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Anxiety,
Panic Attacks, and Diet
A
patient came to see us at Caring Medical. She was very
anxious and experiencing what most people would call "panic
attacks." She stated that she was unable to handle her usual
work load or family issues that came up. All of a sudden,
she noticed she was feeling like a "nervous wreck." She even
reported that she occasionally had thoughts about killing
herself.
Dr.
Hauser tested the patient’s blood pH, which revealed a high
pH level (7.483), as well as an extremely low magnesium
level. Interestingly enough, we have found in our clinical
practice that high pH levels can lead to symptoms of
anxiety.
Because
magnesium is a "calming agent," low levels may also
contribute to anxiety. This patient’s case is very
interesting. She told us that four years ago she had seen a
natural medicine doctor who diagnosed her with
Candida. Her doctor told her to avoid all forms
of carbohydrates and follow a high protein diet.
She was
very faithful to this diet and rarely strayed from it.
Unfortunately, what happened to her is that she most likely
started out with a low blood pH (acidic blood) when she was
diagnosed with Candida. At first, the high protein diet made
her feel better. But because she continued with it for four
years, she pushed her blood pH into the alkaline state by
not eating any acidifying foods.
The
patient needed to eat more carbohydrates, in order to move
her pH into the more neutral zone, out of the alkaline zone.
We prescribed Vitamin C intravenously, as well as orally.
(Vitamin C is ascorbic acid.) Her diet was changed to
Giraffe
Diet
Type,
which is a high carbohydrate diet. One month later she was
90% better. She eventually needed a
Bear
Diet
Type for
long term, which is a more balanced diet. When she feels
symptoms coming on, she will adjust her diet accordingly.
She did not need any counseling or medications and she has
continued to be anxiety-free since.
Reactive
hypoglycemia
Another
condition that may lead to anxiety is reactive hypoglycemia.
By doing
Hauser Diet Type, which includes a glucose tolerance
test, we can determine how your body responds to
carbohydrates. If you start out with a very low blood sugar
level initially, and then jump up really high, this is
called reactive hypoglycemia. Most often Lion or Otter Diets
are prescribed these diets, because these people do not do
well with simple carbohydrates. These are the people who
feel really tired after eating a carbohydrate meal such as
pasta or a sandwich with a lot of bread. Protein and good
fat, which take longer to absorb, are better tolerated,
therefore, including beef, chicken, eggs, fish, turkey, and
pork with all meals makes Lions/Otters feel best.
Chronic
Insomnia
Insomnia
is a relatively common cause of anxiety. First and foremost,
we recommend that people with insomnia stop drinking
caffeine after 3 PM. In addition to that, we recommend that
you drink most of your liquids at least three hours before
you go to bed. Many times, people are up during the night
because they have to urinate. Doing these two simple things
helps a lot of people! Sometimes natural supplements can
help. Dr. Hauser may also prescribe Xyrem which is the
pharmaceutical grade of GHB that helps many people with
terrible insomnia. This is why we need to look at all
avenues to determine what causes are creating a problem for
you!
Low
cortisol levels
Your
body produces a hormone that helps you deal with stress
called cortisol. When this hormone is used up, your body has
a harder time dealing with stress. This type of stress can
lead to anxiety. By checking your cortisol levels in our
lab, we can determine if you need more of this hormone.
Cortisol levels should rise in the morning when you wake up
and decline in the evening when you go to bed. The lab test
we do here takes four specimens of salivary cortisol at four
different times during the day. If your cortisol does not
rise in the morning when it is supposed to, you probably
have a terribly hard time getting up in the morning. If your
levels are low during the day, you may be the type to fall
asleep during the afternoon.
Sometimes
we supplement with the natural Cortisol hormone (by
prescription) to help rest the gland and restore your
adrenal
system. This will help give you back your energy,
hence relieving the resultant anxiety that often accompanies
it. We also typically put these people on
Lion
or
Otter
Diet
to aid
in restoring the adrenal gland. |
