What foods trigger anxiety? Find out the 5 common foods that can worsen anxiety symptoms. Learn how your diet can impact your mental health.

The Impact of Food on Mental Health

Food can have a profound impact on our mood, stress levels, and overall mental health. Research has shown that certain foods can induce or worsen the symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other chronic mental health conditions. While the specific triggers may vary from person to person, studies have identified several common culprits that can contribute to anxiety.

5 Foods That Can Trigger Anxiety Symptoms

1. Sugar

High sugar intake has been linked to a range of health problems, including obesity, high blood pressure, and tooth decay. Additionally, sugar has been associated with depression, mood swings, and symptoms of anxiety. The initial energy boost from eating sugar leads to a quick drop in blood sugar levels, triggering the release of adrenaline and cortisol, which can cause anxiety and even panic attacks.

2. Fried and Junk Foods

Fried and junk foods, such as pizza, fried chicken, hamburgers, and fries, have little nutritional value and are difficult for the body to digest. When the body struggles to process these foods, it can lead to excess gas, acid reflux, and other gastrointestinal issues that can worsen anxiety. Long-term digestive problems like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) can even cause choking sensations and breathing difficulties, further exacerbating anxiety.

3. Processed Foods

Processed foods, including canned soups, cured meats, and processed cheeses, often contain high amounts of salt. Excessive salt intake can raise blood pressure and increase the workload on the heart, leading to the release of adrenaline and causing anxiety. Many canned and plastic-packaged foods also contain bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical that has been linked to changes in mood and blood pressure.

4. Food Additives

Certain food additives, such as aspartame, monosodium glutamate (MSG), and some food dyes, have been associated with anxiety, depression, and mood changes. Aspartame, an artificial sweetener found in many sugar-free products, has been linked to several health conditions, including anxiety and depression. MSG, used to enhance the taste of many snacks and processed foods, has been connected to fatigue, headaches, depression, and anxiety.

5. Caffeine

Caffeine is a stimulant found in a range of products, including coffee, tea, energy drinks, chocolate, and some painkillers. While small amounts of caffeine may be tolerable for many people, excessive intake can lead to heart palpitations, shaking, irritability, and insomnia. Caffeine can also inhibit the absorption of B vitamins, which are important for relaxation and mood regulation. Some individuals are more sensitive to the effects of caffeine, and even small amounts can trigger anxiety symptoms.

Managing Anxiety Through Diet

Maintaining a balanced diet is essential for controlling anxiety, depression, and long-term mental health conditions. Eliminating or reducing the consumption of foods known to trigger anxiety symptoms is an important step in managing chronic anxiety disorders. Additionally, addressing food sensitivities that may be causing distress is crucial, as these can mimic anxiety symptoms. It’s important to work with a healthcare professional to identify any dietary triggers and develop a personalized plan to manage anxiety through diet and lifestyle changes.

The Importance of a Balanced Diet

A balanced diet that includes a variety of nutrient-rich foods is crucial for maintaining good mental health. Eating a breakfast that includes protein can help you feel fuller for longer and keep your blood sugar levels steady, providing more energy throughout the day. Complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains, can also have a calming effect and help regulate mood. By paying attention to the foods that trigger your anxiety and making adjustments to your diet, you can take an important step in managing your mental health.

Conclusion

The foods we consume can have a significant impact on our anxiety levels and overall mental well-being. By identifying and avoiding common anxiety-triggering foods, such as sugar, fried and junk foods, processed foods, food additives, and excessive caffeine, individuals can take an important step in managing their anxiety symptoms. Maintaining a balanced, nutrient-rich diet and working with healthcare professionals to address any food sensitivities can be invaluable in promoting better mental health and well-being.

5 Common Foods That Can Trigger Anxiety Symptoms : Intrepid Mental Wellness, PLLC: Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners

5 Common Foods that Can Trigger Anxiety Symptoms

Food can have a powerful impact on mood, stress levels, and mental health. Some foods have been shown to cause or worsen the symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other chronic mental-health conditions. While symptoms and triggers are unique to every individual, research studies have found several common foods that can induce anxiety.

Sugar

High sugar intake has been linked to many different health conditions, including obesity, high blood pressure, and tooth decay. Sugar has also been linked to depression, mood swings, and symptoms of anxiety. The initial energy boost gained from eating sugar keeps many people craving sugary foods and drinks. However, once the energy boost has peaked, blood sugar levels drop quickly; this leads to lethargy, low mood, and further cravings. The continual boosts and drops in blood sugar levels can trigger the release of adrenalin and cortisol into the bloodstream, causing anxiety and sometimes even panic attacks.

Fried Foods

 Junk food and fried foods, such as pizza, fried chicken, hamburgers, and fries, have little nutritional value and are extremely difficult for the body to digest. When the body is unable to digest and process food, excess gas, acid reflux, and other gastrointestinal complaints can produce symptoms that trigger anxiety. Long-term digestive health complaints, such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), sometimes cause sufferers to wake in the night gasping for breath, as acid reflux can bring about light vomiting that results in choking sensations.

Processed Foods

 Processed foods, such as canned soups, cured meats, and processed cheeses, contain high amounts of salt. Excessive salt intake raises blood pressure and increases the workload of the heart, causing the body to release adrenalin into the bloodstream and leading to anxiety. In addition, many cans and plastic containers are lined with bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical that has been linked to changes in mood and blood pressure. While research is still being conducted into the possible dangers of BPA, many experts believe the chemical can seep into food or drink and produce harmful effects.

Food Additives

 Food additives, including aspartame, monosodium glutamate (MSG), and some food dyes, have also been linked to anxiety, depression, and mood changes. Aspartame is an artificial sweetener used in many different foods, including sugar-free candies, chewing gum, and soft drinks, and studies have linked it to several health conditions, including anxiety and depression. Regular consumption of MSG, which is used to enhance the taste of many snacks, processed foods, and pre-cooked ready meals, has been linked to fatigue, headaches, depression, and anxiety. Some food dyes used in drinks, candies, cheese, and other processed foods have also been associated with anxiety symptoms.

Caffeine

Caffeine can be found in a range of products, including coffee, tea, energy drinks, chocolate, and some painkillers. Many people can tolerate small amounts of caffeine, but because caffeine stimulates the central nervous system, excessive intake can lead to heart palpitations, shaking, irritability, and insomnia. Caffeine can also inhibit the absorption of some vitamins, including B vitamins, which are needed to aid relaxation and control mood. In addition, some people are more sensitive than others to the effects of caffeine, so even small amounts can cause headaches, shaking, and anxiety.

A balanced diet is essential for controlling anxiety, depression, and long-term mental health conditions. Eliminating or cutting down on foods known to trigger anxiety symptoms is an important step in managing chronic anxiety disorders. In addition, food sensitivities can precipitate a range of unpleasant symptoms that can mimic anxiety, so it’s important to talk to your doctor if you suspect specific foods may be causing you distress.

Coping with anxiety: Can diet make a difference?

Is it true that certain foods worsen anxiety and others have a calming effect?

Answer From Craig N. Sawchuk, Ph.D., L.P.

Anxiety symptoms can make you feel unwell. Coping with anxiety can be a challenge and often requires making lifestyle changes. There aren’t any diet changes that can cure anxiety, but watching what you eat may help.

Try these steps:

• Eat a breakfast that includes some protein. Eating protein at breakfast can help you feel fuller longer and help keep your blood sugar steady so that you have more energy as you start your day.
• Eat complex carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are thought to increase the amount of serotonin in your brain, which has a calming effect. Eat foods rich in complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains — for example, oatmeal, quinoa, whole-grain breads and whole-grain cereals. Steer clear of foods that contain simple carbohydrates, such as sugary foods and drinks.
• Drink plenty of water. Even mild dehydration can affect your mood.
• Limit or avoid alcohol. The immediate effect of alcohol may be calming. But as alcohol is processed by your body, it can make you edgy. Alcohol can also interfere with sleep.
• Limit or avoid caffeine. Avoid caffeinated beverages. They can make you feel jittery and nervous and can interfere with sleep.
• Pay attention to food sensitivities. In some people, certain foods or food additives can cause unpleasant physical reactions. In certain people, these physical reactions may lead to shifts in mood, including irritability or anxiety.
• Try to eat healthy, balanced meals. Healthy eating is important for overall physical and mental health. Eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, and don’t overeat. It may also help to eat fish high in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, on a regular basis.

Changes to your diet may make some difference to your general mood or sense of well-being, but they’re not a substitute for treatment. Lifestyle changes, such as improving sleep habits, increasing social support, using stress-reduction techniques and getting regular exercise, also may help. Be patient, as it may take some time before these changes have an effect on your anxiety.

If your anxiety is severe or interferes with your day-to-day activities or enjoyment of life, you may need counseling (psychotherapy), medication or other treatment.

