The Top 6 Vitamins to Reduce Anxiety Naturally

The Top 6 Vitamins to Turn Off Anxiety

Anxiety is essentially a nervous system disorder where your body gets trapped in a state of fear, often referred to as the “fight or flight” response. When your mind perceives a threat, real or imagined, your body starts releasing stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. These hormones increase your blood pressure, make your heart beat faster, and cause changes in your breathing so that you’re ready to either escape the situation or confront the threat as part of a survival instinct.

Unfortunately, your mind can’t always distinguish between real and imaginary threats. If you’re constantly worrying about finances, stressed by difficult relationships, or overwhelmed by negative news from the internet or TV, your body and mind can perceive these as constant dangers. Over time, this locks you into a perpetual “fight or flight” state.

This chronic anxiety can lead to various symptoms, such as:

• Sleeping Problems: Difficulty turning off your thoughts and establishing a proper sleep cycle.

• Constant Problem-Solving: A continuous stream of mental chatter as your mind tries to analyze and fix problems.

• Memory Issues: High stress levels can make it difficult to recall memories, causing you to forget things more often, especially if you’re not sleeping well.

• Lump in the Throat: Some people experience tightness in the throat, causing a sensation of a lump and making their voice sound higher or softer as anxiety intensifies.

• Nausea: Anxiety can also lead to feelings of nausea.

• Negative Mindset: Chronic anxiety often causes people to focus on the negative aspects of life, falling into a pattern of pessimism.

• Avoidance Behavior: You may start avoiding normal life situations, like social events, because you don’t feel equipped to handle the emotions they provoke.

If anxiety persists for years, it can increase the risk of developing serious health problems, such as diabetes, heart disease, and hormonal imbalances, due to the wear and tear on your adrenal glands.

In this guide, I’m going to share the top 6 vitamins and nutrients that can help turn off anxiety by calming your body’s stress response. These vitamins, along with some simple lifestyle changes, can address the root causes of anxiety and help you regain a sense of calm and balance.

1. Vitamin B1 (Thiamine)

Vitamin B1 is often depleted in those suffering from anxiety. Parts of your brain, like the amygdala and hippocampus, use up B1 stores to generate energy during periods of stress or emotional distress. Consuming too much sugar, refined foods, or caffeinated drinks can also deplete your Vitamin B1 levels.

To replenish Vitamin B1, start taking 2-3 tablespoons of unfortified nutritional yeast daily. You can mix it into yogurt, soups, stews, or sprinkle it over salads. Within minutes of consuming it, you’ll start to feel calmer and more relaxed. This is because B-vitamins are water-soluble and quickly absorbed by the body. The B-vitamins help to balance the autonomic nervous system, turning off the “fight or flight” response and reducing anxiety. You can also get more B1 by eating sunflower seeds, organic pork, pasture-raised eggs, and wild fish.

2. Probiotics

Your large intestine is home to many friendly microbes that help you digest food and maintain overall health. These microbes produce B-vitamins, like B1, B2, and B12, which stabilize your mood and prevent prolonged anxiety. However, these beneficial microbes can be easily destroyed by antibiotic medications, artificial sweeteners like aspartame (found in diet sodas), or non-organic produce sprayed with chemical pesticides.

To boost your gut health, start eating fermented vegetables like sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles, and kefir at least three times per week. These foods are rich in probiotics, which support the production of neurotransmitters like GABA, dopamine, and serotonin, helping you feel calm and happy.

3. Vitamin D

People with anxiety, sleeping problems, or overthinking often have high levels of cortisol, a stress hormone that keeps the body in a state of alertness. To counteract cortisol and relax, it’s essential to increase your Vitamin D levels. Spending time outdoors in the sunlight helps your body produce Vitamin D, which lowers cortisol and promotes a state of calm.

Since many people are deficient in Vitamin D due to spending too much time indoors, it’s recommended to take 10,000 IU of Vitamin D3 along with 100 mcg of Vitamin K2 daily. This combination helps balance cortisol levels and brings your body into a state of homeostasis, or balance.

