Anxiety is a common problem that accompanies modern living. Anxiety is defined as an uncomfortable emotional feeling ranging from mild uneasiness to intense fear. Anxiety is often associated with stress, and in reality is a likely result of a stress reaction to a perceived threat. Some people are obviously more susceptible to developing anxiety that others and for some it becomes a burden on their lives as often the cause is idiosyncratic. The connection between anxiety and stress is interesting because chronic stress can have quite ranging effects on the body that can lead to many mental problems. If left unchecked chronic stress and its associated anxiety can also cause significant physical health problems including the initiation of disease. Physical manifestations of anxiety can include heart palpitations, chest pain, stomach cramps, an inability to take in enough air, as well as tension in the skeletal muscles.
Two metabolic conditions appear to be particularly important at triggering anxiety. First is an increased concentration of lactic acid, and second is a low level of blood sugar. Lactic acid is formed as a by product of the anaerobic oxidation of glucose in cells, where it accumulates and spills over into the blood. Generally low blood sugar is caused by an underlying insulin insensitivity in combination with a poor diet that emphasises refined carbohydrates including refined crystalline sugars. Because lactic acid is used to produce new glucose in a process called gluconeogenesis, it may be that the low blood glucose and the high lactic acid concentrations that can trigger anxiety are linked. For example, type 2 diabetes and some genetic disorders such as glycogen storage disease type 1 are both characterised by lactic acidosis and poor blood sugar control. Eating a high quality diet to improve insulin sensitivity may therefore be an effective strategy at preventing anxiety because it might return the correct metabolic regulation of glycolysis and glycogen storage.
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