With

Craig N. Sawchuk, Ph.D., L.P.

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• Depression and anxiety: Can I have both?
• Herbal treatment for anxiety: Is it effective?

May 24, 2017

Show references

1. Bonnet MH, et al. Treatment of insomnia in adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed April 20, 2017.
2. Aucoin M, et al. Generalized anxiety disorder and hypoglycemia symptoms improved with diet modification. Case Reports in Psychiatry. 2016;2016:1.
3. Tips to manage anxiety and stress. Anxiety and Depression Association of America. https://www.adaa.org/tips-manage-anxiety-and-stress. Accessed April 20, 2017.
4. Conner TS, et al. Let them eat fruit! The effect of fruit and vegetable consumption on psychological well-being in young adults: A randomized controlled trial. PLoS One. 2017;12:e0171206.
5. Null G, et al. Nutrition and lifestyle intervention on mood and neurological disorders. Journal of Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2017;22:68.
6. Richards G, et al. Breakfast and energy drink consumption in secondary school children: Breakfast omission, in isolation or in combination with frequent energy drink use, is associated with stress, anxiety, and depression cross-sectionally, but not at 6-month follow-up. Frontiers in Psychology. 2016;7:1.
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10. Sawchuk CN (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. May 2, 2017.

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9 Foods That Help or Hurt Anxiety

Looking for food that helps with anxiety? Studies have shown that some foods make us feel calmer while other foods can act as stimulants — at least temporarily. If you experience stress that results in anxiety or panic attacks, making some modifications to your diet may give anxiety help and relief.

Stress describes the many demands and pressures that all of us experience each day. Stress may be physical, mental, emotional, or chemical in nature. Just about anything you encounter can cause stress.

Anxiety is a sign or symptom of stress. Quite often it is the persistent interruptions, hassles, and struggles you face each day that cause anxiety, not life’s catastrophes or disasters. For instance, listening to a phone ringing constantly, hearing a new baby’s cries, or worrying about paying bills can cause stress that leads to anxiety.

When you are anxious for days or weeks, it is called chronic anxiety. The problem with chronic anxiety is that it can lead to health problems over the long term. While there are no quick fixes, you can combat the destructive effects by eating to boost or reduce certain chemicals in your body.

According to the Mayo Clinic, your diet cannot cure anxiety. But there are foods that help with anxiety and have a calming effect in the body, while other foods cause anxiety after eating.

Here are some suggestions:

• Choose foods such as complex carbs that boost the calming brain chemical serotonin. Select whole-grain breads and whole grain cereals instead of sugary snacks or beverages.
• Eat protein at breakfast, so you have energy and your blood glucose levels stay steady.
• Limit or avoid alcohol and caffeine, which cause anxiety after eating. Both affect your sleep and can cause edginess.
• Stay hydrated. Dehydration can cause mood changes.

To boost your mood, consider adding the following to your diet:

• Chocolate
• Folate and other B vitamins
• Low-glycemic foods
• Magnesium
• Omega-3 fatty acids
• Tryptophan

In addition, consider adding foods high in zinc to your diet. Findings show that oysters, cashews, liver, beef, and egg yolks have been linked to lowered anxiety.

Also, a study published in August 2015 the journal Psychiatry Research found a link between probiotic foods and a lowering of social anxiety. Probiotic foods include pickles, sauerkraut, and kefir. A new study published in 2017 in the journal Annals of General Psychiatry linked probiotics with improving symptoms of major depressive disorder, possibly by either decreasing inflammation in the body or by increasing the availability of serotonin, the calming brain chemical. Anxiety may be linked to depression.

Check out the following five foods you may want to add to your diet to boost your mood, and four foods you may want to avoid because they can increase stress and even possibly cause a depressed mood.

10 foods to avoid if you have anxiety

Over the past few years, I’ve endured a series of unforeseen events. Originally diagnosed with anxiety and depression at 14, I spent the majority of my life working through a condition that I immediately attributed to my environment. It wasn’t until 12 years later that things took a turn for the worst.

I was officially diagnosed with severe Generalized Anxiety and Panic Disorder at 26— a disorder that psychologically and socially crippled me. I battled a two-year drug addiction to my anxiety meds, and survived an accidental overdose due to a combination of anxiety pills and painkillers, both of which were prescribed to me.

I was fighting a war within myself that I was desperately losing. The day I contemplated taking my life was the day I recognized the importance of it. After hitting a dead end with my doctor, I set out on a quest to not only change, but save my life.

Today, I’m an author, a motivational speaker, a mindfulness coach and a wellness expert, specializing in the healthier management of anxiety. One of the first things I did when I embarked on this journey was research the role my diet played in my anxiety. The information was overwhelming.

Immediately I adjusted my diet, and I’ve never looked back. Over the years, I’ve learned which foods feed my anxiety and which foods don’t.

Below is a list of the top 10 foods that I personally avoid in the management of my anxiety:

1. Caffeine

A known stimulant and psychoactive drug, caffeine has long had a reputation for triggering the body’s fight-or-flight response. Very similar to the symptoms associated with anxiety, caffeine can also make its users feel nervous, nauseous, light headed, jittery and yes, even anxious. If you’re suffering through anxiety, I recommend reconsidering that morning cup of coffee and instead opt for an herbal tea or a green juice.

2. Artificial and refined sugars

This is one that seems hard to ignore simply due to the fact that sugar hides in everything! Studies have shown that although sugar does not cause anxiety, it does create changes in your body that can exacerbate anxiety symptoms and impairs the body’s ability to effectively cope with stress.

A sugar crash is similar to a caffeine crash, and can also cause mood changes, heart palpitations, difficulty concentrating and fatigue— all of which can be interpreted as the beginning stages of an anxiety or panic attack.

3. Gluten

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye products. For many anxiety sufferers, gluten can also be a huge trigger for anxiety symptoms. Research has now confirmed that people with Celiac disease and gluten intolerances (like myself) are at higher risk for anxiety, depression and mood disorders. Talk to your doctor about getting tested for Celiac or a gluten intolerance. Cutting out gluten could be the difference between living with anxiety and managing it for the better.

4. Processed foods

Generally, processed foods are high in the previous two items mentioned on this list, as well as a bunch of additional additives and preservatives. Refined flours and sugars are said to feed the harmful bacteria and microbes in the gut. With more research being conducted, the general consensus is that gut health is a major contributor to chronic anxiety, and many mood disorders can be treated by proliferating good bacteria in your gut. So, next time you’re at a family BBQ, avoid the grilled hot dogs and opt for the fruit salad.

5. Alcohol

We all enjoy an occasional drink, right? But what happens when that one glass of wine at dinner turns into three glasses of wine and dessert? Alcohol in excess or at all (for some), is said to induce the symptoms of anxiety.  Alcohol is a toxin that leads to improper mental and physical functioning, by negatively impacting the levels of serotonin (the feel good chemical) in the brain.

Alcohol also affects the body and nervous system, and can cause hypersensitivity, increased heart rate, lowered blood sugar levels and acute dehydration. If you’re going out to dinner with a few colleagues, you may want to skip the drink menu this time around.

6. Dairy

I’m sure we all remember those Got Milk ads that popped up during the commercial break of our favorite TV shows. Well research shows that people who have anxiety say they’ve noticed an increase in anxiety symptoms within minutes of consuming dairy products. About 10 percent of adults are lactose intolerant, and even more are thought to have difficulty digesting the casein found in cow’s milk. Have I mentioned its impact on children?

The truth is, dairy is inflammatory. It wreaks havoc on the digestive system, causing, bloating, diarrhea and constipation, among other things. So if you’re looking for ways to manage your anxiety, I guess the answer to the question Got Milk?, should be a big, fat, NO!

7. Soda

Don’t think for a second because you started a sugar cleanse a week ago that you can still indulge in America’s favorite soft drink. In addition to the artificial food coloring and additives found in soda, aspartame is one of the most common (and possibly dangerous) ingredients found in things like diet soda and chewing gum. In addition to blocking the production of serotonin in our brains (like sugar), Aspartame is also believed to be responsible for headaches, insomnia, anxiety, mood swings and has been linked to certain forms of cancer. Still thirsty?

8. Fried foods

Not only are fried foods difficult to digest, but they also have very little nutrition. Combining poor food choices with unhealthy cooking processes is a sure-fire way to exacerbate your anxiety symptoms. Most fried foods like French fries, chicken and onion rings are cooked in hydrogenated oil. It not only does a number on your waistline, but it’s also terrible for your heart.

Fried foods also may increase your risk of high blood pressure and heart disease. Moderation is key. The next time you find yourself at Five Guys, try the kiddie size fry instead of the large.

