Foods to Fight Anxiety

Our diet has a direct effect on our physical and mental health, therefore, it is important to know how some foods affect us.

One of the emotional states that most affects our way of eating is anxiety coupled with stress. This is characterized mainly by feelings of anguish, restlessness and worry and, sometimes, also due to the sensation of appetite for certain products (mostly, rich in sugar, saturated fat and salt).

Next, in this Psychology-Online article, we will talk to you about the important role that food has in general well-being, a relationship that affects the state of mind. Good eating habits can help to improve states of stress and anxiety. Therefore, here we discover you the best foods to combat anxiety.

Index

1. What is emotional hunger
2. How to eat a balanced diet
3. Foods to combat anxiety: recommended and prohibited
4. Physical activity to combat anxiety
5. Personalized diet to combat anxiety

To decrease emotional hunger, the two main components are nutrition and physical activity. For this, we recommend you go to professionals who adjust to the needs of each client, setting realistic and healthy goals.

But what exactly is emotional hunger? There is a clear link between anxiety and eating. This type of anxiety is known as emotional hunger and it is revealed by continued desire to eat ("cravings"), not so much for having a feeling of hunger, but as a response to the feeling of well-being produced by the act of eat to avoid unpleasant sensations that has not been learned to manage, such as personal problems or specific situations that make us move between feelings of stress, restlessness, sadness, anxiety, worry, or even boredom.

Emotional hunger is a symptom that many of us may suffer at some point in our lives, but when it is established as a habit and is followed by the guilt of having eaten, it could indicate a eating disorder, or derive into one.

Suffering from it leads you to eat compulsively, selectively (snacks, buns, ultra-processed ...) and uncontrollably.

Learn more about the Eating disorders: anorexia, bulimia and obesity with this other article from Psychology-Online.

Emotional hunger does not appear as a result of a biological circumstance (it is not physiological hunger), but is the response of a emotional disturbance, better known as "cravings". Therefore, one of the best ways to improve general health, which will help decrease anxiety (that does not end with her), is to carry out a healthy and balanced diet.

To start, we advise you to prepare a daily menu of meals. By planning your diet you will help your mind to avoid compulsion and you will always know what to eat, controlling your "hunger attacks". On the other hand, your diet should be rich in satisfying foods such as fruits, legumes, vegetables and greens, balanced in macronutrients (carbohydrates, healthy fats and proteins), which in addition to reducing your appetite, will not affect to your health.

The keys to eating a balanced diet they are summarized in:

• Plan meals.
• Make a good shopping list.
• Go shopping after you've eaten.
• Base your diet on fresh food.
• Avoid processed foods, saturated fats, and added sugars and refined flours.
• Drink about two liters of water a day.
• Take between 2 and 4 pieces of fruit a day.
• Incorporate 2-3 servings of vegetables and / or vegetables a day (don't forget that one has to be raw, like salads).
• Bet on whole foods.
• Make 4-5 meals a day.
• Eat slowly and chew your food well.
• Avoid alcoholic beverages.
• Avoid fried and breaded and bet on other cooking methods such as steam, iron, stews, papillotes….
• Eat in a varied and healthy way.

Having good eating habits will help you eat in a healthier and more balanced way and improve your overall health, in addition to reduce your stress and anxiety levels.

Everything we eat has a direct impact on our physical and emotional state, therefore, there is a close link between diet and general health, including mood and disturbances such as anxiety.

The problem of stress and / or anxiety has a psychological basis (depression, work stress, general anxiety,... among other problems). As a psychological problem it should be treated as such, with help from a professional in the area that helps you to be able to control and manage those symptoms.

A varied, balanced and planned diet can help reduce “emotional hunger attacks”. For example, balanced diets help reduce anxiety and, conversely, low-calorie and / or restrictive diets enhance our feelings of anxiety and discomfort.

However, healthy habits do not completely eliminate psychological symptoms. This is a problem that must be dealt with jointly, through a multidisciplinary team.

As we have explained previously, there are certain guidelines to be able to reduce anxiety through diet. Many nutrients can help us to do this, such as:

Recommended foods to combat anxiety

• Tryptophan: It is an essential amino acid component that helps our body produce serotonin. Serotonin can help us reduce anxiety and reduce the feeling of hunger, among other aspects, so tryptophan is important in the diet. This nutrient is present in dairy, meats, eggs, nuts and fruits, such as pineapple and banana.
• Fiber: it is satiating, improves intestinal transit and, by generating general well-being, helps reduce anxiety. We find it in fruits, vegetables, vegetables, legumes and whole grains.
• Complex carbohydrates: present in cereals (rice, quinoa, couscous, pasta ...), legumes, potatoes, bread... They are foods with a high content of complex carbohydrates, necessary for the proper functioning of our organism.
• Healthy fat: present in foods such as avocado, olive oil, oily fish, nuts... These will provide us with a greater amount of satiety for longer, in addition to incorporating essential vitamins and minerals into our diet for our correct functioning.

Forbidden foods if you have anxiety

Keep in mind that it is best to opt for a balanced and varied diet and that it is inadvisable to carry out extreme diets, low in calories and not guided by a professional. With this clear, we must also bear in mind the foods that are not recommended if you suffer from anxiety:

• Refined sugars (industrial pastries, sweeteners ...).
• Additives and processed foods.
• Bad fats, organ meats and delicatessen (such as pate and sausages).
• Stimulants (caffeine, tea, coffee, ginseng ...) and alcoholic beverages.

In this article we talk about the causes and treatment of sweet tooth anxiety.

Another of the most important points when it comes to fighting anxiety is to perform moderate physical exercise. Physical activity improves the functioning of the body and has beneficial effects on a psychological level, since it increases good spirits.

As part of the process to learn to manage and combat anxiety, you should perform physical exerciseregularly, about 20 minutes daily. Running, walking, aerobics, swimming, yoga and Pilates are some of the exercises that will allow you to reduce your stress levels.

Diet and physical activity are basic tools for help you fight anxiety. And, for this, it is necessary to change our habits and lifestyle, to reduce our stress levels and improve our mood, as well as health and fitness.

In addition to personalized diets, this team of professionals offers you various nutritional products, sports equipment and organic food. From supplements or vitamin supplements, to products with proteins, energy, isotonic or diuretics. The NERSPORT custom plans they will help you maintain healthy habits to feel better.

However, remember that learning to manage anxiety is more than having a good diet and exercising, so a psychologist or therapist can help you complete the process in a healthy and successful way. In addition, we recommend that you consult this other article to learn more about What to do when you have anxiety.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Foods to combat anxiety, we recommend that you enter our category of Nutrition.