mood ,anxiety problems and blood glucose levels.

[flash_]

hi,

I have social anxiety .I only discovered this in the last year, always thought I had problems but was never sure what they were. when I went to see my gp she asked me to read up some information on the web about it and consider cbt. I have not gone in for cbt yet but something I did stumble upon recently, a test for hypoglycaemia. after taking the test,the result was that I was likely to have hypoglycaemia and that I should get a blood test. I asked my gp if I could have a blood test to check for sure and she said that I was checked for diabetes when my last test was done. so I took their word and I figured it would be pointless going for another test.

something I have noticed is that my anxiety seems to be greatly reduced when I am hungover.this has always puzzled me, as I thought I would be more anxious as i'd be more irritable? when I looked up what happens to the body when drinking I thought it was a co-incidence that it mentioned when hungover your body produces more insulin counter the increased glucose and it keeps working to remove all glucose from the blood.

I'm just wondering if my anxiety is connected to something else which is glucose related which is more difficult to diagnose?

should I go for another blood test? another thing that was suggested to me very recently by a friend was that I could be low on certain nutrients? and that taking B vitamins and also increased omega 3 could help me? Is there any truth to this?

thanks.

[SassyLassie]

Hi Paxiled, thanks for the info about "Now" I have wondered about them. The only reason I bought the Glycine through them was because my Naturopath said that that particular product was good, if she had not said that, I would probably have looked for another company. So far, it has been OK.

I will ask them about Taurine and Tyrosine, I have taken both, really did not feel all that different however. I am planning on having my doctor take a complete blood test that tests for all the amino acids, I think that might be of some help rather than buying and guessing.

Again, your post was very informative and helpful, I bet the health food industry misses you. You are a book of knowledge.  :)

Ok, now to your question, Flash. Regarding the Omega 3. I would take a good fish oil supplement. Mine is in liquid form, and it is by Carlson. At first, I thought I could never handle the taste, but now, I don't mind it a bit. It has both EPA and DHA in it, I highly recommend it for folks that have lipid problems and want to keep their arteries squeaky clean. Oh yes, something I found out, I assimilate it better when I take a daily dose of acidophilus, in fact, I have read that that is one of the best ways for it to work to its optimum effect.

[flash_]

hi paxiled.

wrote a reply out earlier but I don't think it posted.thanks for your help, I think I will start off with a stress b complex and high concentration omega 3, im not sure on which would be best for me to take though? epa or dha?
https://www.yourhealthfoodstore.co.uk/search_results.php?keywords=omega+3&brand_ID=473&search=Search

[Paxiled]

Hey Sassie, personally I wouldn't buy my supplements from Now foods.  Never know what's actually in them, they don't do well on random testing.  They're a discounter, and you know, you get what you pay for.  Probably not a problem with glycine, as there's only two manufacturers of amino acids basically that make them for everyone, but just sayin'.

There are different theories about blood sugar.  They generally won't do the six hour test unless blood sugar levels in the regular blood test show a reason to.  On the other hand, in the natural medicine field, many believe that even small variances in blood sugar can cause problems.  Don't know who's right.  Do know that although blueberries are a great source of antioxidants, doesn't necessarily mean blueberry juice is.  Most of the nutrients are in the peel and seeds, and juice can oxidize quickly depending on the container it's in and the shipping.  The other problem is, fruit juice is extremely high in sugar, so if the problem is blood sugar, fruit juice is generally one of the first things eliminated or minimized in the diet.

Like Sassy, I did a 6 hour test once, though long before I started getting anxiety attacks.  The glucose didn't bother me, but the taking of blood every half hour left me feeling very weird.  I think it would make me pretty anxious now.  And she's right, it's the only way to really check, but even better to see a nutritionist and get checked more regularly, since the amounts of anything in our systems change frequently even within the day.  Doctors ignore that because doctors don't get taught that.  Too expensive.