9. Fruit juice

Fruit juice, just like soda and other store-bought beverages is packed with sugar. There are three different types of sugar: sucrose, glucose and fructose. Fructose is the sugar naturally found in fruits and vegetables, and is usually added to fruit juice and fruit flavored drinks. The problem is the body only processed fructose in the liver and is not the body’s preferred energy source. What protects us from absorbing too much fructose when we eat fruits and vegetables is the fiber. When we get rid of the fiber, we put our bodies at risk of overconsumption.

So if you want fruit juice, make it at home, and if you’re an avid juicer (like me), I recommend limiting the amount of fruit you put into your green juices. Stick to the 80/20 rule and you’ll be good to go.

10. Foods high in sodium

By now, we should all be aware of the fat-free craze of the past few decades. The sad reality of this fad is that most foods that are fat free are actually high in sugar and/or sodium. Researchers have concluded that too much sodium in our diets can have a negative effect on the body’s neurological system, causing fatigue and damaging the immune system. A restful sleep is a major key to a healthy mind, mood and body. Not to mention, the overconsumption of sodium leads to weight gain, high blood pressure and water retention.

Salt is essential in maintaining good health and a balanced diet, but too much can trigger panic episodes and send you down a slippery slope of anxiety, panic and depression.

Eat This Not That to Reduce Stress and Anxiety| Banner Health

When you get stressed or anxious, do you reach for something salty or sweet, or do you lace up and go for a walk or run? For many who feel stressed or anxious, especially during times like these, our natural instinct is to reach for foods (and drinks) for comfort and maybe even for an escape.

However, often the very things we choose to gulp down (chips, cookies, alcohol) are only providing us short-term relief and may actually increase anxiety and depression in the long run. There’s a reason for this, according to Karen Hemmes, a registered dietitian at Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix.

How food affects stress and anxiety

“Eating foods such as processed meats, high sugar foods, caffeine and alcohol, which provide little nutritional value, have been associated with more psychiatric symptoms and can increase cortisol levels—our primary hormone responsible for stress,” she said. “A diet high in whole foods and low in processed foods can help maintain healthy cortisol levels.”

Research has shown that increases in stress and cortisol have been linked to an increased risk of developing obesity, metabolic syndromes, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, depression and other disorders of the brain.

Certain foods may also reduce stress and anxiety. “Eating a healthy diet high in fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, whole grains and healthy fats can help decrease stress and anxiety and boost mood and self-esteem,” Hemmes said. “These foods provide your body with the nutrients you and your brain need to function properly.”

Foods that help reduce stress and anxiety

While there is no specific diet that can cure stress and anxiety, there are some foods that may help. Here are some foods worth trying to help improve your well-being:

A Mediterranean-type diet high in omega-3 fatty acid

Consuming omega-3 rich foods along with supplemental fish oil may reduce anxiety and depression symptoms. Such foods include:

• Fish: salmon, tuna and sardines
• Nuts and seeds: almonds, walnuts, flax seeds and chia seeds
• Avocados

Foods high in vitamins A, C and E

Foods high in antioxidants such as beta-carotene (vitamin A), vitamin C and vitamin E can help prevent cell damage to the brain. Such foods include:

• Vegetables: asparagus, carrots, sweet potatoes, broccoli and leafy greens like spinach and kale
• Fruits: strawberries, citrus fruits, papaya, cantaloupe and apricots
• Nuts and seeds: almonds and sunflower seeds

Foods high in vitamin B

Several studies have linked high doses of vitamin B with reduced symptoms of stress. Foods rich in vitamin B can also aid in heart and brain function. Such foods include:

• Lean proteins: chicken, fish, eggs and turkey
• Fortified cereals
• Nutritional yeast

Prebiotic and probiotic foods

“Serotonin, a key hormone that regulates our mood, feelings and well-being and happiness, is primarily made in our guts,” Hemmes said. “Therefore, having healthy gut microbiome can help reduce stress and anxiety. Eating prebiotic and probiotic foods can help with that.” Such foods include:

• High fiber foods: raspberries, whole grains and beans
• Fermented foods: kefir, aged cheese, sauerkraut and kombucha

Magnesium-rich foods

Research has found that magnesium may help with brain functions that reduce stress and may even be helpful in the treatment of mild anxiety.

“When we’re stressed, it can cause us to excrete magnesium in our urine,” Hemmes said. “Having low magnesium levels may contribute to anxiety, panic disorders, insomnia, fatigue and hyperemotionality (being overly emotional).”

Foods rich in magnesium include:

• Fruits: bananas and avocados
• Vegetables: broccoli and spinach
• Nuts and seeds: almonds, cashews, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds and chia seeds
• Legumes: lentils, beans, chickpeas and peas
• Dark chocolate

Foods (and drinks) that are stress- and anxiety-provoking

If you’re feeling stressed, try to avoid these foods:

But if you do dabble in a few of these items, remember, moderation is key!

Don’t rely on food alone to de-stress

We are what we eat, but when it comes to managing stress and anxiety—food alone isn’t the answer.

“Activities like regular physical exercise, getting enough sleep and treating any underlying mental health problems are important too,” Hemmes said.

Talk to your doctor or a behavioral health specialist if you’re struggling to manage stress and anxiety in your life. The right health care provider can help you better understand what might be triggering your anxiety and stress and make healthy diet and lifestyle changes to combat them. To find a Banner Heath specialist near you, visit bannerhealth.com.

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9 Critical Foods to Avoid if You Suffer from Anxiety …

9 Critical Foods to Avoid if You Suffer from Anxiety … Share

I used to be embarrassed that I suffered from anxiety, but now I’m an open book, sharing my own experience and simple lifestyle tips, along with foods to avoid if you suffer from anxiety. For years, I never put together the connective link between my diet, lifestyle, and my chronic anxiety. During the latter half of my twenties, due to major life events that happened in the course of a year, I was forced to address the anxiety that had always taken a back seat in my life when I was more concerned with developing a modeling career than taking care of myself. I finally learned how diet and lifestyle can truly make or break your success with managing anxiety. Though I was a nutrition major, I was still eating a few foods that weren’t supporting my anxiety, such as taking in excessive caffeine and not eating enough protein or healthy fats. To share just a bit of what I learned about how food can affect your mind, start with getting rid of these 9 foods to avoid if you suffer from anxiety. I promise this is one of the best things you can do to start a successful anxiety management plan and make changes that will last a lifetime.

Table of contents:

1. Sugary Drinks
2. Processed Food
3. Refined Grains and Refined Bread
4. Chips
5. Too Much Chocolate
6. Caffeine
7. Sugar
8. Alcohol
9. Fast Food

1 Sugary Drinks

Most of us know that sugar is bad for us, yet what most people don’t know is that sugary drinks are one of the top foods to avoid if you suffer from anxiety, not just the carbonated sodas. Sugary drinks like fruit juices and even homemade pressed fruit juices, bottled sports beverages high in sugar, and even smoothies high in sugar, are drinks that you should avoid if you suffer anxiety. I’m a smoothie nut, along with a huge fan of juicing, but I’ve had to adjust my ingredients so I don’t overload on sugar. Whether in natural or processed form, sugar influences blood sugar levels, which in return sends your blood sugar on a major roller coaster ride. When this happens, cortisol, the stress hormone, floods your body and creates an edgy, uneven feeling that causes anxiety to surface quickly. Be sure to fill up with more fibrous foods, which steady blood sugar, and if you drink fruit smoothies, make sure to use whole fruit and add some protein powder, which will lower the glycemic index of the sugars in the fruits. If you juice, be sure you juice more veggies and leafy greens than fruits and only use lower sugar fruits like lemons, limes, grapefruits and cucumbers instead of higher sugar fruits like apples, oranges and pears.

35 Add a comment …

2 Processed Food

If you’re still eating processed food, please, I’m begging you girls- quit now and thank me later! Processed food, which includes foods that contain ingredients you don’t recognize, or consists of labels that contain multitudes of ingredients that are refined and void of nutrients. These are some of the worst foods you could possibly eat for anxiety. For starters, they contain chemicals that aggravate the neurotransmitters in your brain and they interfere with healthy blood sugar levels. What does this do over time? Basically, it creates an addiction to these foods that leads to heightened anxiety unless you’re eating them. These foods also create weight gain, brain fog, depression, diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and more. If you buy any processed food, try to make sure the ingredient list is only 5 or less ingredients. Oh, and definitely don’t buy any that contain refined or added sugars, refined grains, or overly processed dairy, which has tons of hormones that interfere with your hormones, along with pesticides. You should also avoid buying foods with trans fats. The more natural, raw food, the better. When in doubt, if you can’t pronounce the ingredient, put it back on the shelf!

