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Food, Mood and Women's Health – Be your healthiest, look and feel great!

Anxiety and panic

John Muir knows what it takes to feel calm and relaxed: get outside!

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yosemite trudy scott family
Kenny, Althea and Brad: Cares drop away in Yosemite

We were recently in Yosemite and as usual, the grandeur and beauty just takes your breath away and just leaves you feeling so relaxed, calm and totally inspired and ready for anything and everything! And I was reminded of the wonderful words of John Muir, naturalist, author, Sierra club founder and early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States.

This is one quote I’ve always loved… it was actually on our wedding invite!:

“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn.”

And this one really resonates with me too:

“Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out going to the mountains is going home; that wilderness is a necessity…”

You can read more of his wonderful quotes here.

John Muir was a wise man! Listen to his words and go and do something fun this weekend – outside! It doesn’t have to be Yosemite or any big destination – any nature and anywhere green, with or without water, can give you immediate joy! If you’re prone to the winter blues, it will lift your mood. If you’re feeling stressed or anxious it will calm you. If you’re tired it will invigorate you.

We have had no rain here for ages and it’s been lovely and sunny – which has been great as we fix up a few things around our new home. We painted the deck a lovely Navajo Red color and it’s so lovely to sit and eat lunch out there and catch some warm rays. And we’ve been gardening. Yes gardening, not doing yard work – my mom says “it’s the garden not the yard!” We have a LOT of trees and a LOT of leaves – which means a great workout picking them all up. I rake and do squats and it sure beats going to the gym because I’m outside. If we can’t get away on the weekend, this counts too…

Where will you go? And where is your favorite place in nature?

Winter blues, SAD, holiday stress and sugar

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Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) or “winter blues” is a form of depression most often associated with the lack of light during the fall and winter months. It is very common and may be associated with low serotonin levels. We often associate low serotonin with depression, however low serotonin can also be associated with: anxiety, excessive worry and feeling overly stressed. There’s evidence of seasonality in anxiety and panic attacks, just as there is with seasonal affective disorder (SAD). Another common sign of low serotonin is increased carbohydrate cravings, especially during the afternoon or evening.

Does this sound like you during the December holidays: Blah? Depressed for no reason? Stressed? Overwhelmed? Anxious? Eating tons of carbs and sugary foods? Perhaps it’s not only the stress of the holidays but is made worse by low serotonin?!

For many of my clients who are prone to having their serotonin levels decline in the winter months, if they don’t the following approaches to raise serotonin they end up with worsening depression and anxiety, and increased afternoon and evening sugar cravings.

So here are some tips to feel great during the holidays:

  • use light therapy, using a full-spectrum lamp
  • address any deficiency of vitamin D as there is evidence that it may improve seasonal anxiety and depression
  • moderate exercise raises serotonin levels and relieves anxiety and depression, so it’s important to get some exercise during the winter months – join the gym or ideally do something outdoors like skiing.
  • the amino acids tryptophan and 5-HTP, taken in supplement form are tremendously powerful for raising serotonin levels – dramatically improving depression and anxiety, and stopping those afternoon and evening cravings. If you are taking a SSRI, it’s important to work with your doctor before taking tryptophan and 5-HTP
  • eat real whole foods with good quality protein
  • eat to avoid blood sugar swings
  • avoid junk foods and sugar (made easier by doing all of the above!)
  • stay hydrated and drink enough water even if it is cold – research shows its helps to boost neurotransmitters levels

Check out some great holiday gift ideas to help with all of the above.

I live in the Sacramento area and from November onwards it’s pretty gloomy and grey. I personally feel much better mood-wise during winter when I am out telemark snow-skiing on the weekends – which appears to a combination of the exercise and being out in the bright white snow!

Holiday Gift Ideas: Antianxiety Food Solution, SpinGym & healthy food

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trudy scott and SpinGym
Here I am with the Forbes Riley and the SpinGym at SHINE 2011!

Here are some wonderful holiday gift ideas to help you handle the stress, anxiety, overwhelm, winter blues and sugar cravings that typically go along with the holidays!