4. Magnesium & Potassium

Magnesium and potassium are essential minerals that play a key role in how your cells produce energy. These minerals, primarily found in leafy green vegetables, are crucial for managing stress, preventing depression, improving sleep, and enhancing cognitive function.

Magnesium, for example, is necessary for the production of neurotransmitters like serotonin and GABA, which promote calmness and well-being. It also helps convert Vitamin B1 into its active form, further reducing tension and stress. Potassium, on the other hand, helps improve brain function and reduce the “fight or flight” response.

To boost your magnesium and potassium levels, eat more avocados and leafy greens like kale, broccoli, beet greens, collard greens, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and radishes. You can also take an electrolyte powder containing potassium citrate (1,000 mg) and magnesium citrate (120 mg) mixed in water.

5. Passionflower Tea

If you suffer from anxiety, it’s important to reduce your intake of caffeinated drinks like coffee and soda, as they can raise cortisol levels and worsen anxiety. Instead, consider drinking herbal teas like passionflower tea, which has been used for centuries to relieve stress and anxiety.

Passionflower is rich in plant compounds that boost GABA levels in the brain. GABA slows down signals in the central nervous system, helping to calm excited nerves and relax the body. Studies have shown that passionflower tea is as effective as the anti-anxiety drug Oxazepam, without the side effects. Drinking one cup of passionflower tea in the evening can promote relaxation and improve sleep quality.

6. Ashwagandha

Ashwagandha is a herbal shrub native to Asia and Africa, used for over 3,000 years to treat stress and anxiety. As an adaptogen, it helps your body adapt to stress by balancing hormones and improving how your brain and tissues respond to stressors.

Taking 1,200 mg of ashwagandha extract daily can quickly soothe nervous tension. This herb is rich in withanolides, which have been shown to lower cortisol and balance blood sugar levels, stabilizing your mood and improving sleep quality. Other adaptogens with similar effects include rhodiola, Panax ginseng, astragalus, and holy basil.

In conclusion, there are many foods and nutrients that can help turn off the “fight or flight” response and activate the “rest and digest” system, bringing your body into a state of calm and balance. While certain nutrients like B1, potassium, and magnesium are essential for stabilizing your mood, you may also need to address other root causes of anxiety to achieve lasting peace.

It’s often tempting to push through anxiety, but this approach can lead to depression and long-term health issues. Instead, take time each day to focus on relaxation and calming your body. This will improve your mental focus and allow you to accomplish tasks more effortlessly, without the need to force yourself through stressful situations.

Lifestyle Tips to Eliminate Anxiety

To further help manage anxiety, consider the following lifestyle tips:

1. Cut Out Stimulants: Reduce or eliminate caffeine from your diet, including coffee, tea, soda, energy drinks, and sugar. Caffeine raises cortisol levels, depletes Vitamin B1, and exacerbates anxiety.

2. Drink Herbal Teas: Replace caffeinated drinks with herbal teas that boost GABA, such as valerian root, lemon balm, passionflower, lavender, peppermint, and rosemary. These teas calm the nervous system and reduce anxiety.

3. Get Outside: Engage in physical activity outdoors, such as taking a slow walk in nature for 45 minutes a day. The essential oils released by trees and the steady stream of oxygen naturally calm the nervous system and turn off the fight or flight response.

4. Organize Your Space: Declutter your living and work environments by removing unnecessary items. Organizing your surroundings helps bring order to your mind, reducing anxiety.

5. Use Calming Essential Oils: Burn essential oils like ylang-ylang, black cherry, lavender, sage, and jasmine in your home. These oils release aromatic compounds that calm the nervous system.

6. Prioritize Sleep: Aim for at least 8 hours of sleep per night. Go to bed an hour earlier, turn off your phone, and focus on relaxing each muscle in your body until you drift off. Over time, this will balance cortisol levels and improve overall health.