5 Add a comment …

3 Refined Grains and Refined Bread

All refined bread is an item I advise avoiding if you have anxiety. If you choose to buy bread, be sure to buy 100% whole grain or even better, sprouted grain bread, which isn’t refined at all, nor does it contain flour of any kind. Also stick to varieties without preservatives, sugar, or unhealthy fats. Even breads that boasts health properties can be lying to you, so turn over the product and read the label. Stick with varieties that are 100% natural, don’t contain high fructose corn syrup, enriched flours, hydrogenated fats, sugar, and that are overall less processed. Remember, unless it says 100% whole grain, it isn’t, so be sure you’re smart about the label. By all means, avoid white bread, which is merely nothing more than sugars and starches that will send your blood sugar soaring, creating a crash later, which will leave you shaky, cranky and full of anxiety. An even better option is to only eat grains in their whole form, such as cooked oats, quinoa, and barley, which are the grain in its most natural form, free of any added ingredients. Root veggies are another great substitute for bread that will give your body the carbohydrates it desires without the blood sugar crash of white bread and other refined grains.

5 Add a comment …

4 Chips

Chips are a big no-no in terms of avoiding foods that heighten anxiety. Chips, which are full of sodium, refined grains and usually unhealthy fats, cause your arteries to clog, can cause overeating, and can cause your blood pressure to rise due to the sodium and processed ingredients. Instead, make your own chips using whole grain pitas or whole grain tortillas by slicing them with a pizza slicer to make them look like tortilla chips, and bake them in the oven. Even better, chop up a sweet potato into slices, toss it with some herbs and spices, and bake the slices in the oven at 350 for one hour. This is a great recipe that will give you your own homemade chips at home that are much healthier. If you really want to take things up a notch, try eating kale chips instead of regular chips and avoid too many carbs altogether.

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5 Too Much Chocolate

We all know that dark chocolate is healthy for us, but what you may not know is that those dark chocolate products out there that are marketed as a health food may be deterring your success in beating anxiety. How so? Well, for starters, chocolate is a stimulant, and it can actually quell anxiety if you eat a very small amount. Be sure you choose plain, raw unsweetened chocolate, or buy varieties with at least 90% cacao content. The higher the cacao content, the less sugar it contains. I personally love raw cacao nibs and raw cacao powder, along with dark cocoa power that is naturally sugar-free. I love Hershey’s brand and Frontier Naturals brand of cocoa flavors for the best flavor. You can still have chocolate, but avoid eating too much which can worsen anxiety, and only choose the best quality. Those Hershey’s and Dove dark chocolate bars aren’t the healthy stuff, and even organic varieties can be high in sugar. Stick to the lowest sugar products possible, and avoid those that are more like a candy bar than a health food.

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6 Caffeine

If you suffer from anxiety, chances are you’re a caffeine junkie. I know I used to be. I loaded up on coffee, green tea and chocolate all day to get my fix. Now, I stick with one serving of each and switch to decaf green tea in the afternoons. Caffeine can calm you down in very small doses, but anything above that will have you feeling like a crazy person when your nerves go out of control. Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system and a little bit isn’t a problem. Caffeine, such as in one cup of coffee per day, can enhance mental focus, ease tension, and even has many antioxidants that nourish your brain and body. These same antioxidants are also found in sources such as green tea, and even chocolate. However, when the brain and body receive too much stimulation, it becomes a little too excited, so to speak. This is where the problem lies. Anxiety-driven people need to calm down their nerves, not stimulate them. Switch to decaf coffee and decaf green tea and try to only have one caffeinated beverage per day.

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7 Sugar

As I said before, sugar is a big no-no for people driven to anxiety like behaviors. If you suffer from anxiety, think of sugar as your arch enemy. It attracts you, addicts you, and before you know it, has you under its spell, creating you to be lethargic and suffer energy crashes all day long. It also ruins your skin and metabolism, but that’s another topic for another day! If you suffer anxiety, focus more on proteins, healthy fats, and tons of green veggies and leafy greens. Make sure your choices of fruit are lower on the glycemic index. Fruits like these include berries, green apples, and all citrus fruits. Also, be sure that you are feeding your body enough food so you’ll crave less sweet foods overall.

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8 Alcohol

Anxiety and drinking just don’t mix, ladies. Alcohol may relax you, but it is also a natural depressant, which means it not only creates a depressing feeling later, but also creates an addiction for the need to use it to relax. Instead of turning to alcohol, try having a hot mug of herbal tea. I know it sounds hokey, but herbal tea can actually help treat anxiety and can be extremely therapeutic for the body. It can also help put you to sleep ,which many people use alcohol to do. If you’re a social drinker, consider cutting back to only a glass of red wine each time you drink. Your anxiety will lower just by this one action, and your health will automatically improve.

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9 Fast Food

Last but not least, fast food is not your friend, girls! Fast food is full of hormones, chemicals, stimulants, preservatives, harmful fats, disastrous refined sugars and grains, and it inflames your entire body. When your body is inflamed, your mental state seriously declines. You’re not only tired, overweight and moody, but your anxiety is also impossible to manage. Try making more of your foods at home. You won’t only save your nerves and your calories, but also your money. If you need recipes for budget savvy ideas, check out the web! The internet is full of great options that will teach you how to love food again and it isn’t as hard as you think. If you need some healthy ideas, check out my blog, The Soulful Spoon, where I don’t only share my recipes, but also recipes I find around the web!

If you’re suffering from anxiety, please don’t lose hope and just subject yourself to a life of nerve pills and suffering. You don’t have to live that way with the right diet and lifestyle. Though I’m not a doctor and know that food can’t cure everything, I can promise you that what we put into our bodies is what we get in return. Feed your body well and your mind will thank you! What are your favorite tips for eating healthy to prevent anxiety?

Sources: thesoulfulspoon.com, livestrong.com

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Foods That Can Cause, Trigger, or Worsen Your Anxiety

Certain foods can cause anxiety or trigger or worsen anxiety. What we put into our body matters. Researchers are discovering what foods improve mental health, including anxiety, and which ones hurt it. Everything we eat is broken down in the digestive system and is released into the bloodstream where its molecular components are distributed and used by the various organs in the body. This includes the brain. The brain needs the right combination of nutrients to fuel its neurochemistry. If we don’t eat right, the brain doesn’t receive the healthy fuel it needs and often receives substances that damage it (for example, caffeine and anxiety don’t mix). In this way, foods can cause anxiety, trigger it or even worsen it.

What a food does to you depends on your experience with anxiety.

• If you haven’t previously dealt with anxiety, eating the wrong foods can cause, or at least contribute to the development of, new anxiety.
• Sometimes, people experience sporadic or occasional anxiety that flares in the presence of external stressors. Can foods trigger anxiety? Researchers have discovered that yes, foods are one of the external stressors that cause anxiety to rear its ugly head in people who only experience it every once in a while.
• If you live with chronic worry, fear, or panic, there are foods that worsen anxiety of any nature (learn how foods play a role in anxiety and panic attacks).

Some Foods That Can Cause, Trigger or Worsen Your Anxiety

Both foods and beverages can exacerbate anxiety. Beverages are digested just like food, and the molecular components are distributed through the body. Three of the biggest liquid contributors to anxiety are

Basically, these substances are liquid foods that cause, trigger, or worsen anxiety. They can cause blood sugar levels to surge then crash, which is an erratic energy rollercoaster that negatively effects anxiety. All these drinks can cause irritability and the sense of being on edge. Restlessness, dehydration, dizziness, and difficulty sleeping are common effects of alcohol, caffeine, and sugar. These feel like some of the symptoms of anxiety.

In addition to contributing to anxiety, alcohol (and illicit drugs) can interact with many medications, creating side effects that range from unpleasant to life-threatening. They can also prevent anxiety medications from working properly. Blocking something that’s helping you is another way that substances can cause, trigger, or worsen your anxiety.

List of Harmful Foods for Anxiety

Regarding foods causing anxiety, a simple guideline is this: The more refined or processed something is—the further it’s removed from its natural state—the more detrimental it can be for your anxiety and overall mental health.

This is because as natural foods like grains, meats, fruits and vegetables, and others are processed and refined, they lose key nutrients. And let’s not forget the artificially manufactured products like hydrogenated oils, additives, preservatives, and other substances created completely or partially in factories.

These are just some of the foods that can cause anxiety or worsen it:

• Fast food
• Fried foods
• Saturated fats
• Trans fats
• White bread
• White pasta
• White rice
• Pastries
• Candy
• Chocolate other than dark chocolate with a high percentage of cocoa
• Chips and similar snacks
• “Instant” products like potatoes, rice, oatmeal; however, instant oatmeal, for example, may be processed more quickly by the body (causing an energy spike then plummet that can cause anxiety) than slow-cooked oatmeal, yet instant oatmeal does have nutritious properties and is better for you than white bread or chips)
• Refined cereals (they are often sugary)

These foods are especially harmful and can cause, trigger, or worsen your anxiety. You might have other foods that contribute to your own anxiety.