The first gift idea is The Antianxiety Food Solution – How the Foods You Eat Can Help you Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood and End Cravings (June 2011) by yours truly (Trudy Scott, Food-Mood expert and certified nutritionist, and President of the National Association of Nutrition Professionals). Yes, I’m biased but I’m also on a mission to help women like you make the connection between food and mood and I want you to feel on top of the world always!

Buy one for yourself if you don’t already have one and buy one for each of your friends and family members. I’d love to hear how you enjoyed it! It’s available in major book stores, on Amazon and via www.antianxietyfoodsolution.com. You can read reviews here: Dr Winston Chung https://www.everywomanover29.com/blog/antianxiety-food-solution-review-by-dr-winston-chung/ and Chef Rachel https://www.everywomanover29.com/blog/chef-rachel-review-of-the-antianxiety-food-solution/.

The second gift idea is a Spin-gym www.spingym.com It’s an awesome workout for the arms and upper body, is a ton of fun and the brainchild of Forbes Riley. We met recently at Ali Brown’s SHINE event and her enthusiasm and passion for helping women be superfit and healthy is just awesome! I bought one and LOVE LOVE LOVE it! The picture here is me getting a demo from Forbes at the SHINE event. All I can say is: “Wow! What an incredible workout!!!” Please do let me know how much you love yours.

And the final gift ideas are food gifts or vouchers from Vital Choice and US Wellness Meats. Vital Choice offers wild, sustainable and delicious salmon, other seafood and healthy goodies. US Wellness Meats offers mail order grassfed meat and other wonderful products like pemmican! They support family farms, sustainable farming and humane practices. [Disclosure: These are my affiliate links but I use and truly love the products from US Wellness Meats and Vital Choice. I recommend them to my clients and readers because they are so great.]

So wrapping up: a book with all the facts and information so you can be educated and informed, a SpinGym to get some fun exercise and some delicious real whole food! Great combo for you and a friend! Enjoy!

Antianxiety Food Solution Review by Dr Winston Chung

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winston chung reviews antianxiety food solution by trudy scott

I am pleased to share this wonderful book review by Dr Winston Chung, MD and Child Psychiatrist, and featured the SFGate blog http://blog.sfgate.com/ City Brights which features “prominent local citizens and experts with a unique Bay Area perspective that is often enlightening, sometimes infuriating and always thought-provoking”. Dr James Lake, MD and foreword writer for my book “introduced” us.

Here are the opening paragraphs:

“Xanax, Klonopin, Ambien, cannabis, fatty or sugary ‘comfort’ foods, nicotine, wine or beer are all things that may pass our lips in an effort to calm our minds or to help sleep. Why does it seem hard to believe that healthy food choices or dietary habits could help decrease anxiety?

The Antianxiety Food Solution is a new book that describes how nutritional deficiencies or biochemical vulnerabilities may predispose one to anxiety, proposing dietary guidelines to consider for anyone looking for ways to reduce anxiety.

Author and nutrition expert Trudy Scott recommends including more high-quality vegetables, fruit and protein.

Trudy Scott, CN, is President of the National Association of Nutrition Professionals and author of this book. Trudy’s own personal journey with anxiety led to an understanding of her unique blood sugar issues and food sensitivities, and a nutrition practice that focuses on food, mood and women’s health.”

I love that his review focuses on some of the very powerful and yet simple changes you can make:

Avoid Sugar and Control Blood Sugar Swings

Avoid Caffeine, Alcohol, and Nicotine

Address Problems with Gluten and Other Food Sensitivities

and Improve Your Digestion

Dr Chung has made one thought-provoking comment that I respectfully disagree with.

Dr Chung: “To those looking for help with anxiety, I would warn against stopping or trying to replace current modalities with dietary changes. In my opinion, antianxiety food solutions should be considered as an adjunctive approach to standard treatments.”

And my response: I have worked with enough anxious people and there is enough clinical research to support that food and nutrients may not necessarily be an adjunctive approach to standard treatments. Food and nutrients and lifestyle changes can replace current modalities for many people. But I do caution everyone to work with their doctor before stopping or trying to replace current modalities and medications.

