Health Hotline Magazine | March 2026

The physical and mental symptoms of anxiety can be overwhelming, but they can be controlled. While there are many root causes of anxiety, and severe anxiety disorders typically require medical treatment, many symptoms can be controlled with an integrative approach. Healthy lifestyle changes combined with extra nutritional support make managing symptoms so much easier, creating the space you need to cultivate calm.

Cool, Calm, and Collected: Build a strong foundation so your mental health thrives

One of the most important things to do if you su er from anxiety is to take stock in your lifestyle habits. How is your diet? What about sleep? Do you make regular movement a priority? Do you consciously work to reduce the stressors you can? Back to the American Psychiatric Association’s mental health poll: When the respondents were asked to choose two factors they thought had the largest impact on their mental health, the two most common choices were stress and sleep. So, start there. What steps are you actively taking to reduce stress levels, because stress significantly worsens and can even trigger anxiety. Find something that helps you decompress and find calm—personally, a daily walk and weekly sauna sessions help quiet my mind and calm my body, but it could be mind-body practices like yoga or tai chi, meditation or journaling, losing yourself in a book, listening to music or playing an instrument, a long run, or a fierce workout at the gym. The important thing is to find something you enjoy so you’ll stick with it, because consistency is key. As for sleep, commit yourself to prioritizing sleep and good sleep hygiene (no screen time before bed, a cool, dark bedroom, white noise machine, sticking to the same bedtime every night, restricting alcohol consumption, etc.). A significant number of people with mood disorders like anxiety have also been shown to have elevated levels of inflammation in their bodies. Some of the same lifestyle strategies that reduce stress also reduce inflammation—regular physical activity; yoga, tai chi, sauna, meditation; and good sleep hygiene that promotes quality sleep. Changes to your diet, specifically replacing pro-inflammatory ultra-processed foods with anti-inflammatory foods,

and dietary supplements, such as curcumin and the omega-3 fats, will further reduce inflammation. Speaking of ultra-processed foods… these “foods,” which are deficient in vitamins

and minerals and all too prevalent in our diets, leave us undernourished and mentally unbalanced. We are unknowingly plagued with sub optimal levels (in some cases, outright deficiencies) of essential vitamins and minerals, some of which play crucial roles in mental health. The following are some of the most important micronutrients to optimize if you are su ering from anxiety.

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