Can eating less increase stress and anxiety?

Question

I'm trying to lose weight and lower cholestoral at the same time so I've switched my diet drastically to mostly apples, celery, orange juice, cheerios, and things of that nature. However my anxiety seems to be getting worse and I tend to freak out more about health and other things (last night I couldn't go to sleep till 7 AM). My mom says it's because I'm weak and wait too long between meals (usually seven to twelve hours). Is my diet also a contributing factor?

Answer 1

Don't starve yourself!!! this can make you unhealthy and will do no good to lose weight and keep it off.

You are exactly correct, it's called a sugar drop. When your sugar levels go down, your body does not have the catalyst it needs. THe best thing to do without risking your weightloss is to eat lot's of fruit. pineapple, apples, peaches, pears, strawberries. As much as you can.

Another thing. Eating less often isn't the right way to lose weight. You don't need to be hungry. This is when your body starts breaking down muscle mass to produce protein.

Here is a great weightloss program that worked for me:

Drink lot's of water all day-don't chug, just drink.

Eat 5 small meals a day...eat them abnormally slow, and eat till you don't feel hungry, but not till you feel full. Try to make the morning and brunch meals to have as much protein as you can and as little fat(it's better if you can get shakes. Make your third meal a normal one--tacos, pizza, whatever. Make your fourth a salad with a small amount of lowfat meat in it. make your fifth meal have lot's of protein, but make it a normal, but healthy meal, like steak and potatoes. Always be sure to stay away from unsaturated fats. Try to soak up the grease off your pizza and things like that.

Always excercise in the morning before your first meal. The key is not to do some random push-yourself-workout routine. You should excercise the same amount of time each day, like 30 minutes. While you're in that routine, do all the same exercises, but each time, push yourself a little harde, not faster, just harder. Don't go over the average time per day though.

The whole key to this diet is to make it routine. change your meals everyday, but keep all the times, and exercises the same. Make sure you believe in yourself.

Answer 2

Not eating enough can cause your metabolism to slow down, making you tired and less able to handle stress. It's a double edged sword because you want to eat less to loose weight, but then your metabolism slows, so loosing weight becomes more difficult. Exercise is the best solution to that because it raises your metabolism, and increases your energy level. You don't need to wait so long between meals. You should eat small meals four times a day and have a snack in between. The snack could be an apple, some carrots or what ever you've been eating. You should figure out how many calories you need every day to maintian the weight that you want to be at and include the fact that you are exercising, so you will need more calories than a sedentary person. Then try to eat that amount. But don't freak out about your food. It's a long term goal, it's a life style. Eat now the way you should be eating all the time. Don't eat to loose weight, eat to be healthy, eat to be at the weight you want to be. It will take time, but you want to live a healthy life, not just suddenly be a super model. One mistake here or there won't ruin everything. One important thing you need to learn is to accept yourself for all your faults. No one is perfect and I bet everyone cheats on their diet now and then. I certainly do. Get over it and move on.

Answer 3

Exercise lowers cholesterol, anxiety and stress. I'd say eat moderate, cut your normal portions back, and take a walk 5 days a week. I've had clients come off of cholesterol meds, anxiety meds, lower their stress, stop diabetes meds, etc. just for walking or some kind of exercise, it helps just as much emotionally as it does physically.

Answer 4

Yeah, it sounds like your blood sugar levels are going up and down, which causes drastic mood swings. It's better to eat balanced meals, smaller portions, and eat several times a day so that your blood sugars and energy level remain steady. Also, you need to add protein to your diet. Dieting in an unhealthy way will make you feel weak, hungry and very irritable. I'm happy for you for taking these steps to get healthy!

Answer 5

I find exercise reduces stress a lot more than diet. Do a 2 or 3 mile walk every day and see if it helps.

Answer 6

u cant do crash diet.. for my opinion.. try to eat same food as usual. but make it a small portion.. if u really into vegie style.. dont push it to much.. change your mind setting from lose weight to healty eating style.. remember.. small portion!!

Answer 7

Check out (http://www.reducingstress.net ) there is a lot of great articles and expert advice on the subject there.