Any food, even healthy food good for anxiety, can have a negative effect on anxiety if you are sensitive to the food. A food sensitivity is different from a food allergy. It can make you feel terrible and experience things like anxiety, but it doesn’t cause a dangerous immune system reaction.

Common foods that people can be sensitive to include:

• Gluten
• Corn
• Dairy
• Eggs
• Seafood
• Nuts
• Food additives

If you are experiencing anxiety, part of the reason could be a sensitivity to one or more of these foods. Other than the food additives, these are all healthy foods that your body needs and natural foods that can often help anxiety. You could consider consulting with a nutrition specialist to discuss the possibility of food sensitivities and how to replace any food with an equivalent source of nutrients.

Whether you’re experiencing new anxiety, have anxiety that is occasionally triggered, or existing anxiety that is worsening, foods and drinks could be at least partially responsible. Try eliminating harmful foods from your diet. You just might discover that your anxiety diminishes.

article references

Prevention of newborn colic | Philips

Preventing cramps and abdominal pain in your baby can be done by knowing the cause.

Breastfeeding is the main prophylactic against colic. First, breast milk is an easily digestible product for a baby, unlike formula. Because it contains enzymes, or enzymes that speed up chemical reactions.

And yet there are points to which you should pay attention. In order to avoid colic in the child, the mother can refrain from some foods that increase gas formation.These include all legumes, mushrooms, fresh vegetables, grapes, prunes, canned food, pickles, onions, garlic, and sausages. It is possible that a particular food is causing colic. In this case, a food diary helps mothers a lot, in which she keeps track of what she ate. This will help to exclude for a while the “suspect” product and see the child’s reaction. Before completely abandoning a product, consult a pediatrician who will advise you how to compensate for the beneficial properties of the excluded product.

Since one of the reasons is swallowing air during a meal, you need to make sure that the baby suckles correctly . It should capture not only the nipple, but the entire halo, which will exclude the involuntary ingress of air.

Further, after feeding, be sure to hold the baby upright for some time until he vomits up the trapped air. This may take 10-15 minutes. You will hear when this happens by the characteristic sound. A mother who feeds a baby with both breasts alternately can lift him up when changing and let the air spit out.

Those mothers who feed their baby with a bottle should carefully consider its choice. There are special bottles with an anti-colic effect , which indicates a special structure of the nipple of the bottle – the presence of an anti-colic valve that allows air to pass into the bottle, and not into the baby’s tummy. When feeding, bubbles appear on the surface of the liquid, which indicates that the valve is working properly. Philips Avent Bottles are clinically proven to reduce colic.Thus, the Classic + bottles have a one-piece valve system in the nipple, and the Natural bottles have a double improved anti-colic valve located in the nipple skirt.

Natural bottles are especially suitable for mixed-fed babies, as the physiological shape of the nipple makes the transition from breast to bottle and vice versa more natural and invisible for the baby. Therefore, in the future, the risk of breastfeeding will be minimized.

90,000 ▶ How to cure intestinal colic in a newborn baby?

Intestinal colic occurs in almost 70% of newborns aged 1-3 weeks to 3 months, and sometimes even older.They are provoked by periodic intestinal spasms and increased gas production, which occurs due to the physiological immaturity of the gastrointestinal tract. Your baby’s digestive system cannot cope with the digestion of breast milk or the artificial milk formula that is fed to him. As a result, the child develops colic, which makes him naughty and cry. Colic can bother a baby for several months until his enzyme system is sufficiently mature.

Causes of colic in newborns

The cause of intestinal colic in infants is most often a natural physiological inability to process certain substances that enter his body along with food.With age, when the digestive system develops, colic disappears and stops bothering the baby. The pathological nature of the causes of colic in children is quite rare. In these cases, the child develops other symptoms, when they appear, it is imperative to call a pediatrician.

The main causes of colic in infants are:

• Insufficient development of the digestive system;
• Immaturity of the central nervous system;
• Intestinal dysbiosis;
• Taking antibiotics by a child or mother;
• Artificial feeding;
• Allergy to formula milk;
• Incorrect preparation of milk formula;
• Intake of air into the stomach during feeding;
• The use by a nursing mother of foods that increase gas production or cause allergies in the child;
• Hormonal disorders in the mother;
• Adding new foods to the child’s diet;
• Overfeeding a baby;
• Lactase deficiency;
• Infectious and other diseases.

The digestive system of children develops gradually. During the first months of life, she is adapted to assimilate only breast milk or a special milk formula. At the same time, the child’s body may not yet produce some of the enzymes necessary for the digestion of certain microelements included in his diet. As a result, they become the cause of excess gas formation in infants. Therefore, nursing women are advised to adhere to a special diet that excludes foods that are difficult to digest, cause allergies in the child or increased gas production.

Also, the digestive tract of an infant, especially one born prematurely, may not yet be ready for the digestion process as such. In such cases, food is not absorbed immediately and is retained for a long time in the large intestine, which provokes its excessive stretching and gas formation. Because of this, the baby has intestinal cramps and colic.

A common cause of intestinal colic in newborns is also the ingestion of large amounts of air during feeding. This happens when the baby does not clasp the nipple tightly enough or drinks milk hastily. As a result, air enters the stomach, and from there into the intestines, where it provokes colic. In order for the swallowed air to leave the stomach after feeding, it is advised to hold the baby upright for 10-15 minutes until an eructation appears.

Also, colic can appear with the development of dysbiosis against the background of the use of antibiotics in a child or mother, allergies to components of breast milk or milk formula, improper preparation of it or adding new products to the diet.

In rare cases, abdominal colic may appear due to pathological reasons. This also needs to be taken into account and timely contact with pediatrics.

Some experts suggest that gas in infants can also appear as a result of stress or other psycho-emotional reasons, such as an uneasy atmosphere at home or maternal anxiety.

How does intestinal colic manifest in newborns

In the first months of life, parents have to understand what the baby wants or what worries him, almost intuitively. The symptoms of colic are nonspecific, so it can be difficult to determine what exactly they are causing the baby’s anxiety.

Symptoms of colic in newborns can be:

• Long and strong crying;
• Sleep disturbance;
• Full body tension;
• Redness;
• Motor hyperactivity;
• Frequent regurgitation;
• Constipation.

Colic is accompanied by the formation of gas and recurrent intestinal spasms.This causes severe discomfort and pain in the child. During an attack, he can cry a lot, jerk his arms and legs, and squeeze them to his stomach. Since the spasms are cyclical, the child may calm down for a while, and then start to act up and cry again.

Symptoms of colic in infants can be observed from half an hour to two to three hours until the attack passes. They are repeated, as a rule, one or more times a day after feeding.

With age, the symptoms of intestinal colic in children decrease. In most cases, they completely disappear by 4-5 months, when the digestive system matures.

How to Distinguish Colic Symptoms from Other Diseases

Colic causes severe pain and discomfort to a child, but it is not a disease. At the same time, since the child cannot tell what exactly worries him, it is important for parents to be very attentive to changes in his behavior and well-being, so as not to miss the onset of the development of the disease.

If, in addition to the manifestations of colic, the baby has other symptoms, it must be shown to the pediatrician or the doctor on duty in the children’s hospital.

Colic usually does not cause symptoms in children such as:

• Skin rash;
• Cough;
• Vomiting;
• Diarrhea;
• Temperature rise;
• Change in heart rate, etc.

These symptoms can be caused by other childhood illnesses, including bowel obstruction, when urgent medical attention is needed.

Treatment of intestinal colic in newborns

Intestinal colic in newborns usually does not require special treatment and is relieved by correcting breastfeeding, changing the mother’s diet or choosing a suitable milk formula if the baby is artificially fed.In this case, the baby still needs to be shown to the pediatrician so that he excludes the pathological causes of abdominal pain and tells how to deal with colic correctly.

For the prevention and treatment of intestinal colic in newborns it is recommended:

• Observe the rules for latching the baby to the breast during feeding;
• Hold the baby upright after feeding until he regurgitates;
• Put the baby on the tummy before feeding;
• Use bottles and teats that prevent swallowing air;
• Adjust the mother’s diet if the baby is breastfed;
• If necessary, select a suitable milk mixture and prepare it correctly;
• Put a heated diaper on the baby’s tummy;
• Stroke and massage the baby’s tummy easily;
• Bathing a baby in a warm bath;
• If necessary, use medicines prescribed by a doctor.

Mom’s diet is of paramount importance for treating colic in infants. It is advisable that this be agreed with a pediatrician or breastfeeding specialist. Nursing mothers are advised to refrain from eating heavy fatty, fried and spicy foods, as well as foods that provoke gas and can cause allergies.

