The 9 best foods to beat the winter blues, end brain fog and stop anxiety | Prof Tim Spector

Can what you eat protect your memory, ease brain fog, and lift your mood?

For a long time, we thought the brain was separate from the rest of the body. It's easy to assume that mood, energy, and memory have little to do with what's on your plate.

But in today's episode, one of the world’s leading experts in nutrition, Professor Tim Spector, explains how your gut health shapes your brain health. From low energy and anxiety today to dementia in later years, he shares what to eat to protect your brain throughout your life. Tim shares nine foods to add to your diet - from mushrooms and eggs to tofu and fermented foods - with easy ways to eat more of them, all drawn from his new book, Good Mood Food.

By the end of the episode, you will have learned quick, budget-friendly recipes that support the gut-brain connection and will clearly understand the four principles you need to start boosting brain function today. 

What if your tiredness, brain fog, and low mood are linked to the food on your plate? What might change if you ate differently for two weeks? 

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Timecodes

00:00 Intro 

04:24 Why better gut health shows up in your brain first

06:05 Gut-brain connection explained: the vagus nerve is 80% gut to brain

10:30 Is the “chemical imbalance” theory of mental illness wrong?

12:28 What a week of fried chicken does to your brain

15:20 How a gut-friendly diet sends calming signals to your brain

17:17 How inflammation and blood sugar spikes damage brain cells

19:33 Does type 2 diabetes really triple dementia risk?

23:03 SMILES trial: can a gut-friendly diet ease depression?

26:06 How many plants should you eat per week? 30 or 40?

28:22 Why ultra-processed food is bad for your brain:t’s not just additives

29:56 Can intermittent fasting lift your mood?

32:44 Always tired? Why it might be a brain signal

36:19 Healthy comfort food: mac and cheese, fish and chips

39:16 Are mushrooms linked to 25% lower dementia risk?

42:18 Are eggs good for brain health? How many a week is OK?

44:03 Best omega-3 foods for brain health: the SMASH fish rule

46:27 Is tofu good for your brain? How to cook it in 30 seconds

49:52 Do herbs and spices help your brain? What we know so far

52:10 Is your brain really made of fat? Why nuts and seeds matter

54:29 Do you need to soak beans and lentils for hours? 

56:41 Don’t pour away chickpea water: egg white swap

58:52 Does heating fermented foods kill the benefits? Postbiotics explained

1:00:17 Where to start for better mood and brain health: try this for 2 weeks

📚Books by our ZOE Scientists

The Food For Life Cookbook

Every Body Should Know This by Dr Federica Amati

The Appetite Reset by Dr Federica Amati

Food For Life by Prof. Tim Spector

Ferment by Prof. Tim Spector

Good Mood Food (preorder) by Prof. Tim Spector

Free resources from ZOE

The Smart Snacking Guide: How to feed your gut, fuel your day, and snack without guilt

The Hormone Harmony Guide: Tuning Your Body’s Internal Orchestra  

Eating for Better Brain Health: Your brain-gut blueprint

How to eat in 2026 - Discover ZOE’s 8 nutrition principles for long-term health

Live Healthier: Top 10 Tips From ZOE Science & Nutrition

Gut Guide - For a Healthier Microbiome in Weeks 

Better Breakfast Guide

Mentioned in today's episode

Good Mood Food (preorder) by Prof. Tim Spector

The ZOE METHOD study, ZOE (2024)

Daily30: Does it work?, ZOE (2026)

ZOE’s Fermented Food study, ZOE (2025)

The ‘SMILES’ trial, BMC Med (2017)

Type 2 Diabetes and Dementia, J Int Neuropsychol Soc (2004)

The Big IF Study, ZOE (2023)

Mushroom Consumption and Dementia, J Am Geriatr Soc (2017)

Egg Consumption and Brain Function, Nutrients (2024)

Tofu Consumption and Reduced Cancer Risk, Nutrients (2024)

Unlocking Saffron’s Potential in Brain Health⁠, Cureus (2025) 

Episode transcripts are available here.