Are you feeling burned out and exhausted? The 'innocent' food you eat could be the cause of this, says nutritionist

A top nutritionist has revealed that more Australians are feeling burned out than ever before – and their diets may be partly to blame.

Susie Burrell, from Sydney, said 'quick fixes' like coffee, alcohol and sugar could do more harm than good and should instead opt for fresh foods such as tuna and salad or red meat and vegetables.

'How many people do you know who first drink coffee, sushi rolls and then a microwave meal or a take-away? There is literally little to no fresh food all day,” she told FEMAIL.

“Creating a space where you can order fresh food, know what to buy or cook once a week so you have fresh stuff nearby right away will improve those variables.”

Susie said burnout is different from general stress or clinical depression and that it occurs when people are so physically and psychologically exhausted that they lack empathy for others or feel like their lives are meaningless.

She said focusing on eating fresh, whole foods like fruits, vegetables, red meat and foods rich in omega 3s is the best place to start when combating burnout.

'When we feel better in our bodies, we are psychologically better able to cope with the stresses and challenges that modern life brings.'

WHAT EXACTLY IS BURNOUT?

Susie said more and more women are starting to burn out juggling work, mothering and home life. She said it can be described as a kind of “psychological exhaustion.”

“Burnout is traditionally talked about in terms of a work environment where people are physically overworked and in many cases experiencing stress, but psychological burnout is a different concept,” she said.

One of the main symptoms of burnout is a lack of empathy or 'compassion fatigue'.

“You're almost oblivious to the emotions of people around you because you're so exhausted and not reacting the way you normally would,” Susie explained.

'Things that are normally emotional or that bother you no longer interest you. You have no natural empathetic support.”

There is also a feeling of general exhaustion and a 'lack of joy in life', where nothing brings you pleasure or joy the way it once did.

“Your mood is affected, so you wake up and you don't have the energy to do things you would normally do, and you struggle to get through the day,” the dietitian said.

'If you see it as energy investments; energy in and energy out. But when everything goes out and so little comes in over time, it's not a cognitive mood problem, it's a general level of fatigue.”

Another sign of burnout is feeling like you're not accomplishing anything or contributing anything meaningful, which Susie says is common in the workplace but also prominent in moms' homes.

“They go home and they feel like they're not doing a good job as a mother, or they don't go to work, or they feel like it doesn't matter whether they're (at work) or not,” she said.

Susie said burnout can get confused with stress or depression, and said there is no quick and easy fix to get yourself out of it.

'It's not a matter of just going on holiday or getting a massage, it's deeper issues that you have to work through. It's not about taking drugs and improving mood, it's not neurotransmitter instability,” she said.

“It's a physical psychological outcome of that level of exhaustion and emotional exhaustion.”

HOW CAN YOUR DIET CAUSE BURNOUT?

Susie said it's important, especially for busy moms, to prioritize nourishing the body with beneficial nutrients to help you cope with the stresses and challenges that everyday life brings.

'We start the day and the focus is never on ourselves. We worry about the children. The pets leave the house and go to work, so we often forget to feed first,” she said.

'The link back to self-care and what we eat is so strong because you can imagine that many people forget that what we eat every day provides our body and even our mood with the basic nutrients to function optimally.'

Susie said people often turn to processed “quick fix” foods, such as coffee, alcohol and sugar, which are convenient but not necessarily healthy.

“It's that quick kick all the time. You just grab a cup of coffee and it ends up affecting your hormones, then you gain weight and then you feel even worse,” she said.

“It's the daily short-term hit, but it's actually undermining long-term profits.”

Susie said women are often deficient in key nutrients, which can leave them feeling like they have no energy.

'25 percent of women have low iron levels, but very few people get enough Omega 3 fats. Physically, we don't start the day well and are exhausted, and our hormones are out of whack,” she said.

“Then you're at that level of burnout, where you have no joy anymore, you leave the house angry at everyone, everyone irritates you, the people you love, your kids yell at them all the time. you have nothing left.”

HOW CAN YOU EAT YOURSELF OUT OF BURNOUT?

Susie said that for those feeling burned out, cleaning up their diet is a good start to rebuilding energy.

“It's kind of a three-, six-, 12-month rehabilitation process, but the first step is eating right,” she said.

“The first step for women is to look and say, 'Okay, how can I nourish myself to get back in touch with myself?' Because then you will of course be better able to see the positive, be more joyful and recognize that you are not feeling well.'

Susie said a green juice is a great way to start the day and give your body the nutrients it needs.

“It's not easy to make, but if you can buy one instead of coffee, there are huge benefits,” she said.

For an affordable, healthy lunch, she recommends a can of tuna, salads and ready-made meals from the supermarket.

'Ready-made salads that you can now find in supermarkets are cost-effective and of good quality. Add a can of tuna or hot smoked salmon. That's a five-minute meal that's amazing,” she said.

'Many of the ready-made fresh meals in supermarkets that contain vegetables are also great.'

Susie said eating a filling, healthy breakfast and lunch before 1 p.m. will also help curb cravings for sugary over-processed snacks at 3 p.m.

She recommended fatty fish such as salmon, as well as nuts and seeds to give yourself a good dose of omega 3.

'If you have the opportunity to roast some vegetables once a week, cook a few pieces of salmon or chicken breast so you have them there. On some basis that will be a good starting point,” Susie said.

Susie recommended red meat because women are often low in iron, which makes them feel tired.

She suggested eating lean lamb chops with a ready-made salad or a lean burger patty or sausages with roasted vegetables.

“You have to create a system around your lifestyle to make it easy, it's not about adding more,” she said.

'It's about being more efficient with what you can handle. And we have to eat, but we might as well make the best choices we can.”

Susie is organizing a one-off event, From Burn Out to Best Selfto help women rebuild after a burnout.