You can read the whole review here:

http://blog.sfgate.com/wchung/2011/08/18/dietary-choices-may-decrease-anxiety/

Dr Chung teaches at a community-based, non-profit hospital in San Francisco. He produced and hosted “Mind and Body” radio on KUSF, and was previously a producer and host at Pirate Cat Radio, KPDO and KUCR. His writing has appeared in the Daily Illini, the Korea Herald and the Wall Street Journal. Be sure to check out his other very interesting articles on Bright Lights of SFGate – music therapy, ADHD, Prozac and much more.

The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood and End Cravings, is now available in major books stores, at Amazon and via www.antianxietyfoodsolution.com

Pyroluria Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution

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pyroluria questionnaire trudy scott

This questionnaire will help you identify whether you might have pyroluria, a social anxiety condition. The physical and emotional symptoms below are caused by deficiencies of vitamin B6 and zinc. When you experience high levels of stress, vitamin B6 and zinc will be further depleted, so you may notice worsening symptoms and more anxiety.

Based on my review of questionnaires and results of pyroluria tests for hundreds of clients, I’ve grouped the most common or classic signs and symptoms first. I’ve also labeled the symptoms that could be directly related to low levels of vitamin B6 or zinc so you can individualize your supplements and dosages. Symptoms without these designations are due to a deficiency of both vitamin B6 and zinc. Check off any of the following signs or symptoms that apply to you:

Most Common Signs and Symptoms

1. Being anxious, shy, or fearful or experiencing inner tension since childhood, but hiding these feelings from others
2. Having bouts of depression or nervous exhaustion
3. Poor dream recall, stressful or bizarre dreams, or nightmares (low vitamin B6)
4. Excessive reactions to tranquilizers, barbiturates, alcohol, or other drugs, in which a little produces a powerful response (low vitamin B6)
5. Preferring not to eat breakfast, experiencing light nausea in the morning, or being prone to motion sickness (low vitamin B6)
6. White spots or flecks on the fingernails or opaquely white or paper-thin nails (low zinc)
7. Liquid zinc sulfate having a mild taste or tasting like water (low zinc)
8. Poor appetite or having a poor sense of smell or taste (low zinc)
9. Joints popping, cracking, or aching; pain or discomfort between the shoulder blades; or cartilage problems (low zinc)
10. Pale or fair skin or being the palest in the family, or sunburning easily, now or when younger
11. Disliking protein or having ever been a vegetarian or vegan
12. Being sensitive to bright sunlight or noise
13. Upper abdominal pain on your left side under the ribs or, as a child, having a stitch in your side as you ran
14. Frequent fatigue
15. Being prone to iron anemia or low ferritin levels
16. Tending to have cold hands or feet
17. Having frequent colds or infections, or unexplained chills or fever
18. Reaching puberty later than normal or having irregular menstruation or PMS
19. Having allergies, adrenal issues, or problems with sugar metabolism
20. Having gluten sensitivity
21. Neurotransmitter imbalances, especially low serotonin
22. For women, belonging to an all-girl family or having look-alike sisters
23. For men, having a mother from an all-girl family or a mother with look-alike sisters, or all the females in the mother’s family bearing a strong resemblance to each other
24. Avoiding stress because it upsets your emotional balance
25. Tending to become dependent on one person whom you build your life around
26. Preferring the company of one or two close friends rather than a gathering of friends; becoming more of a loner as you age
27. Feeling uncomfortable with strangers
28. Being bothered by being seated in the middle of the room in a restaurant
29. Being easily upset by criticism

