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• Cutting back on coffee to almost zero. Every once in a while I'll have a quarter of a cup of coffee, but it is much better for my physical and mental health if I do not have any at all. Coffee can deplete the body of magnesium. I know even a half a cup can cause me to get more edgy and my muscles to tense up. Even as little as a half a cup can cause me to sleep less soundly during the night and to sleep for a shorter duration than I do on nights when I don't have any coffee during the day.
  
  
• I've noticed that low fat dairy products can bring on a bouts of anxiety for no apparent reason for me if I have them every day. I'm not entirely sure why, but I have a couple of theories. I think it is partly because calcium can be an antagonist for magnesium, so the high levels in the dairy products may be throwing off my magnesium levels, which keeps my adrenaline flowing too much. I also tend to get irritable bowel syndrome if I have significant amounts of dairy, especially cold milk. The IBS throws off my digestion and prevents my body from properly absorbing all of the nutrients it needs to function properly, causing biochemical anomalies that negatively impact my nervous system.
  
  Many doctors think people suffering from stress develop irritable bowel syndrome, but in my case, and perhaps others, it was the other way around. When I have problems with my digestion, I don't seem to be able to absorb nutrients properly, including magnesium, and I start feeling stressed out. I personally think doctors attribute way too many health disorders to "stress" when often a person's diet is what is causing them to be stressed.
  
  
• I also don't do well with a lot of whole grains. I know who grains are supposed to be a health food, and perhaps they are for some people, but not for me. Whole grains are known to reduce fat absorption and lower estrogen levels. For a lot of people this may be a good thing, especially women at risk for breast cancer, but not for people like me. My family has a history of osteoporosis and other conditions related to too low of estrogen levels. For more on this, read my sections on Hyaluronic acid and environmental factors - the part about estrogen.
  
  When eat more than a half of a bowl of whole grains a day, I noticed that I literally will start to grow facial hair after a few days. I suspect this may be at least in part because the grains suppress estrogen, a female hormone. In any case, having facial hair on a woman does not seem like a good thing, so I go easy on the whole grains. Besides the facial hair and anxiety issues, I've also noticed my muscles get more tense and I have problems with insomnia when I have a lot of whole grains in my diet.
  
  (Whole grains are often high in phytic acid, which can reduce zinc absorption. Zinc deficiency has been linked to acne in a number of studies.)
  
  
• Eating lots of nuts and vegetables high in magnesium, especially leafy green vegetables. See my main section on anxiety and depression and the links to magnesium deficiency for more on this topic.
  

  
  
• Getting more saturated fats in my diet seemed to help. Again a diet too high in saturated fats that may raise cholesterol levels is not good for many people, but the medical profession is finally realizing that a diet that causes too low of cholesterol levels are just as bad as when levels are too high. For more on this topic, read my section on very low of cholesterol levels - the part about the links to anxiety. I used to have remarkably low cholesterol levels, but since I changed my diet to get more saturated fat, I've gotten my cholesterol levels more into into the low end of normal range. (Click here for my page on tips to raise your total and HDL cholesterol levels.)
  
  I don't think it is a coincidence that my anxiety levels decreased as my cholesterol levels increased. What happened to me seemed to match up pretty well with all of the recent major medical study findings on low cholesterol being linked to anxiety and depression.
  
  One of the things I do when I start to feel nervous for no apparent reason is to eat a low sugar, high fat food like nuts. Often this is enough to make me feel calmer pretty quickly.
  
  A recent study found that people who eat salads with full fat dressing absorb more vitamins and minerals than those eating nonfat or low fat salad dressings.
  
  
• Cutting back on foods with salicylates, especially most spices. It is a well known trick in many popular diet books that eating foods like cayenne pepper can increase a person's metabolism. While spices do seem to work to lose weight, I think they also make people more edgy. Interestingly, yogi masters, who strive for calmness and peace of mind, teach their students to avoid spicy foods as they feel these types of foods are too stimulating for the body and mind. While I'm personally not an advocate of a vegetarian diet or a traditional yoga diet, I think there are some nuggets of wisdom in yogi diet teachings. I know that whenever I eat foods with a lot of spices, I do seem to have more issues with anxiety.
  
  
• Not eating too many acid forming foods. I've noticed that when I eat a lot of acid forming foods, like pickles or yogurt, I'll get more jittery and nervous. A recent study from researchers in Germany found that an acid load in the body can cause a magnesium deficiency. I suspect this is because magnesium is an alkaline mineral, and one of the minerals the body utilizes to try to neutralize the body fluids when they have too much of an acid balance. So when the body is in an acidic state, a magnesium deficiency may results. Magnesium is the mineral that relaxes muscles and turns off adrenaline, so when it is in short supply, muscles stay tight, adrenaline levels are high and an acid stomach may cause nausea from an acid stomach.
  
  The best way I've found to reduce acid levels is to make a broth or drink from magnesium rich, alkaline foods. Smoothies made with bananas, apple juice and coconut milk usually work pretty good. Broth or juice made from vegetables, especially lots of green vegetables, also seems to be very effective.