It is also important to learn how to properly latch the baby to the breast during feeding. It is advisable to hold the baby so that his head is at least slightly higher than the tummy.In this case, you need to ensure that he completely captures the nipple and the lower part of the areola with his lips. This minimizes the swallowing of air with milk. Usually, young mothers are taught to care for and feed a newborn while still in the hospital. If this has not been done, you can get the necessary information from the Breastfeeding Support Center.

After feeding, it is advisable to hold the baby in an upright position. This will allow him to belch faster and get air trapped in his stomach. This should be done at night to prevent colic in the baby and the need for treatment.

When artificial feeding is important, it is important to choose a formula that will suit the child – to provide him with the necessary nutrients and not to provoke poor health. Equally important is the selection of a nipple and feeding bottle. It is advisable to use those that have a special mechanism to reduce the amount of air swallowed by the baby.

During an attack of colic, some experts recommend stroking the baby on the abdomen in a circular motion, as well as applying a heated diaper to it.Heat is believed to help reduce cramps. For the same reason, it is advised to bathe the child in a warm bath before going to bed.

In traditional medicine, many different methods are used to treat abdominal colic, but some of them are not only ineffective, but also unsafe for the health of newborns. For a baby suffering from colic, you need to call a pediatrician who will examine him and, if necessary, select the correct treatment. In some cases, gas tubes are used to reduce colic, but this can be done only after the doctor’s recommendation, so as not to accidentally injure the child.Also, do not give your newborn colic medicine on your own. Similar symptoms can also appear in more serious diseases, when hospitalization in a children’s hospital and urgent medical care is necessary.

90,000 Golikova expressed concern about the trips of Russians on non-working days :: Society :: RBK

The Deputy Prime Minister also recalled responsibility for the forgery and use of falsified certificates of the transferred coronavirus, vaccination certificates or PCR test results.She blamed those people who use fake documents responsible for the continuation of the pandemic in Russia.

Golikova hoped for a “short period” of non-working days in Russia

Read on RBK Pro

Due to the worsening situation with the incidence of coronavirus in Russia, on October 19, Golikova proposed introducing non-working days with the same wages from October 30 to November 7. It was supported by the head of the Cabinet of Ministers Mikhail Mishustin, and the very next day a decree on this was signed by President Vladimir Putin. According to the document, regional authorities received the right to establish non-working days until October 30 and extend them after November 7, if the epidemiological situation does not improve.

After news of non-working days, Russians began to book rooms in hotels in Egypt. The demand for tours to the country, according to the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, turned out to be a record, and the load of regular flights reached 75%.According to them, this happened due to the introduction of a lockdown in the Russian regions.

Due to the influx of Russian tourists in Egypt, there is a shortage of rooms in five-star hotels, Izvestia reported with reference to the country’s embassy in Moscow. The diplomatic department noted that due to “unprecedented demand” in Egypt, new hotels and tourist facilities are being opened every day. At the same time, the situation with coronavirus in the country remains stable, the embassy stressed.

Order for the vaccine, the failure of the QR codes was fixed.COVID update on November 9

Over the past 24 hours, 39,849 Russians have been infected with the coronavirus. The indicator decreased after 40 thousand new cases of COVID-19 infection per day were detected in Russia on October 28, which became a record during a pandemic. However, the death rate again exceeded the maximum level – 1163 people died in a day.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 8.4 million Russians have been infected, more than 236 thousand have died.According to Rosstat, more than 417.5 thousand people have died from the beginning of the pandemic to August this year. At the same time, the service counts those who died from other diseases against the background of coronavirus, as well as those who were found to have the virus after death.

How the coronavirus epidemic is developing in Russia

Dynamics of daily detected new infections and registration of deaths

Sources: federal and regional headquarters for the fight against coronavirus, statements by officials

Data for Russia i

90,000 Golikova reported on the aggravation of the situation with coronavirus in 13 regions of Russia – Society

MOSCOW, October 29./ TASS /. The situation with coronavirus infection has worsened since last Friday in 13 regions of Russia, said Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova.

“The situation has become more complicated in 13 regions of the country. We ask you to take into account the indication on the heat map on the stopcoronavirus.rf portal and remember the extremely high load on health systems. Today there is not a single” green “region on the map,” said Golikova, whose words cited on Friday at the federal pandemic operations headquarters. According to the heat map data published on the stopcoronavirus portal.rf, the situation has become more complicated in the Vladimir, Ivanovo, Kurgan, Omsk, Tomsk and Tula regions, the republics of Kabardino-Balkaria, Buryatia, Dagestan, Mari El, North Ossetia and Altai, as well as in the Primorsky Territory.

The Deputy Prime Minister noted that the plans of many Russians to go on tourist trips during non-working days are causing concern. “We are particularly concerned about the fact that during the non-working days from October 30 to November 7, many of our citizens have planned tourist trips to other regions,” she said.

“We also urge those who have decided to follow the path of falsifying QR codes to remember responsibility for forging or using false documents – certificates of past illness, certificates of vaccinations or PCR tests, and responsibility for the ongoing pandemic in our country. yourself and your loved ones, “Golikova emphasized.

Golikova has already called on Russians to refrain from traveling to other regions during non-working days in order to contain the spread of infection.The press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said that there are no bans on travel and travel of Russians on non-working days and there are no plans to introduce them. At the same time, the executive director of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, Maya Lomidze, noted that the demand for tours soared after reports of the introduction of a non-working day regime in the Russian Federation from November 30 to 7.

Earlier, in some regions, facts of falsification of documents confirming vaccination against coronavirus infection were revealed.

Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, about 245.6 million people have been infected in the world, more than 5 million have died.In Russia, according to the federal operational headquarters for the fight against coronavirus, 8,432,546 cases of infection were registered, 7,302,515 people recovered, 236,220 died. The Russian government launched the stopcoronavirus.rf resource to inform about the situation in the country.

Nutrition for a nursing mother / State Budgetary Healthcare Institution of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug “Labytnangskaya City Hospital”

It is believed that breastfeeding brings many restrictions to a woman’s life.In particular, you can still often find various strict regulations regarding the nutrition of a nursing mother. For this reason, some women even refuse to breastfeed their baby for fear of not coping with the recommended diet.
All mothers understand that it is desirable to eat varied, healthy food while breastfeeding. At the same time, the majority of women in Russia, according to our survey, believe that this is associated with a complex process of food preparation and difficult choice of products for their diet.However, the experience of foreign experts in the field of nutrition of lactating women shows that even food that is widely available to everyone and does not require labor-intensive preparation can be healthy and nutritious. For example, the International Dairy League mentions such products as cheese, yogurt, whole grain bread or crackers, tomatoes and Brussels sprouts, fresh fruit, whole or diced vegetables, eggs, nuts. In terms of nutritional value, a few small snacks of this type of meal can be equal to three whole meals.Therefore, it may be convenient for a nursing mom to take a plate of healthy snacks with her every time she settles down to feed her baby, instead of preparing a lot of meals for several main meals.
Food for a nursing mother should be:
• healthy – for example, whole grains, foods that are typical for the area in which the family lives, fresh fruits and vegetables, meat products without excessive added spices, etc.;
• high in calories – for example, dairy and meat products with a normal fat content, vegetable oils, etc.;
• so that the mother can hold it with one hand and support the baby with the other – for example, sandwiches, cookies, crackers, fruits, sliced ​​and whole vegetables, etc . ;
• easy to prepare – so that it can be frozen or reheated several times, not perishable.
Although the generally accepted recommendation is for a breastfeeding woman to consume 2,700 kcal per day (which is 500 kcal more than a non-pregnant and non-breastfeeding woman), some studies have shown that, on average, during lactation, women actually consume between 2,200. and 2640 kcal per day, while maintaining excellent health, maintaining your normal weight and producing the required amount of milk of the optimal composition for the baby.The minimum acceptable level of energy consumption for a nursing mother is 1800 kcal per day. However, moms who maintain these calorie levels per day are advised to choose foods with a high nutritional value and consider additional sources of vitamins and minerals in their diets.
Since most moms don’t systematically count calories in their diets, a simple piece of advice can be given to them – trust your appetite and try to eat every time they feel hungry.
If the mother adheres to an adequate diet and does not have bad eating habits, then she does not need to change anything while breastfeeding. There are no products that must necessarily be present in the diet of a nursing woman, such as the most popular myth in Russia – about the indispensable presence of tea with milk in the daily diet of a nursing mother. There are also no products that should be excluded without fail for all nursing mothers. While there are always exceptions, most breastfeeding moms find that in moderation they can consume almost all of their favorite foods, including chocolate and spicy foods, without any negative effects on their baby or lactation.
Above all else, a mother’s varied diet can be an advantage for her baby, as there is The meals that the mother eats affect the aroma and flavor of the milk, thus providing the baby with a variety of flavors and preparing him to receive complementary foods from the family table in due time. There are studies according to which, the milk of nursing mothers 1-2 hours after they ate natural garlic, acquired a slight garlic smell. However, when feeding, the children did not show signs of anxiety, but rather sucked more willingly and sucked more milk for feeding.Thus, the variety of tastes in breast milk can positively influence the taste preferences of the baby in the future – thanks to breastfeeding, babies usually eat different foods equally well.
So, most moms can eat by following their normal diet. But despite this, there are still meaningless recommendations for severely limiting the diet for nursing mothers; and mothers, each time with signs of anxiety on the part of the baby, begin to think that the reason is that they “ate something wrong.”While most cultures advise nursing moms to avoid certain foods, these foods vary greatly from location to location. For example, Chinese women and women in Southeast Asia try to avoid cold drinks, believing that they are harmful to their children; Spanish women are advised to avoid eating chili, tomatoes and pork while breastfeeding, and some African American women do not eat onions. In Australia, breastfeeding mothers are wary of cabbage, chocolate, beans, onions and spicy foods because they believe these foods cause colic, gas, diarrhea and rashes in breastfed babies.
Some babies do show individual reactions to certain foods in their mothers’ diets. However, the foods that trigger the reaction are different for each mom-to-baby pair. In this regard, it makes no sense to recommend that the mother avoid any standard set of products, because in the overwhelming majority of cases, a strict restriction of the mother’s usual diet will not reduce the baby’s anxiety.
According to a number of authors, the mother’s gas production does not affect the baby’s gas production, since gas in the mother’s intestines is mainly formed due to the interaction of fiber and intestinal bacteria.Neither gas nor fiber passes into breast milk. Likewise, highly acidic foods do not change the pH level of breast milk.
When deciding on the inclusion of a particular product in the diet of a nursing woman, it is important to take into account the family’s allergic history. If one of the parents has a food allergy, then the probability of developing an allergy in a child is about 30%, and if both parents suffer from allergies, then the child’s chances of inheriting a tendency to allergic reactions are already 60%.
Food allergies may not appear immediately, but over time.In this regard, if a baby is suspected of a tendency to food allergies, it is advisable for a nursing mother to keep a food diary, that is, write down what she usually eats. In the event that a child has any allergic reaction, a nursing woman can remove 1-2 products from her diet according to the food diary for at least two to three weeks and monitor the child’s reaction to determine the allergen.
The most common food allergens are protein foods.These include milk, soy, egg white, fish, wheat, nuts, corn, citrus fruits, tomatoes, and some spices. Studies have documented that protein molecules can pass entirely into breast milk. For most children, this ingestion of proteins is not a problem, but sometimes it can cause a reaction in children with a predisposition to allergies.
It should also be borne in mind that the food or medicine that the mother uses can affect the color of the milk due to natural or artificial colors that are contained in these products, and, accordingly, the color of the baby’s urine may change.This usually does not affect the well-being of the baby in any way.
Still, if a child tends to react to certain foods from the mother’s diet, how can the reaction be expressed?
• restlessness during or after feeding,
• inconsolable crying for a long time,
• sleep disturbances,
• unexpected awakening with obvious discomfort,
• diarrhea,
• blood in stools,
• dry skin,
• eczema, dermatitis, rash,

