The Mediterranean diet would reduce anxiety

Fighting stress also involves the plate. Researchers from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in the United States show that changing our diet can reduce anxiety. In an animal test, they see the benefits of the Mediterranean diet on our psychological well-being. This diet is based on a high consumption of fruit and vegetables, whole grains, fish and reduced amounts of meat and dairy products.

A study done on monkeys

“It is really difficult to reduce or control the stressors in our lives “, notes Carol A. Shively, lead author of this new study. To be less stressed, we must therefore act on other elements that have an impact on our level of anxiety. To do this, the researcher conducted research on food. Previous work had already shown that eating lots of fruits and vegetables is associated with a reduced perceived stress level. In this new study, Carol A. Shively tested the links between diet and anxiety in macaques.

The necessary balance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems

38 animals were used for this research. The researchers fed them an equivalent of the Western or Mediterranean diet: the first was made up of proteins and fats of animal origin, the second was derived mainly from plant products. The animals were subjected to situations that generate acute or chronic stress. Meanwhile, the scientists studied the changes in their sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic. Their roles are opposite: the sympathetic nervous system accelerates in case of stress, while the parasympathetic nervous system slows down the functioning of our organism. To be healthy, the activity must be distributed among them in a balanced way. The researchers also evaluated the production of cortisol in the adrenal glands, this hormone, associated with stress, becomes harmful if produced over a long period.

The beneficial effects of the Mediterranean diet

Animals fed the Mediterranean diet model were more resistant to stress. Their sympathetic nervous system activity was less than that of the parasympathetic. “In comparison, the Western diet increased the sympathetic response to stress, explique Carol A. Shively, it’s like having an alert button always active, it’s not healthyHe and his team also found that the Mediterranean diet slows the aging of the sympathetic nervous system. For her, this type of diet is a simple and inexpensive way to reduce the negative effects of stress on the population.

Stress, a threat to health

Stress increases the risk of suffering from chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease or Alzheimer’s disease. In France, statistics show that 21% of the population will suffer from anxiety at least once in their life. These disorders are twice as common in women than in men.