research<\/a> points to four to six) is associated with greater happiness and life satisfaction. <\/p>\nOne important caveat: Cooking can be therapeutic, but it is not therapy. \u201cRecognize how it\u2019s benefiting your life, but don\u2019t use it as a substitute for therapy,\u201d Crain says. <\/p>\n
Is Baking Even Better For Mental Health? <\/h2>\n
Feeling a little stressed this holiday season? Choosing your favorite Christmas cookie recipe and baking might help.<\/p>\n
Crain notes that baking’s step-by-step structure\u2014specific measurements and order of operations\u2014can be soothing. Use too much baking soda and your dessert won’t rise; use measuring cups interchangeably<\/u>, and you’ll get a dense cake. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn that way, baking can be incredibly meditative,\u201d Crain says. \u201cWhile cooking still has recipes with required portions of ingredients, there\u2019s more room for interpretation. Baking has a more structured and prescriptive nature.\u201d <\/p>\n
Both baking and cooking offer meditative and creative benefits, but baking might appeal to those who find comfort in structure and precision. <\/p>\n
Getting The Most Mental Health Benefits When Cooking<\/h2>\n
Bring intention into your cooking.<\/p>\n
Practice mise en place: line up your herbs, have all the ingredients in front of you, and get organized before you start. \u201cWhen the world feels out of control, you can bring some semblance of control and organization into your own kitchen,\u201d Crain says. <\/p>\n
And don’t forget to engage your senses: \u201cSmell the oregano or rosemary as you\u2019re cooking, or the savory aromas coming from the stew you\u2019re making,\u201d she adds. \u201cPlay music in the background\u2014classical music has neurological benefits\u2014to create positive associations in the kitchen.\u201d <\/p>\n
When it\u2019s time to eat, acknowledge what you just accomplished; feeling confident in the kitchen<\/a> is also great for your mental health, too.<\/p>\n\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Home-cooked meals are known to be healthier than dining out, but research suggests that cooking can also benefit mental health. Research shows that “cooking interventions,” such as making a new recipe or taking a cooking class, have mental health benefits. Baking, especially, can help alleviate stress as it’s more structured […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":940,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/939","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=939"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/939\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/940"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}