For those of us suffering from some form of an anxiety disorder, diet changes are often encouraged for symptom management. Although a nutrient-dense diet is beneficial for everyone and can help maintain a healthy body and mind, any diet proposed to be a cure-all for anxiety is probably going to do more harm than good. So, if you’re asking yourself, “Can food cure anxiety?” Unfortunately, probably not. Here’s some reasons why.
Desperate times lead to desperate measures.
When you have an anxiety disorder, you’re probably seeking symptom relief anywhere you can find it. You’re desperate. So, the notion that you can cure your anxiety simply by avoiding certain foods and eating others is very alluring. You can’t control your anxiety, but you can control your diet.
Additionally, people with anxiety already feel out of control. This out of control feeling makes usmore prone to taking the things we can control to the extreme. Just like food. As a result, diet changes that are meant to alleviate anxiety can quickly set off disordered eating. And guess what? Disordered eating increases anxiety.
Can food cure anxiety? No, because food doesn’t cause it.
I can’t count the number of times that I’ve been telling someone about my anxiety and they give me their “instant cure.” It’s always something along that lines of, “If you stop eating gluten your anxiety will go away.” Or they tell me if I take such and such random herb, or this vitamin, or sit out under the full moon and eat rose leaves or whatever- my anxiety will just go away.
Here’s the thing though, for any of these remedies to work, we would have to assume that my anxiety is caused by some sort of nutrient imbalance. In fact, for any of these remedies or diets to work, we’d have to assume that everyone who has anxiety is suffering from a nutrient imbalance of some sort.
Some actual causes of anxiety, backed by science are:
- Environmental Factors- Like stress from a job, relationship or school.
- Genetic Factors- Some people are actually predisposed to anxiety due to their genetic makeup. Seriously, this is scientifically proven.
- Medical Factors- Like medication side effects or symptoms of a disease.
- Brain Chemistry- Trauma and genetic factors can alter our brain chemistry. These alterations can interrupt electrical and hormonal signals to the brain, ultimately resulting in anxiety/panic attacks.
What’s the deal with my anxiety?
For me, I know that my anxiety is caused by a mixture of a couple of these things, namely genetic factors and trauma. I already know that my parents are both prone to anxiety and depression and as a result I am genetically predisposed.
Additionally, through therapy, I have learned that complex childhood trauma is also a large part of my anxiety. You know what didn’t cause my anxiety? Food. I’ve had anxiety since I was a toddler. I ate the same things as all of my siblings and guess what? None of them had anxiety. Just me.
I do acknowledge, however, that nutritious food, complemented by an appropriate exercise regimen, can be extremely beneficial in regards to symptom management. How do I know this?
I’ve tried all the anxiety-curing diets.
Okay, so I haven’t tried all of them, but I’ve definitely tried a lot. I’ve even seen a nutritionist and followed an anxiety-specific plan. Although many of these diets were beneficial in that they made me feel better in general, none of them cured my anxiety.
Many of them helped me have more energy to cope with my anxiety. But again, they didn’t cure me. Because food isn’t the reason I have anxiety, trauma and DNA are the reasons I have anxiety.
You might be wondering if I think there’s any relationship between anxiety and food. The answer? Yes, I do. I believe that food can increase symptoms of anxiety, I just don’t think it’s the cause. So, what can you do about food if you have anxiety?
Get the Facts
There are some foods that actually can worsen your symptoms of anxiety. Here’s a few:
- Alcohol- Alcohol changes your levels of serotonin and neurotransmitters in the brain, making anxiety worse. Alcohol can also prevent sleep and lead to dehydration which, again, can lead to feelings of anxiety.
- Caffeine- Can’t live without your morning coffee? Well, if you’re anxious it might be time to ditch it. Coffee decreases serotonin production (the feel-good chemical) in the body. And those caffeine jitters? They act suspiciously like anxiety and may be an anxious trigger.
- Sugar- Long story short, sugar causes your glucose levels to go on a roller coaster ride which can lead to anxious and depressed moods.
There are also foods that are clinically proven to help with anxiety symptoms, like salmon and chamomile tea. If you are going to try and eat anxiety-decreasing foods, make sure to get your information from reputable, evidence-based sources. There’s lots of well-intentioned people with bad information out there.
Find what’s right for you.
You have to find the diet that works for you. For me, I don’t consume any alcohol, caffeine or wheat. I also try to avoid refined sugars and try to only eat meat that we’ve raised on our farm.
After years of trying different diets out, I’ve found this is what works best for me. You are the best judge of what works for you and your body. Well, you and your doctor of course. My advice? Speak to a medical professional about what you should be eating to care for you whole body, not just your anxiety.
Also, one of the biggest steps you can takes towards helping your mental health is to work on your physical health. When we feel good about our bodies, our mood is generally improved. But always mindful that it’s easy for dieting to turn into an eating disorder when you have severe anxiety. It’s just the way we’re wired.
Final Thoughts on Can Food Cure Anxiety
So, can food cure anxiety? Although food can increase/decrease anxiety symptoms, it is not the cause. It is very unlikely that a diet that is going to “cure” anxiety, and we need to stop spreading that myth. We should, of course, encourage good eating, sleeping and exercise habits.
These habits will increase the ability to tolerate anxiety, but they are still just coping mechanisms, not a cure. We need to help people understand that it is a combination of many things that can eventually resolve anxiety disorders. There is no cure-all diet.
When we accept that there isn’t just one thing that can fix everything, that’s when real healing can begin to take place. As we work hand in hand with trained medical professionals, friends and family, we can overcome anxiety.