil, turmeric, black pepper (boosts absorption by 2000%)

Effect: Like eating sunshine. Clean energy boost. After a week, dark thoughts lose their grip.

For the blues

Symptoms: Random sadness, existential void, slow digestion, "nothing makes me feel comfortable".

Mix:

• 1 cup chopped kale (prebiotic fiber for serotonin-producing bacteria)

• 1/2 cup sauerkraut (lactobacillus that improves the gut-brain connection)

• 1/4 cup lentils (folate for neurotransmitters)

• 1/4 cup walnuts (omega-3 anti-inflammatory for the brain)

• 1/2 cup grated carrot (soluble fiber)

• Dressing: natural yogurt with herbs

Effect: The vague sadness lifts. It’s like resetting your internal ecosystem.

For mental fog and zombie fatigue

Symptoms: Mental fog, dizziness, cramps, "cotton-headed".

Mix:

• 2 cups arugula (potassium and magnesium for nerve transmission).

• 1/2 cucumber (cellular hydration with silica).

• 1/4 cup olives (natural sodium).

• 1/2 cup roasted beetroot (nitrates for blood flow to the brain).

• 1/4 cup feta cheese (calcium for signaling).

• Dressing: lemon, honey, sea salt (84 minerals).

Effect: Like plugging in your brain. Essential post-hangover or on days with too much coffee. The electrolytes will revitalize you.

What I want to show with this "super craziness" is that everyday foods available at the market, the grocery store, Uber Eats, and your favorite supplier are capable of dramatically helping us.

Whenever you feel that weird sadness, that nameless angst, before falling into the sugar spiral, ask yourself: what nutrient is my body asking for? Your body speaks its own language, and often misinterprets nutritional deficiencies as an.

The next time you choose between a brownie and a salad, remember: you're choosing between a neurochemical loan with usurious interest versus a real investment in your well-being. Your microbiome, your adrenal glands, and every neuron in your brain will applaud the smart decision.

Real happiness comes in salad format. And now you know exactly which one you need based on how you're feeling.