Food and Mood Diary

Who this is for

A diary of what you ate and how you felt, side by side. Each line records the date and time, what you ate or drank, where you were and who you were with, and how you felt before and after in your own words — with no calories, no rules and no reading of what any of it means.

Anyone who wants to notice the link, if there is one, between what they eat and how they feel; people who have been asked by a clinician, dietitian or counsellor to keep a diary; and anyone curious about a pattern they suspect but have never written down.

What this helps you track

• What you ate or drank and when, written near the time
• Where you were and who you were with, which often matters more than the food
• How you felt before and after, in your own words rather than on a scale
• A dated record you can take to whoever asked you to keep it
• Notes on sleep, stress, a headache, a good day — anything that sits alongside

How to use it

1. Write your name and the period at the top. If somebody asked you to keep this, write their name and their instructions in the box, and follow those over anything here.
2. Add a line as soon as you can after eating or drinking, while the detail is fresh — what, roughly how much if you want, and the time.
3. Say where you were and who you were with; a meal at a desk and the same meal with friends are different entries.
4. Describe how you felt before and after in plain words of your own, and use the same words when the feeling is the same.
5. Do not score, total or judge anything on the page. It is a record, and any conclusion belongs to you and whoever you are working with.
6. Take the whole diary to the appointment, or fill it in on screen and save it in your own browser.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Does the diary count calories or set portions?

No. There is no calorie column, no portion guide, no food list and no rule about what or when to eat anywhere on the sheet. It records what you write and nothing else.

Does it tell me what the pattern means?

No. It has no interpretation on it at all. If a pattern on the page worries you, that is a conversation for a doctor, dietitian or other professional, and the diary is a useful thing to bring.

A clinician asked me to keep a food diary. Is this the right sheet?

Ask them, and use their instructions if they gave any. Some will want more detail, some less, and some have their own form. Where their instructions differ from these, theirs win.

Do I have to fill in the mood columns?

No. Some people keep it as a food diary only and leave them blank; others find the feeling columns the useful part. Fill in what you want recorded.

How much detail goes in what I ate?

Enough that you would recognise the meal a month later. Brand names, weights and exact amounts are optional unless somebody asked you for them.