The Top 5 Foods To Eat If You Have Anxiety
Hey there! I hope you’re having a fabulous day today.
In a recent post I discussed the 5 foods to avoid if you have anxiety. On the flip side, today I will be talking about all the delicious, nourishing Top 5 Foods To Eat If You Have Anxiety!
I’d rather focus on all the good things we can eat anyways, wouldn’t you?
I’ll go into a bit of detail about each food. This is in essence and modified paleo diet. It isn’t strict paleo because I do advocate eating some raw fermented dairy products, which dairy is a no-no on the paleo diet as well as properly prepared beans, which are such an amazing food I don’t feel like they should be forgotten!
This is more of a “grain free” diet than anything. I like to call it “The Calm Diet,” because it really helps to nourish the nervous system and bring a sense of calm to the body while providing tons of beneficial nutrients that your brain needs to work properly!
Now let’s move on to those 5 foods:
Protein
Protein from both animal and plant sources provide amino acids, which are the building blocks of neurotransmitters. You must have these to have a healthy brain. It is through neurotransmitters than your brain communicates. They also help you feel calm. Protein stabilizes your blood sugar which an imbalance of, can create feelings of anxiety and trigger panic attacks in some people.
Protein is good for the adrenal glands which are often over worked in people who struggle with chronic anxiety. We’re so used to being stressed and amped up or in fight or flight mode constantly that our adrenal glands are constantly releasing hormones. They become overworked and exhausted which leads to a host of symptoms in our bodies. Bottom line, protein from both plant and animals sources is extremely important to a tired, stressed body!
Health Fats
First off healthy fats include coconut oil, avocado oil, extra virgin olive oil, organic butter, ghee, avocados and nuts and seeds. There are certain vitamins (A, D, E, & K) that NEED fats to be utilized by the body. Healthy fats are known to boost our brain function and heal our nervous system. In a recent interview I watched with holistic psychiatrist Dr. Kelly Brogan MD she talked about a patient of hers that was being recommended for shock therapy and as one last desperate attempt to avoid it she visited Dr. Brogan hoping for answers. Dr. Brogan suggested she increase her amounts of healthy fats each day to
- 2 T. ghee
- 4-6 pastured egg yolks
- 2-5 T. coconut oil
- nut butter
- animal meat including red meat
After doing this the patient came back and announced that she hadn’t had a panic attack in a whole month, which was amazing for her. This is a pretty extreme story but one that can give hope to many and shows the power of healthy fats and their affect on brain cognition and our nervous system.
Complex Carbohydrates
When people think of carbs they usually just think of bread. Really everything we eat has some amount of carbs. There are 2 general types which include complex and simple.
Complex carbs include:
- Green vegetables
- Starchy vegetables such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin
- Beans, lentils, and peas
Simple carbs include:
- White flours
- White rice
- Juice
- Candy
- Cereal
- (They are low in nutrients and turn to sugar quickly and spike insulin causing stress in your body).
Complex carbs are optimal as they don’t spike insulin, they don’t turn to sugar in the body and they are also incredibly nutrient dense. Notice I didn’t include whole grains. The reason being most people don’t properly prepare grains such as using a sourdough technique or soaking grains first to reduce phytic acid. Many people have intolerances to grains and they tend to cause inflammation in many. For this purpose I generally advise against grains at least for a few months to concentrate on nutrient dense, low allergy foods!
Fruits and Veggies
Cooked or raw fruits and veggies are a staple in any diet. I don’t think there is any special diet out there that eliminates fruits and veggies. Some advocate for raw and some advocate for cooking your veggies for easier digestion such as Dr. Wilson. Either way you go, aim to get 6-8 cups of fruits and veggies throughout the day. They provide sustained energy, they are full of vitamins and minerals and phytonutrients (nutrients only found in plants) and are generally allergy friendly. Drink them in smoothies, eat them as snacks, make a big fresh salad with dinner or lunch and steam some veggies up as a side dish for dinner. You can also ferment them which we will talk more about below;)
Fermented Foods
Recently there have been multiple articles on fermented foods and their positive effects on the brain and mood. This article published on Dr. Mercola’s website “Are Probiotics The New Prozac” offers some enlightening information on the research that is being done. Dr. Kelly Brogan also wrote about “Probiotics For The Brain“. Fermented foods include traditionally prepared foods like sauerkraut, pickles, kefir (cultured milk) and kombucha (fermented tea).
I make ALL of these foods at home, and in the process save a ton of money and can control the flavors that I want to achieve. Our digestive systems are naturally home to billions of bacteria. The more good bacteria in there, the better. As our bodies have regular assaults on them in the form of stress, sugar, environmental toxins, antibiotics, processed foods and more our digestive tract takes a hit and we loose precious beneficial bacteria. We need to add it back in through eating these life giving foods! When your gut is in balance your brain is also more balanced because the brain and gut are connected, by a big long nerve called the Vagus Nerve. It’s all connected folks!
If you’d like to learn how to make your own you can learn more here.
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