As people all over the world struggled with higher levels of stress, depression and anxiety this past year, many turned to their favorite comfort foods: ice cream, pizza, hamburgers. But studies in recent years suggest that the high-sugar and high-fat foods when we are stressed or depressed, as comforting as they may seem, are the least likely to be good for our mental (精神上的) health. Instead, whole foods such as vegetables, fruit, fish, eggs, nuts may be a better bet.

Historically, nutrition research has paid much attention to how the foods we eat influence our physical (身体上的) health, rather than our mental health, though. Over the years, large population studies have found that people who are asked to follow a Mediterranean diet for three months had greater reductions in symptoms of depression after three months compared to a control group. Public health professors around the world have started encouraging people to take and use lifestyle behaviors like exercise, sound sleep, a heart-healthy diet and avoiding smoking that may reduce inflammation (发炎) and have advantages for the brain. Individual clinicians (临床医师) are already including nutrition into their work with patients. Dr. Drew Ramsey, a clinical professor at the Columbia University, begins his meetings with new patients by exploring their diet. He asks what they eat, learns their favorite foods, and finds out if foods that he considers important for the connection are missing from their diets, such as plants, seafood.

Dr. Ramsey said he didn’t want people to think that the only factor involved in brain health is food. “Lots of people get their food exactly right, live very active lives, and still have many troubles with their mental health,” he said. But he also teaches people that food can be empowering. “We can’t control our genes,” he said. “But we can control how we eat, and that gives people actionable things that they can do to take care of their brain health on a daily basis.”

Bottled water has become the choice for people who are healthy and thirsty. Bottled water is all over the world. But some say the planet's health and people's health may be suffering from it.

The idea that bottled water is safer for humans may not be true. The Natural Resources Defense Council of America said. "There is no promise that because water comes out of a bottle, it is cleaner or safer than water from the tap." Another New York City-based action group added that some bottled water is "really just tap water in a bottle—sometimes cleaner, sometimes not."

It is not tested that bottled water is better than tap water. Nick Reeves from the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management said, "The high mineral content(矿物质含量) of some bottled water makes them not good for feeding babies and young children. "Also, most bottled water doesn't have fluoride(氟化物), which can make teeth stronger. Kids are drinking more bottled water and less fluoridated tap water, and some say that's behind the recent rise in bad teeth.

Storing is another problem. Placed near heat, the plastic bottles can produce bad chemicals into the water. Store bottled water appropriately. Bottled water, like many foods and drinks, should be stored in the appropriate way to keep the quality and safety of the product. Keep bottled water out of the light and heat.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, some 2.7 million tons of plastic are used worldwide to bottle water each year. The plastic can take between 400 and 1,000 years to break down.

For energy use, plastic bottles are also not cheap. One report said that if water and drink bottlers had used 10 percent recycled materials in their plastic bottles, they would have saved about 72 million gallons of gas.

So, if you are worried about the effect of bottled water on the earth, you can take the following four steps:

Step 1. Drink from your tap. Unless your government warns against this, it should be fine.

Step 2. Get a container(容器). Carry your tap water in a steel or a lined drinking container, and clean it between uses.

Step 3. Keep it cool. Don't drink from a bottle that has been sitting in the sun, don't store it near chemicals, and don't reuse plastic bottles.

Step 4. Choose glass containers over plastic if possible. When finished, recycle!