Foods to eat (and avoid) to reduce anxiety
Are you feeling happy, nervous, angry, sad or tired? In traditional Chinese medicine, we believe that the foods you eat can directly contribute to your energy level and mood. When you eat a food, all the enzymes, nutrients, vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, fats and DNA are infused into your cells. The DNA of that food also shares its information – its way of being, its tendencies, everything about it. Food also can activate hormones in our bodies. As a result, every food has the power to affect your body and mood.
For people with anxiety, grounding foods can help them relax. Here are a few examples:
Root vegetables
Root vegetables like garlic, onions, potatoes and yams grow below the soil. They soak up the nutrients in the earth and, as a result, acquire a very earthy quality. People who are anxious, not present in the moment or spacey would do well to have more of these grounding foods. Root vegetables will keep them calmer and more stable.
Brown Rice
Brown rice grows near the ground, and so it is grounding and relaxing. It’s a great food if you want to feel calmer. Alternatively, quinoa is uplifting and energizing. It grows thousands of feet above sea level in the Andes Mountains, where the air is thin and it’s difficult to breathe and live. Quinoa also has to have great strength to survive there. Scientists have found it is a complete, hearty protein. And what is protein good for… strength!
Beef
Black Angus cows are super strong but mellow with a moderate energy level. For these reasons, this beef is great for reducing anxiety because it’s grounding and even makes us want to lay around all day.
Fish
Fish are docile. They “go with the flow” and don’t enjoying fighting. Eating fish helps a person to relax, mellow out, become more peaceful and avoid confrontations. People who are normally nervous or aggressive may do well to incorporate more fish into their diet.
(Avoid) Chicken
If you are a nervous person, you really shouldn’t be eating a lot of chicken. While full of vitality and energy, chickens are hyper and nervous. Studies in nutrigenomics show that when we eat them, their DNA informs our cells how to behave.
The energetics of food is standard in traditional Chinese medicine, but you don’t have to be a practitioner to incorporate these ideas into your daily life. Little by little, food can change everything. This is the power of food.