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ANXIETY
Description
Anxiety
is a feeling of apprehension, worry, uneasiness, or dread, especially of
the future. A certain amount of anxiety is normal and stimulates the individual
to purposeful action. Excess anxiety interferes with efficient functioning
of the individual.
Diagnosed anxiety disorders are classified into five basic types: phobias,
generalized anxiety disorders, panic disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders,
and posttraumatic stress disorder.
Causes
The
causes of clinical anxiety range from drug withdrawal (some phobias) to
alterations in the brain's biochemistry (panic disorders) to conflict (generalized
anxiety disorder). Because of the complexity of the brain and a person's
psychological make up, diagnoses and causes may overlap.
Types
The severity of a person's anxiety can range from mild to very severe. Anxiety is a problem when the severity is inappropriate or when it interferes with normal daily functions.
At Risk
Drug abusers including alcoholics are susceptible to anxiety attacks especially during withdrawals. People with a wide variety of psychological or medical disturbances are at risk.
Prevention and Management
General:
It
is often important to address any psychological factors underlying anxiety.
Physicians often prescribe various medications to help control severe anxiety.
Nutritional Influences:
Anxiety
may be associated with elevated blood lactate level and an increased lactate
to pyruvate ratio. This ratio is increased by alcohol, caffeine, and sugar,
and deficiencies in niacin, thiamine, or magnesium.
Avoiding or reducing consumption of alcohol6, caffeine7, and sugar 9 may
reduce anxiety.
Vitamin B Complex: In an observational study, 7 of 12 agoraphobia (fear
of open spaces) patients were deficient in the vitamin B complex.
Calcium: Several case reports suggest low calcium levels may be associated
with an organic anxiety syndrome.
Inositol: Inositol may have a calming effect.
Magnesium: Deficiency is often associated with anxiety.
Healthier Lifestyles Product Recommendations
Additional Information
Disclaimer: These websites, addresses and/or phone numbers are provided for information purposes only. USANA, Inc. makes no claim, actual or implied, regarding the content or validity of the information obtained from these outside sources.
http://www.npadnews.com/
Abstracts
Rudin DO. The major psychoses and neuroses as omega-3 essential fatty acid deficiency syndrome: substrate pellagra. Biol Psychiatry 1981 Sep;16(9):837-50. Pellagra was once a major cause of three behaviorally different mental disorders-schizophreniform, manic-depressive-like, and phobic neurotic - plus drying dermatoses, autonomic neuropathies, tinnitus, and fatigue. In this preliminary study all three of the corresponding present-day mental diseases are found to exhibit, statistically, the same pellagraform physical disorders but to ameliorate not so much with vitamins as with supplements of a newly discovered trace omega-3 essential fatty acid (w3-EFA), which provides the substrate upon which niacin and other B vitamin holoenzymes act uniquely to form the prostaglandin 3 series tissue hormones regulating neurocircuits en block. Since present-day refining and food selection patterns, as well as pure corn diets, deplete both the B vitamins and W3-EFA, the existence of therapeutically cross-reacting homologous catalyst and substrate deficiency forms of pellagra are postulated, the first contributing to the B vitamin deficiency epidemics of 50-100 years ago, the second to the more recent endemic "Diseases of Western Civilization" which express in certain genetic subgroups as the major mental illnesses of today.
References
1
Tabers Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary. 16th ed. Philadelphia:FA Davis Company;
1985. p 120.
2 Diseases. Springhouse (PA): Springhouse Corporation;1993. p 52-66.
3 Diseases. Springhouse (PA): Springhouse Corporation;1993. p 52.
4 Roelofs SM. Hyperventilation, anxiety, craving for alcohol: a sub acute
alcohol withdrawal syndrome. Alcohol 1985;2(3):501-5.
5 Buist RA. Anxiety neurosis: The lactate connection. Int Clin Nutr Rev
1985;5(1):1-4.
6 Abbey LC. Agoraphobia. J Orthomol Psychiatry 1982;11:243-259.
7 Werbach M. Nutritional Influences on Mental Illness. Tarzana (CA):Third
Line Press. p 52-53.
8 Pfeiffer C. Mental and Elemental Nutrients. New Canaan (CT):Keats Publishing
Company; 1975.
9 Seelig MS et al. Latent tetany and anxiety, marginal Mg deficit and normocacemia.
Dis Nerv Syst 1975;36:461-65.
Information provided by Usana Health Sciences (www.usana.com)