6 Ways Stress Can Mess With Digestion
1. Snack on Nuts
Stress depletes our B vitamin stores and snacking on nuts helps replenish them. “B vitamins keep our neurotransmitters in their happy place and help us handle the fight-or-flight stress response,” says Ellen Albertson, Ph.D., R.D., a psychologist in Burlington, Vermont, and founder ofsmashyourscale.com. The potassium in nuts is also key: Penn State researchers found that a couple servings of potassium-packed pistachios a day can lower blood pressure and reduce the strain stress puts on our heart.
2. Add in Red Peppers
Pictured Recipe:Chicken Sausage and Peppers
3. Serve Salmon Twice a Week
4. Bust Out the Spinach
Pictured Recipe:Balsamic Berry Vinaigrette Winter Salad
This leafy-green veggie is rich in stress-busting magnesium. People with low magnesium levels (most of us, actually) are more likely to have elevated C-reactive protein levels-and research shows people with high CRP levels are more stressed and at a greater risk for depression. “Magnesium helps regulate cortisol and blood pressure too,” says Somer. And since magnesium gets flushed out of the body when you’re stressed, it’s crucial to get enough. Other solid magnesium sources: beans, brown rice.
5. Fill Up on Oatmeal
Pictured Recipe:Creamy Blueberry-Pecan Overnight Oatmeal
“Oatmeal is warm and comforting-and it also helps your brain generate the destressing neurotransmitter serotonin,” says Albertson. Research in theArchives of Internal Medicineshows carb-eaters felt calmer than those who shunned carbs. The carb-avoiders reported feeling more stressed. Any carb won’t do, however. Refined carbs (white bread and pasta) digest faster and spike blood sugar, messing with moods and stress. Complex carbs like oatmeal are digested more slowly and don’t spike blood sugar.
6. Enjoy Dark Chocolate
If you crave chocolate when you’re on edge, have some. Research in theJournal of Proteome Researchshowed people who ate the equivalent of an average-size candy bar (about 1.4 ounces) daily for two weeks had lower cortisol and fight-or-flight hormone levels. To reap the feel-better rewards, choose chocolate that’s at least 70 percent cocoa. And remember: dark chocolate is a high-calorie food, so mind your portions.
7. Sip Tea
Pictured Recipe:Herbal Chamomile Health Tonic
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