Say goodbye to social anxiety with this food

If you struggle with social anxiety, you know how unbearable it can be. You feel self-conscious, awkward and embarrassed during the most ordinary daily experiences — like checking out at the grocery store, having lunch with coworkers or going on a date.

Needless to say, both your work and personal life suffer big time. And eventually, you might avoid social situations all together… which is bad for your mental and physical health…. and is just no way to live.

If you go see a psychiatrist he or she will most likely diagnose you with social anxiety disorder and prescribe medications like Paxil or Zoloft — rife with side effects… or the habit-forming class of anti-anxiety medications known as benzodiazepines.

Or maybe you’ll self-medicate with recreational drugs and alcohol… like some people with social anxiety often do. Either way you’re wreaking havoc on your mind and body.

But there is something you can do that will not only ease your social anxiety but also help your health rather than hurt it… eat fermented food.

A 2015 study published in the journal Psychiatry Research found that young adults who eat more fermented foods have less symptoms of social anxiety. And the reason can be traced to the miraculous power of the mind-gut connection.

Science has shown that the bacteria in your gut (or lack thereof) can actually alter the chemistry of your brain and cause all sorts of mental imbalances, including anxiety, depression and other mood disorders. Case in point: even mice who lack beneficial bacteria in their gut display their own mouse version of social anxiety. They avoid other mice and act awkwardly around them when they see them.

The moral of the story is: If you want to ease the uncomfortable symptoms of social anxiety without being drugged up, you have to start in your gut…

Since fermented foods are chock-full of beneficial bacteria, they are a great place to start. And besides probiotics, fermented foods also contain other health-boosting nutrients like lactic acid, B vitamins, and omega-3 fatty acids.

If you’re ready to eat fermented food until your heart (and mind) is content, you can try the usual suspects: yogurt, pickles, sauerkraut and kombucha. Or you try something a bit different to spice things up, like one of the following:

Kefir is fermented milk that pretty much tastes like drinkable yogurt. Besides probiotics, it also gives you a healthy dose of calcium.
Pickled radishes are a great alternative to pickled cucumbers if you want to stand out from the crowd. Radishes also contain important nutrients like folate, fiber, riboflavin and potassium.
Kimichi is a spicy, fermented cabbage that hails from Korea. It’s similar to sauerkraut, but with a bit more of a kick.
Kvass is a fermented Russian drink that’s kind of like kombucha. It’s traditionally made from rye bread, but the health food version is usually made from beets.

If you’re one of the few who find it hard to stomach a bit of fermentation, you can always take the easy way out and buy a bottle of probiotics. As long as you get your gut health in check, you should be on your way to a healthier, anxiety-free life.