Anxiety is an emotional situation where your body gets locked into a fear state, called fight or flight. This happens when your brain perceives that you are in danger, so your glands release certain hormones like cortisol and adrenaline which tightens up your muscles, Makes your heart beat faster, slows/speeds up your digestion and makes you feel tense and alert so you can escape or fight a potential threat. This natural fear response was important so that humans could escaping a predator like a lion or a tiger in the past. Mental stress, such as fears, doubts and worries in your life can trick your brain into thinking that you are in danger.
This causes chronic anxiety which lasts for long periods of time. The higher output of cortisol and adrenal hormones can cause you to overanalyse and overthink, preventing you from sleeping properly at night. It also causes your blood sugars to be unstable, making you feel more annoyed, irritable and you’ll be less able to focus and concentrate. And in worse situations you may have panic attacks where you hyperventilate and struggle to breathe. Unfortunately there are certain foods that can make stress and anxiety worse Such as Soda drinks, coffee and tea which contain caffeine. Caffeine overstimulates your nerves, causing you to have more nervous energy and tension in your muscles.
Sugary foods cause your blood sugars to become out of balance, which causes mood swings and emotional instability Refined flour products like bread, pastries and pasta can deplete your Vitamin B1, leading to anxiety spikes and even depression. Along with non-organic foods that are sprayed with chemical pesticides and herbicides that can cause imbalances in your microbiome and your brain. So its recommended to cut these out and start eating foods which naturally help to stabilise your nerves and hormones, to bring your body back to a state of balance, peace and calm focus.
In this article we will explore the top 10 foods that fight anxiety by turning off the fight/flight state in your body. Just a fast reminder, this article is for instructive purposes possibly, so do speak to your docto if you have any medical concerns.
#1Celery
The first anxiety fighting food is celery. Start eating 4 stalks of celery every day to help ease anxiety and reduce nervous tension that’s trapped inside your muscles. You can add this to your salad, or dip into almond butter for a tasty, stress busting snack. Celery contains a flavonoid called apigenin which has been shown to lower cortisol, helping to turn off anxiety and the fight/flight response.
#2Dark Chocolate
Dark chocolate with at least 70% cocoa solids, is very effective at calming the body and relaxing the nervous system. I recommend eating a few cubes during your first meal of the day, to set you up for a peaceful day. It contains a high amount of tryptophan which your body converts into serotonin, a hormone that makes you feel cheerful, happy and peaceful. Make sure to use sugar free dark chocolate that is sweetened with stevia. Do not eat this in the evening, as it contains a theobromine which could keep you up at night.
#3Lemon Balm Tea
Stop drinking caffeinated soda drinks, tea and coffee that are stimulating your body and switch to herbal teas such as lemon balm. Lemon balm tea is one of the most powerful remedies to reducing stress because it’s rich in rosmarinic acid, which boosts the amount of GABA, a neurotransmitter in your brain. GABA helps to inhibit (block) certain nerves to help bring your body out of the fight/flight state, to trigger a peaceful sense of relaxation and better focus. Drinking this is excellent to help you get a deeper night’s sleep, but don’t worry it won’t make you sleepy if you drink it in the day.
#4Bone Broth
Bone broth is made from boiled animal bones and is rich in glutamate, an amino acid which is used to make GABA in your brain. You can either make this at home, or purchase it in powdered form. Simply mix it with a glass of water, or add it to your soups/stir fries. Drinking bone broth not only soothes anxiety and nerves, but also helps reduce arthritis pain and digestive disorders like IBS.
#5Kefir
If you want to cure anxiety permanently, it’s important to focus on boosting the amount of friendly bacteria that live in your gut. Kefir is a probiotic rich superfood which contains 5 times more friendly bacteria than yoghurt. Kefir is rich in friendly bacteria and friendly yeasts that line your gut. These microbes will produce GABA, serotonin, and Vitamin B1, which all turn off stress hormones and bring your body into a state of peaceful equilibrium.
#6Pumpkin Seeds
If you find that you are overthinking and overanalysing at night, which is making it hard to fall asleep, try eating a small handful of pumpkin seeds in the evening. These are rich in magnesium, zinc and tryptophan, all of which have anti-anxiety properties and help to calm your mind. The magnesium and zinc in particular help to reduce tension that’s locked up in your muscles, so that you can feel physically calmer as well as mentally calmer.
#7Nutritional Yeast
Nutritional yeast is hands down one of the best anxiety fighting foods on the planet. This inactive, healthy yeast comes in flakes and you can mix it with yoghurt, add it to soups, broths or over eggs. Nutritional yeast is packed full of B-vitamins, especially Vitamin B1, the most important nutrient to help lower cortisol and relax your nervous system. Eating this along with other foods rich in B1, helps your body adapt to stress, and tells parts of your brain (amygdala) to turn off the fight/flight mode. (that you may be stuck in if you have long term anxiety).
#8Avocados
People with anxiety usually have high cortisol levels, which causes the blood sugars to become out of balance. This makes your mood less predictable, and you can easily become irritated and annoyed with simple everyday things, e.g driving. Avocados however contain high amounts of potassium, magnesium and monounsaturated fats, Which help to balance out your blood sugars, lower cortisol and stimulate healing and relaxation of the nervous system.
#9Sauerkraut & Kimchi
Similar to kefir, sauerkraut and kimchi are fermented foods which contain live bacteria that can support the health of your gut. Sauerkraut is made by fermenting cabbage, whilst kimchi contains a mixture of vegetables like garlic, ginger, chillies, spring onions and other ingredients. When you eat these you boost the friendly bacteria in your gut which then produce more neurotransmitters that calm you down. Your microbes also make butyrate, a (SCFA) which feeds your brain cells, improving cognitive function and helps you to focus better in the day, and sleep better at night.
#10Fibrous Vegetables
People who suffer with regular bouts of anxiety, panic and nervousness, Along with those who struggle to get a decent night sleep Often tend to not eat enough vegetables. Vegetables are rich in soluble fiber which feeds the microbes in your gut. Leafy greens vegetables are also packed full of potassium and magnesium, two key electrolytes that help to maintain the normal flow of energy through your body. Without enough of these minerals, your blood sugars become out of control, you find yourself more stressed, more tired and less able to sleep.
Starting eating at least 5 cups of vegetables daily, good examples include asparagus, brussels sprouts, radishes, collard greens, cabbage, kale and beet tops. The minerals in these vegetables act as natural physiological tranquilizers, helping to calm down nerve impulses, and steady your emotional state. Start eating a mixture of these foods on a daily basis, and you will start to notice how they make you feel calmer, more relaxed and focused the more you eat them. It’s important that you also cut out the foods that rev up your anxiety, that I mentioned earlier in the article, like coffee, sugar and refined foods.
