Stress Awareness Month - Understanding the Connection Between Stress and Nutrition
- Chloe Plummer : BSc (Hons) : Nutrition Advisor (Cert ION)
- Apr 2
- 6 min read
Stress Awareness Month - The Link Between Stress and Nutrition
April is Stress Awareness Month and it offers an opportunity to reflect on how we support our overall wellbeing. Join in using the hashtag #BeTheChange
While stress is an unavoidable part of everyday life, when it becomes chronic or unmanageable it can significantly affect both mental and physical health. Nutrition is a powerful – yet often overlooked – factor in how we respond to and manage stress, wellbeing and mental health.
How Stress Impacts Eating Behaviours
Stress not only affects what we eat, but also how and why we eat.
During periods of stress, many people find themselves having increased cravings for high-sugar or high-fat foods. These foods can provide a temporary sense of comfort or energy but can also contribute to us feeling anxious, fatigued and unable to cope with stressors.
For other people, stress may suppress your appetite, leading to meal skipping and inadequate nutrient intake, which can further impact energy, mood and resilience.
There can also be a shift towards more mindless or rushed eating, particularly when feeling overwhelmed or time pressured. Eating in this way may affect digestion and reduce awareness of hunger and fullness cues.
Understanding these patterns is an important first step. Rather than aiming for perfection, gently bringing awareness to eating habits during stressful periods can help support more balanced, nourishing choices over time.
How Your Diet Can Impact Your Stress Levels
Blood Sugar Balance and Stress Hormones
What you eat directly influences cortisol, your body’s primary stress hormone.
Diets high in refined sugar and processed carbohydrates – such as sweet snacks, white bread, breakfast cereals and pastries – can cause rapid spikes and crashes in your blood glucose levels. This ‘blood sugar rollercoaster’ triggers excessive release of adrenaline and cortisol, which may leave you feeling:
Anxious
Irritable
Fatigued
Overwhelmed
Tense
Stabilising blood sugar is therefore one of the most effective ways to support a calmer, more balanced stress response. Eating regular, balanced meals that include protein, healthy fats and fibre can help prevent energy dips and support a steadier mood.
Replacing refined sugars and processed carbohydrates with complex carbohydrates such as oats, sweet potatoes, brown rice and beans can support more stable energy levels. This helps maintain balanced blood sugar and reduces the intensity of the stress response.
Gut Health and Stress Resilience
Blood sugar balance is one piece of the puzzle. The gut also plays a central role in how we respond to stress.
A diet high in processed foods can negatively affect your gut microbiome – the community of bacteria in your gut that supports digestion, immunity, mood and mental wellbeing. An imbalanced gut microbiome has been linked to increased anxiety and reduced stress resilience.
Stress itself also directly impacts your ability to digest and absorb food. When the body perceives stress, it diverts resources away from digestion. This can reduce digestive secretions (such as stomach acid and digestive enzymes) and slow down how food moves through your digestive system.
Stress signals are communicated directly to the gut via the nervous system and immune pathways, influencing inflammation and sensitivity. Over time, this can contribute to digestive symptoms and further impact overall wellbeing.
Personalised Nutrition and Lifestyle for Stress Support
Supporting your body through stress starts with a foundation of whole, nutrient-dense foods. Prioritising regular, balanced meals that include protein, healthy fats and fibre can help to stabilise blood sugar and support a more consistent energy level throughout the day.
Limiting ultra-processed foods and refined sugars may help to reduce blood sugar fluctuations and minimise additional stress on the body. Being mindful of stimulants such as caffeine, and moderating alcohol intake, can also support a more balanced nervous system and improve sleep quality.
Small, consistent changes – rather than restrictive or unrealistic approaches – are often the most effective in supporting long-term stress resilience. These changes do not need to be overwhelming. Starting with one or two manageable adjustments, such as improving breakfast or regular meal timing, can create a meaningful difference to your stress resilience and wellbeing over time.
