Panic or anxiety attacks are a sudden episode of unreasoning fear or panic. Some of its causes are heredity, as side effect of medication, or some life-changing event like having a baby, moving house, or losing or getting a new job. For example, a person who has been involved in a boating accident, when he or she was a child, may experience an attack whenever the need to ride a boat arises. Many attacks cause such severe physical symptoms that people go to the emergency room thinking that they are dying or having a heart attack. A panic attack feels very severe with both physical and mental symptoms. Some common physical symptoms include chest pain or discomfort, palpitations or accelerated heart rate, sweating, trembling or shaking, blurry vision, Feeling dizzy, unsteady, lightheaded, or faint. Some people feel the sense of losing control or going insane, or of impending death. Even if some symptoms may be severe, it is important to point out that panic attacks are highly treatable.

We may not know it, but the food and drinks we intake can make us more susceptible to panic attacks. The top three substances to avoid are alcohol, caffeine, and sugar. Too much alcohol intake raises hyperactivity in the nervous system, and makes a person more irritable. High consumption of caffeine is another trigger of panic attacks. Caffeine can make you jittery, interrupt proper sleep, and negatively affect blood sugar and bone density. Most people think that drinking decaffeinated coffee is better than regular coffee, but the truth is, it isn’t. The biggest problem with decaffeinated coffee is that the process used to take out the caffeine creates chemicals such as chlorine, and these chemicals wind up in the coffee you think is so much healthier. If you want to avoid the caffeine altogether but you don’t want to give up coffee altogether, look for decaffeinated coffee in health food stores that have undergone an alternative, healthier process. And last but not the least, sugar. Other than contributing to diabetes and obesity problems, high levels of sugar in our body greatly increases our risk of panic attacks. The problem is, sugar is almost in all the food and drinks we take in everyday. Now even nutrition experts don’t expect us to suddenly stop taking in these substances and completely avoid them. Some individuals tend to have secondary triggers of anxiety when withdrawal from a substance is abrupt.

Regulating blood sugar level

Eating small quantity of food and healthy snacks in small intervals helps us to maintain the blood sugar level the whole day. According to experts, instead of having three heavy meals a day, person should opt for five small meals. One should not miss out on their daytime meals and especially the breakfast. Food rich in carbohydrates helps in increasing the level of serotonin in our body. Serotonin is one neurotransmitter which keeps our mood pleasant and stress free. It also helps in curing the problem of insomnia and increases our appetite. Sugary food should be taken in minimal amount since for once they do increase our blood sugar level all of a sudden which lowers down quickly. Low level blood sugar makes us feel tired, irritable and tensed.

Food rich in amino acids

Experts believe that whenever a person feels sad and dejected, he should have food which is rich in amino acids like milk, chicken etc. Amino acid increases the production of serotonin hormone which keeps our mood good. Apart from that one can also take food rich in carbohydrates. Health experts advice to have a balanced diet and not to follow any such diet plan which prohibits any kind of food or nutrient.

Stay away alcohol and caffeine

It has been observed that few people tend to drink alcohol so as to distract their minds and keep it free from thoughts creating tension in their minds. This practice surely doesn’t solve a person’s problem and in turn affects the health of the person. In one of the researches it has been found out that not only alcohol but caffeinated drinks and liquids induce depression. Liquids containing alcohol or caffeine negatively affect person’s sleep, mood and ability to focus.

Intake of good amount of fruits and green leafy vegetables

It has been found out that one of the reasons of depression in a person can be lack of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients in his diet. Food must be rich in vitamin B6 (all types of grains, potato and banana), vitamin B12 (all kinds of low fat dairy products), folic acid (all types of green vegetables, oranges, beans and dry fruits), vitamin C (lemon and all kinds of citrus fruits) etc. They not only make our mood better but also keep us free from stress and tension.

Intake of fats is crucial

According to experts our food must contain some amount of fats. Fats play an important role in making our mood better and also channelise production of hormones required for a healthy mind. As per cardiologists mono-saturated fatty acids are beneficial in case of heart diseases since it lowers down the level of LDL cholesterol. Thus, our food should include groundnut oil, olive oil, almonds, cashewnuts, melon seeds etc. Saturated fats such as butter, margarine should not be taken in excess. According to a recent research, it is due to low amount of omega-3 fatty acids in body that a person highly likely gets into depression. Walnuts and flax seeds are rich in omega-3 fatty acid.