Less Common Signs and Symptoms

30. Stretch marks or poor wound healing (low zinc)
31. Crowded upper front teeth, many cavities, or inflamed gums or wearing braces (low zinc)
32. Bad breath and body odor (or a sweet, fruity odor), especially when ill or stressed (low zinc)
33. Being prone to acne, eczema, herpes, or psoriasis
34. Reduced amount of hair on your head, eyebrows, or eyelashes, or prematurely gray hair
35. Difficulty recalling past events and people in your life
36. Focusing internally, on yourself, rather than on the external world
37. Tending to have morning constipation
38. Tingling sensations or muscle spasms in your legs or arms
39. Feeling stressed by changes in your routine, such as traveling or being in new situations
40. Your face looking swollen when you’re under a lot of stress
41. Cluster headaches or blinding headaches
42. One or more of the following: a psychiatric disorder, schizophrenia, high or low histamine, alcoholism, learning and behavioral disorders, autism, Down syndrome, Lyme disease (and/or coinfections), mold toxicity, heavy metals, MCAS (mast cell activation syndrome), multiple chemical sensitivities, Alice in Wonderland syndrome, introversion, Ehlers Danlos syndrome, pectus excavatum and other connective tissue disorders, mutism, dystonia, dental issues, dietary oxalate issues, vagus nerve issues

If you check off 15 or more items, especially the more common ones, it’s highly probable that you have pyroluria.

I typically start my clients with zinc (30 mg), vitamin B6 (100mg) or P5P (25mg) and evening primrose oil (1300mg), plus a good multi-vitamin (with manganese and no copper) and a multi-mineral and sometimes additional magnesium.

For the zinc I have found Opti-zinc (without copper) to be very well absorbed by most of my clients. Using the liquid zinc sulfate/zinc status test is a useful way to assess your zinc levels.

We increase zinc based on the zinc test and the vitamin B6 based on dream recall. And obviously social anxiety symptoms too.

This questionnaire and information is taken from chapter 7 of my book, The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood and End Cravings, available in major books stores and via Amazon.

It is based on my experience working with many clients with pyroluria, along with information from Depression-Free Naturally (2001), by Joan Mathews-Larson, Nutrition and Mental Illness (1987), by Carl Pfeiffer, and Natural Healing for Schizophrenia and Other Common Mental Disorders (2001), by Eva Edelman.

And this version of the questionnaire reflects a few updates made since my book was published in 2011.

 

11/5/2013 update – since doing this post, I’ve done a number of other posts related to zinc, vitamin B6, pyroluria and even introversion  and I am including links to some of them here:

The comments on the posts about anxious introverts and the possible connection to pyroluria and/or low zinc and low vitamin B6 have been enlightening to say the least! Additional comments and feedback is always appreciated.

GABA and more for pain relief and anxiety

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Low levels of some neurotransmitters, which are made by the body from amino acids, can contribute to chronic pain. Low gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels can result in stiff/tense and painful muscles, anxiety and feelings of being overwhelmed. Other neurotransmitters related to pain are low serotonin and low endorphins.

I have many clients who see major improvements in pain levels – when they address low neurotransmitters. In fact one client was able to stop two pain medications when he added GABA and so many people benefit from DPA (d-phenylalanine).  And the added bonus is that GABA also helps with anxiety and overwhelm and DPA helps with sadness and comfort eating.

This and much more can be found in a great article called NATURAL WAYS OF DEALING WITH CHRONIC PAIN and written by Lisa Moretti.  She featured my tips on neurotransmitters and some other wonderful resources from other experts. It was published in the October issue of Max Sports and Fitness.

In her introduction, Lisa reminds us that “According to a 2011report by the Institutes of Medicine of the National Academies, 116 million Americans live with chronic pain – more than diabetes, heart disease and cancer combined. But many of us aren’t looking to just mask the pain by interfering pharmaceutically with our body’s pain signaling system. We want to get to the bottom of it and fix it!

Continuing “We asked experts, athletes and those who have experienced personal, pain-alleviating success for their advice about natural fixes for chronic pain. They have a myriad of suggestions for you.”

You can read about these approaches and more: gluten, acupuncture, eating real food (yay!), meditation, rolfing, proteolytic enzymes, the herbs White Willow and Devil’s Claw, MSM and arnica – all of which I have seen work with different people over the years. We are all unique and have to figure out what the root cause of our pain is and address it.

You can read the full article here

http://www.maxsportsandfitness.com/article/2011/9/natural-ways-of-dealing-with-chronic-pain.html