Key Nutrients
Magnesium Supports muscle relaxation and helps calm the nervous system. Sources: leafy greens, nuts, seeds, legumes, dark chocolate
B Vitamins Essential for energy production and the synthesis of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. Sources: whole grains, eggs, meat, fish and dairy
Vitamin C Used by the adrenal glands during stress and supports the immune system. Sources: citrus fruits, peppers, broccoli, kiwi
Omega-3 fatty acids Help to regulate inflammation and support brain health. Sources: oily fish, walnuts, chia seeds, flaxseeds
Fermented foods Contain live bacteria, which supports gut health and therefore your mood and stress response. Sources: yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi
The Role of Sleep in Stress and Nutrition
Sleep plays a central role in how the body responds to stress, and nutrition can significantly influence sleep quality.
Poor sleep can increase cortisol levels, impair blood sugar regulation and heighten feelings of stress and anxiety. At the same time, ongoing stress can make it more difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep, creating a cycle that can be difficult to break.
Nutrition can support sleep in several ways. Eating regular meals helps to regulate blood sugar, which may prevent night-time waking. Including protein and complex carbohydrates in the evening can support the production of serotonin and melatonin, hormones involved in sleep regulation.
Limiting caffeine, particularly in the afternoon and evening, and being mindful of alcohol intake may also improve sleep quality. While alcohol may initially promote sleepiness, it can disrupt sleep cycles later in the night.
Supporting sleep alongside nutrition is a simple yet incredibly effective tool to improve overall stress resilience and wellbeing.
Simple Swaps to Help Improve Your Stress Resilience
Personalised Nutrition doesn’t need to be complicated. Try these simple swaps today to improve your stress management.
Swap white bread or pasta for wholegrain varieties
Limit yourself to one or two teas or coffees a day. After midday, drink only herbal or decaf options.
Eat a portion of oily fish (salmon, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, trout) twice a week.
Try to fill half of your plate with a wide variety of vegetables – think ‘eat the rainbow.’
Snack on yoghurt and berries, apple and nut butter or hummus and carrot sticks, instead of a biscuit, chocolate or crisps.
How Nutritional Therapy Can Help
Nutritional therapy focuses on stabilising the body’s internal environment so it can better handle stress. This involves:
Understanding your individual health history, diet and lifestyle
Identifying potential nutrient gaps and depletions
Supporting digestion and gut health
Creating practical, realistic and sustainable changes tailored to you
The aim is not perfection, but helping your body feel supported, nourished and more resilient over time. If you’re struggling with stress and feel your nutrition may be playing a role, personalised nutrition support can help you understand and address this.
Chloe Plummer is a Nutrition Advisor and final-year BSc (Hons) Nutritional Therapy student with the Institute for Optimum Nutrition and University of Portsmouth, due to graduate August 2026. She offers personalised nutrition plan, evidence-based nutrition support for women’s health and works collaboratively alongside other healthcare professionals including counsellors to support her clients.
Learn more about Chloe and her approach to nutrition here
References
Bear, T., Dalziel, J., Coad, J., Roy, N., Butts, C., & Gopal, P. (2021). The Microbiome-Gut-Brain Axis and Resilience to Developing Anxiety or Depression under Stress. Microorganisms, 9(4), 723. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms9040723
Bremner, J. D., Moazzami, K., Wittbrodt, M. T., Nye, J. A., Lima, B. B., Gillespie, C. F., Rapaport, M. H., Pearce, B. D., Shah, A. J., & Vaccarino, V. (2020). Diet, Stress and Mental Health. Nutrients, 12(8), 2428. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12082428
Konturek, P. C., Brzozowski, T., & Konturek, S. J. (2011). Stress and the gut: pathophysiology, clinical consequences, diagnostic approach and treatment options. Journal of physiology and pharmacology : an official journal of the Polish Physiological Society, 62(6), 591–599.
Lopresti A. L. (2020). The Effects of Psychological and Environmental Stress on Micronutrient Concentrations in the Body: A Review of the Evidence. Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.), 11(1), 103–112. https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmz082
Naidoo U. (2020). Eat to Beat Stress. American journal of lifestyle medicine, 15(1), 39–42. https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827620973936
Vedantam, D., Poman, D. S., Motwani, L., Asif, N., Patel, A., & Anne, K. K. (2022). Stress-Induced Hyperglycemia: Consequences and Management. Cureus, 14(7), e26714. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.26714
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