Manage Stress, Anxiety And Depression With These Nutritious Foods

It is quite easy to develop anxiety, stress or depression during quarantine because your daily activities get hampered due to the restrictions which at times are not easy to follow specifically mentally. However, there are some nutritious foods that can help one to stay away from getting anxiety, depression and managing stress levels and also help you to overcome those difficult moments.

Best stress, anxiety and depression with these foods

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Below we share a list of foods you can add to your diet to help manage anxiety.

1. Yogurt

You will be surprised to know that fermented food, including yogurt, can help in lowering anxiety. A link has been seen between the consumption of fermented, probiotic foods and a decrease in social anxiety. The best yogurts are the Greek plain versions which typically contain live and active cultures up to 100 million probiotic cultures every gram or about 25 billion probiotic cultures in a cup. Add this to your breakfast instead of milk with your cereal.

Yogurt can be a part of your breakfast and evening snack
Photo Credit: iStock

2. Almonds

Almonds have magnesium that can effectively treat anxiety-related symptoms, as insufficient magnesium lowers the level of the neurotransmitter serotonin in the brain. Only 1 ounce of almonds which is about 12 nuts contains 75 mg of magnesium which is about 19% of your everyday recommended value. You can also get magnesium in foods like legumes, and seeds.

3. Berries

Berries like raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries are some of the biggest antioxidant foods available to you. In a study, published in the Journal of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine, patients were treated for 2 years with antioxidants and placebos. After 2 years, those who were treated with antioxidants had a quite lower depression score.

4. Apples

An apple, if eaten with the rest of these foods, gives you good results for a longer duration of time. Just as the berries, apples are rich in antioxidants that can help to prevent and repair oxidation damage and inflammation on the cellular front. They are also rich in soluble fiber that balances blood sugar swings.

5. L-theanine

L-theanine is an amino acid normally present in green tea extract. It is the precursor to the neurotransmitter GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid), that can decrease physiological responses to stress, and relieves the nervous system and relieve anxiety. It also has characteristics that offer protection against environmental neurotoxins. There are various good supplements of L-theanine that one can get.

Every nutrient and food plays an important role in your body. You should never opt for the random intake of nutrients or specific foods without consulting your doctor or a reputed nutritionist. Self-planned treatment can often result in poor results.

(Ms. Avni Kaul, Nutritionist, Wellness Coach & Certified Diabetes Educator, Founder of NutriActivania)

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