Why does cooking benefit our mental health?

Cooking is a passion and hobby for a lot of people. They scour Pinterest for hours to pick the best recipe, dice their ingredients finely, let the food cook gently and even reuse leftovers in inventive ways. But for others, cooking is a hassle and a bother. Grocery shopping, the cooking itself and cleaning up all seems like a lot of effort.

But maybe those people don't appreciate how cooking can actually benefit their mental health. In August 2023, Stylist.co.uk ran a feature on the mental health benefits of cooking. They spoke to Bayu Prihandito, a certified psychology advisor and life coach. He explained that when you cook, you enter what’s known as a 'flow state'. That’s basically a mental state where you’re fully engaged in an activity. It gives you a feeling of achievement and helps  lower stress.

What kind of benefits are we talking about? What’s the best way to establish a regular cooking routine? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.

In partnership with upday UK.

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