urticaria,
• nasal congestion or snotty,
• heavy or hoarse breathing,
• cough.
At the same time, it must be remembered that a reaction is more likely to what the child receives directly, and not from mother’s milk – since sometimes mothers give children various teas, liquids, medicines, additional food, which, in turn, can provoke a reaction from the outside child. If a baby’s reaction to breastfeeding began precisely after the introduction of some additional drugs, fluids or food, you can exclude these foods from the baby’s diet for at least a week or longer, unless these substances are prescribed by a doctor for medical reasons.
# national project demography89

6 products that can increase anxiety and anxiety symptoms

An estimated one in five adults have anxiety disorder. Unfortunately, malnutrition can also aggravate this condition. Foods high in sugar or caffeine are the most dangerous to health and affect the functioning of the brain.

Did you know that many ailments can be cured simply by changing your diet? Unfortunately, by choosing processed products, we deprive ourselves of the good effects of food on the body.There are several foods to cut out of your diet today to help reduce anxiety.

Foods, the frequent consumption of which can cause anxiety

1. White bread.

You’ve probably heard about the benefits of avoiding carbohydrate-rich foods such as white bread and refined white rice. The reason for this is because all of these processed foods contain refined sugars. Not only do they not affect your waistline (for the worse), they can also change your mood.Rapid fluctuations in blood sugar levels are associated with anxiety. So replace white bread with whole grain bread and opt for brown rice.

2. Chocolate.

Few people don’t like chocolate. Why do you feel like eating something sweet when you’re stressed? Chocolate, especially milk chocolate, contains both sugar and caffeine. Thanks to these ingredients, you can feel anxiety and causeless restlessness. Instead, try dark bitter chocolate, which has less sugar and is unlikely to make you run for another bite.

3. Ketchup.

Tomatoes are great, but did you know that ketchup has the same amount of sugar as 1/2 cup vanilla ice cream? All of these extra carbs affect blood sugar levels and can exacerbate anxiety. If you are very fond of ketchup, add it in small amounts and eat it rarely.

4. Alcohol.

Alcohol is known to depress the nervous system, which is why many people drink to relax.However, the consequences can backfire, primarily causing sleep disturbance. A lack of sleep and an increased level of anxiety are most directly related. Definitely a glass of herbal tea would be a better way to relax than a bottle of beer.

5. Artificial sweeteners.

Aspartame is one of the most commonly used artificial sweeteners and inhibits the production of serotonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that is essential for managing anxiety and mood.For example, if you drink diet sodas containing artificial sweeteners every day, you may experience sleep disturbances, moodiness, tension, and anxiety.

6. Coffee.

Coffee is a favorite drink of many of us because it contains a lot of caffeine. This drink helps many to wake up and be actively engaged in business. However, high amounts of caffeine can cause palpitations and anxiety attacks if consumed in large doses.It’s the same with energy drinks – they can have 4 times more caffeine than the same cup of coffee!

90,000 How a vegan diet affects intelligence and brain development

• Zaria Gorvett
• BBC Future

February 1, 2020

Photo Credit, Getty Images

for the brain nutrients. Does this affect vegans’ ability to think?

The idea that avoiding meat is bad for our brains is intuitive.Yes, anthropologists for many years continue to argue about exactly how our distant ancestors ate, but many scientists believe that for the development of such a unique organ like our brain, it took a lot of bones to suck.

Some even believe that it was meat that made us human.

One of the reasons their arguments are based is that the mind costs us dearly: the brain consumes about 20% of all daily calories, although its weight is only 2% of our body weight.

And where is the easiest place to find that unimaginable variety of fats, amino acids, vitamins and minerals that this fastidious organ requires? Of course, in the meat of the animals that have already collected this entire set for us!

And although it is difficult to imagine that our ancestors abandoned meat in favor of turnips, today the picture is completely different.

According to the latest statistics, there are now about 375 million vegetarians on the planet. In the West, veganism has removed the stigma of the hippie and has become one of the fastest growing trends of the new millennium (for example, in the United States, the number of vegans grew by 600% between 2014 and 2017).

Meanwhile, in India, eating without meat has been a completely common thing since the 6th century BC.

Photo author, Getty Images

Photo caption,

Some even try to teach pets to vegetarianism.Opponents accuse them of animal cruelty

On the one hand, recent concerns about nutritional gaps in plant-based diets have spawned intimidating headlines, such as warning that a vegan diet can inhibit brain development and cause irreparable damage to the human nervous system.

In 2016, experts from the German Nutrition Society categorically stated that a vegan diet is not recommended for children, pregnant or lactating women and adolescents.A 2018 follow-up study confirmed this claim.

In Belgium, you can go to jail for forcing children to eat vegan.

But, on the other hand, if abstaining from meat consumption really had an effect on the human brain, we probably would have already noticed it?

So is veganism really hurting our intelligence or are we just afraid of something we don’t know much about?

Ideally, to test the effects of a vegan diet on the brain, take a randomly selected group of people and ask half of them to stop eating animal products. And see what happens. But not a single such study has yet been conducted.

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Photo caption,

100% vegan food – sounds proud. But is everything so good with this food?

The only study that was even partially perfect was conducted in Kenya, where 555 schoolchildren were fed according to this scheme: one third was given meat soup, the second third was milk and another third was soup with vegetable oil or no soup at all.And so on for seven school years.

Test subjects were tested before and after the experiment – to compare the intelligence of representatives of the three groups. It is worth noting that due to economic difficulties in the country, most of the children were de facto vegetarians before the experiment began.

To the surprise of the scientists, tests showed that children who were given meat soup every day significantly outperformed their peers in intelligence by the end of the study. In addition, their arithmetic ability was the best among the three groups, but comparable to children who were given vegetable oil soup.

Of course, more research is needed to make sure that this is how it all works. In addition, it is not known if this will be the case for children from developed countries.

