Targeted Nutrition: The Best Vitamins for Stress and Anxiety

About 40 million adult Americans struggle with an anxiety disorder each year. Everybody experiences stressors in everyday life ranging from mild to severe. 

Stress and anxiety put our nervous system on high alert. While low amounts of stress initiate progress, chronic stress and anxiety affect our health and overall wellbeing.

Fortunately, nutrition can keep you on track. Keep reading to learn about the best vitamins for stress and anxiety.

Antioxidant Vitamins

Vitamins A, C, and E all serve as antioxidants in the body. Antioxidants remove free radicals.

Free radicals cause oxidative stress on the body. This means that they damage cells and speed up the aging process.

While oxidative stress affects the cells and chronic stress affects the mind, the two actually connect. Research suggests that oxidative stress plays a role in high anxiety levels, anxiety disorders, and depression.

While vitamin A seems to simply remove the free radicals to help with reducing stress, C and E play bigger roles.

Vitamin C helps the amino acid tryptophan convert to serotonin. This neurotransmitter regulates mood and helps to stabilize sensations of anxiety.

Stressful times cause the body to use more vitamin E, sometimes depleting its stores. Nutrient deficiencies such as this can further anxiety. Replenishing the vitamin allows it to take extra care of the cells by not only removing free radicals but also protecting the tissue in your nervous system.

B Complex Vitamins

Eight separate vitamins constitute this complex. They all play crucial roles in the body and vitacrate.com supplements contain them. Each offers unique properties and some contribute to calming the mind.

B1 (Thiamine)

Thiamine assists the immune system, creating conditions that can cope with stressors more easily. It also reduces neuroinflammation and triggers new cell growth in the hippocampus, where we regulate emotions.

B3 (Niacin)

Vitamin B3, like C, plays a crucial role in metabolizing tryptophan to create serotonin. It works well in regulating anxiety similar to a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI).   

B5 (Pantothenic Acid)

The adrenal glands need support from vitamin B5 to produce the stress hormone, cortisol. While we typically want to lower the levels of cortisol, it does serve us during stress.

This vitamin triggers gluconeogenesis in the liver, a process that converts protein stores to glucose. While this does not necessarily reduce stress, it does equip us to respond to it better.

B9 & B12 (Folic Acid and Cyanocobalamin)

Both vitamins contribute to keeping our nervous system healthy which helps limit stress and anxiety. This B team works together to directly improve mood in the brain.

The chemicals produced when we feel happy also calm the nerves. These vitamins do not come as readily in nature as some of these others, especially B12 for vegetarians, so supplementing them is important.

Vitamin D

Sunshine provides humans with most of their vitamin D. When you cannot get enough rays, you should supplement this vitamin to keep yourself feeling good. Not only does lack of this vitamin cause the blues, but it can also lead to anxiety.

Take Your Vitamins for Stress and Anxiety

Supplement your vitamins for stress and anxiety. Do not allow these conditions to take you over and ruin your quality of life.

Looking for alternative ways to manage your mind? Establish a zen life with the help of our meditation page!