Niacinamide may not do anything for you.  It's often used instead of niacin, because niacin causes a hot flush with most people.  But it doesn't always turn to niacin in the body.  Since it's part of the B complex, better to just take a good stress B complex.  Pioneer makes a good one.  The big B's for mood are B12, B6, and folic acid.  You can get them in the stress B, or by taking a supplement called Homocysteine this or that, which is for the heart but coincidentally or not has the B's most implicated in mood.

Hey, Sassy, ask your experts about taurine, and maybe tyrosine.  More directly affecting mood than glycine.    

[flash_]

thanks for the help with this :)

I'll look into those minerals and see where they are available online. the nhs is the national health service here in the uk, I think I will ask my doctor about this test.

cheers,
paul.

[SassyLassie]

For the glycine, take 1/4 teaspoon in the morning, and a 1/4 in the evening, Each 1/4 is equal to 500MG. I get the Powder form by a company called  "Now" it is very tasty.

For the chromium, take 200 mcg daily. Take the Chromium Picolinate (chromium chelated with picolinate), this one is the easiest to assimilate. Chromium polynicotinate (chromium bonded to niacin) is an effective form of this mineral as well.

Be careful with fruit drinks, though they are good, they can contain too much sugar, even in the natural form.

I do not know what the nhs is. But, I would think most doctors would be able to prescribe this test. It is so important to really catch your hypoglycemia in action.

Hope this helps, feel free to pm me if you have any more questions, or ask here even.

[flash_]

thanks primetime and sassielassie for the replies, :)
sounds like what I have been recommended:
omax3 1-2 g's a day
biocare b complex
also
b3 niacinamide 500mg a day
is there any other nutrients that I would need to look into? L-Glycine & chromium what would be the recommended dosage for these? although that blueberry drink sounds like a good alternative.

I haven't done the 6 hour test, can I get that on the nhs? I live in the uk. I get very panicy sometimes, often results in me feeling tight chested and sometimes I get nosebleeds too from the stress :(

[SassyLassie]

Most definitely glucose levels can affect anxiety. I know, I am a prime example.

In regards to testing your sugar levels, have you had the 4 or 6 hours glucose test, (the 6 hour is more accurate) that is where you drink this really sweet drink called "glucola" and then they start testing your blood levels. They take one right before you drink, that is the fasting reading, then one a half hour after you drink the stuff, then another after another half hour, then hourly after that. Mine was pure H---. My fasting was 70, after I drank it, it went up to 150, then the next half hour, almost to 200, then, it started to drop, by the 4th hour, I bottomed out at 50 and talk about anxiety, I was panicky, I was hollering at the techs telling them I was gonna die, I was shaky, ohhhh, it was horrible. The next two hours, I evened out back to 72 and I was a different person, I apologized to the techs and they said they understood. So, you see, YES, blood sugar sure can affect your way of thinking and anxiety.

Regarding B vitamins, they absolutely do help with anxiety and blood sugar levels as well, so does the mineral "chromium" that is called the "Glucose Tolerance Factor" mineral and it is used specifically for stabilizer blood sugar. Amino acids are very important too as they are the building blocks for protein and they work with the B vitamins. Brewers yeast, is also important for anxiety and such.

The reason the blueberry juice helps is due to the fact that it is not only loaded with natural vitamins, but, also antioxidants and these are very important for brain function. So is fish oil. The omega 3's help with neuro-transmitters in the brain. Oh, I almost forgot, a very important thing to take for anxiety and blood sugar is  L-Glycine. This is most important for neuro-transmitters, and it helps anxiety, manic-depression, and also helps keep the muscle tissues healthy by enabling them to obtain more oxygen.

Also, believe it or not, you probably need a good digestive aid, this will help assimilate what you eat and what you take supplement-wise.

I should practice more what I preach, I know all this as I read constantly, but, I get lax and then my symptoms act up.

[primetime21]

yup glucos levels do affect anxiety and yes nutrient level like viamin b especially can have an effect on anxiety...i used to have panic attacks all the time and anxiety for day in a row..i noticed that the days where i drank this bluebarry juice which had like 100% of a buncha of vitamin B's ...niacin, b12, b6, thiamin etcmy anxiety would disapate..so i drank it on a daily basis and so far in 14 months ive had maybe 2-3 panic attacks..