Nonetheless, this raises, to put it mildly, intriguing questions about whether veganism can hold back children’s development.

There are actually several essential brain nutrients that plants and mushrooms simply do not have.

Creatine, carnosine, taurine, omega-3, heme iron, and vitamins B12 and D3 are usually found only in foods that are made from animal products (although they can be synthesized in the laboratory or extracted from such non-animal products, like algae, bacteria or lichen, and made into food additives).

Some others can be found in vegan food, but in miniscule amounts: for example, to get the minimum amount of vitamin B6 (1. 3 mg) you need every day from one of the richest plant sources, potatoes, you need to eat about 750 grams of it …

For potato lovers this may not be bad, but still not very practical.

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Photo caption,

On a vegan diet, you need to eat 750 grams of potatoes a day to reach the minimum recommended dose of vitamin B6 – if you do not get it from other sources

And although our body can to create some of these essential substances from other ingredients in our food, its ability is not enough to fully satisfy all needs.

It was found that vegetarians and vegans have a reduced level of all the nutrients listed above. And in some cases, such a deficit is not the exception, but the norm.

It is currently a mystery to us how this deficiency affects the lives of vegans. But some recent research offers us some clues.

“I believe there are a number of direct consequences of the current popularity of plant-based diets,” says Taylor Wallis, nutritionist and CEO of nutritional advisory firm Think Healthy Group.

“The point is not that plant foods are inherently harmful, they are not. But I don’t think we are explaining enough to people that some nutrients are mainly found in animal products.”

One of the most well-known problems for vegans is getting enough vitamin B12, which is only found in animal products such as eggs and meat.

Other species extract it from bacteria that live in their digestive system or in excrement – they either digest them directly or eat their own feces, which, unfortunately (or fortunately, depends on the point of view), is impossible for humans.

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Photo caption,

At first glance, it seems that vegans have a variety of foods. But the brain does not get everything it needs from it

To understand how important vitamin B12 is for the brain, look what happens when we do not get enough of it. For children, a B12 deficiency can have serious consequences.

“There have been several tragic cases where a child’s brain did not develop properly because the parents were poorly informed vegans,” says Benton.

In one case, the child could not sit, could not smile. In another case, the children simply fell into a coma.

In older age, the amount of B12 in a person’s blood is directly related to his IQ, intelligence quotient.

In old age, one study found that the brains of people with low B12 levels are six times more likely to decrease than those who do not.

Yet low B12 levels are common among vegans.One British study found that half of the vegans surveyed were deficient.

In some regions of India, this problem is endemic, possibly due to the prevalence of vegetarianism there.

Iron is another rare ingredient in typical vegan diets. Among other things, it plays an important role in mental development and is necessary for maintaining brain health throughout life.

For example, one 2007 study found that iron supplementation in women led to a significant (five to sevenfold) increase in their intellectual capacity.

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It is very important for vegans to take supplements that compensate for the lack of nutrients in their bodies from animal products, experts say

It is surprisingly easy to slip into an iron deficiency in the body. It is estimated that up to 2 billion people have it, making it the most common nutrient deficiency worldwide.

Vegans are especially susceptible to it, since heme iron, the most easily absorbed by the body, can only be found in animal proteins.

One German study found that 40% of the vegans surveyed by scientists consumed less than the recommended daily intake of such iron.

Vegans are also often deficient in vitamin D3, omega-3 unsaturated fatty acids, selenium, iodine and folate.

Although our bodies produce vitamin D3 when exposed to direct sunlight, it does not compensate vegans for the amount they lack.

During the winter months, omnivores in Britain have almost 40% more vitamin D3 in their blood than vegans.

Of course, some of these substances can be obtained in the form of dietary supplements. Others, however, are so little known that vegans have hardly even heard of them, let alone understood exactly what their bodies lack.

For example taurine. This mysterious amino acid is one of the most abundant in our brains, where it is believed to underlie several important processes – for example, the regulation of the number of neurons.

It is often added to energy drinks due to the belief (probably false) that it gives the brain an immediate cognitive boost.

Although a small amount of taurine is found in some dairy products, its main source is meat and seafood.

“Some species have the ability to produce enough taurine in the body,” says Yang Yen Wu, a biomedical scientist at Florida Atlantic University (USA). “But humans are almost unable to do this.”

For this reason, vegans tend to have less taurine in their bodies. So far, no one has studied how this affects their cognitive abilities.

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Photo caption,

The vegan diet is, in a sense, an experiment on yourself

But, based on what we know about the role of taurine in the brain, Wu recommends vegans to take taurine tablets – after all in vegetables, this substance is simply not there.

In fact, our lack of knowledge of what our brains need to be healthy can turn into a big problem for vegans. After all, it is difficult to add to your diet what scientists have not yet discovered.

“There is so much unknown in this,” says Nathan Kofnas, a biologist at Oxford University. and risk yourself. ”

Take choline: in the brain, it produces acetylcholine, which is needed for many tasks, including the transfer of information between nerve cells. It is the most important substance for our ability to think (even insects have it in their tiny brains), and the body itself cannot produce enough of it.

But it’s a very poorly researched nutrient, Wallis says. “It wasn’t until the late 1990s that we began to consider it an important (food-derived) element.”

Some vegan foods contain some choline, but the main sources are eggs, beef and seafood.

In fact, even on a normal diet, 90% of Americans don’t get enough of it. According to an unpublished study by Wallis, vegetarians consume the lowest of all demographic groups, and this should cause concern, the scientist is convinced.

Photo Credit, Getty Images

Photo Caption,

Vegans can get their protein from alternative sources like soy, but soy doesn’t have choline or creatine.

In other cases, we know even less. For example, creatine is a white, loose substance that is often found in fitness cocktails. Its natural function in the body is to supply our cells with energy, which is why it is respected by the regulars of fitness clubs.

But it is also important for the brain. Research shows that increasing its intake has a number of benefits – for example, reducing mental fatigue and improving recognition memory.Not so long ago, creatine began to be used as a “mind pill”.

Neither vegetables nor mushrooms contain creatine – so this is a problem for vegans and vegetarians: their bodies are known to lack creatine.

Scientists wondered if creatine deficiency would slow down development in humans. In one study, they tested how the intellectual abilities of vegetarians and those who eat everything changed five days after starting supplements.

“We found that vegetarians were particularly good at this,” says David Benton of Swansea University, who led the study.

But with omnivores, little has changed. And this may indicate that they had enough creatine in their brains before.

However, Caroline Rae, who led another study, says there is little evidence to support the need for creatine supplementation. This can lead to unforeseen consequences – for example, to a decrease in the ability of the brain to produce this substance on its own.

“I have long suggested that creatine supplementation might be helpful in preparing for exams, but it would be interesting to find out what happens to people after they stop taking creatine – if their intellectual capacity is inhibited.”

Finally, the brain mostly stores creatine for itself, so it’s unclear if vegans really need extra creatine.

Creatine from food may only be used by the brain in extreme cases, such as stress.

However, Kofnas is concerned about the potential creatine deficiency in vegans.

“It can make a big difference in your life,” he says, referring to the intellectual shifts in vegans taking creatine supplements.

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Photo caption,

Creatine, carnosine, taurine, omega-3, heme iron and vitamins B12 and D3 are usually found only in animal products

What is the verdict?

“I think more research is needed on the health and nutrition of vegans,” says Heather Russell, a nutritionist at the Vegan Society, a British charity. who are very suitable for a vegan diet. “

Brain and cardiovascular health are inextricably linked, and vegans tend to have healthier hearts.

“I tell people all the time that if you want to become a vegan or a vegetarian, that’s okay,” Wallis says. “Of course, I have nothing against it. But there are about 40 essential nutrients. So vegans should study this topic well. to understand what their brains need. ”

Moreover, some of the nutrients that vegans lack (choline, creatine, taurine and carnosine) need to be taken in fairly large amounts – here you cannot do with one tablet.

Benton agrees. “I’m sure that if you are knowledgeable, careful and committed to eating healthily, if your personality is consistent with this passion, then it is quite possible to be a vegan without harm to your health,” he says. with nutritional deficiencies “.

Kofnas has a harder view of this. While vegans can take supplements, it’s unrealistic to expect all of them to do so, he said.

On this basis, he finds the current plant-based trend unsettling, albeit with sympathy for the arguments for such a diet.

Without a doubt, veganism can lead to deficiencies in iron and vitamin B12, and without a doubt, this deficiency affects your intellectual capacity, “he emphasizes.

Photo Credit, Getty Images

Photo caption,

Mahatma Gandhi, hereditary vegetarian, he tasted meat only once in his life – and he did not like it

Afterword

It is said that the national hero of India, Mahatma Gandhi, a hereditary vegetarian, as a teenager, under the influence of friends decided to try meat.