STRESS BUSTING NUTRIENTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM.

Food can be medicine in so many ways. If your body is out of whack, oftentimes the physiological issue at hand can be boiled down to a nutritional deficiency. Are you tired? Try eating more spinach and loading up on iron. Is your stomach irritated? Introducing good bacteria via probiotics could be a quick, drug-free fix to a healthier gut.

The same thing goes for stress and anxiety. But when talking about the delicate line between traditional and naturopathic medicine, we thought it best to consult women who are experts in both fields. We talked to a New York-based registered nurse with an emphasis in holistic medicine and a doctor with an MD and an ND (Naturopathic Doctorate), Rebecca Lee, RN and founder of RemediesForMe.com, and Carolyn Dean, MD, ND, a stress management expert and author of The Complete Natural Medicine Guide to Women's Health.

Through our talks with these experts, we boiled it down to three nutrients your diet needs to naturally fight anxiety and stress.

WHAT ARE ADAPTOGENS - 6 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFOREHAND.

Adaptogens are a whole new level of superfood. Members of this unique class of herbs and roots have been used in traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine for centuries, lauded for their ability to reduce the effects that stress hormones can have on the body. But before you head for the supplements aisle, here are 6 things you should know about adaptogens, and what they do–and what they don’t do. 

Adaptogens don’t cure stress

Though some health gurus claim that adaptogens “cure” stress, let’s get one thing straight: adaptogens’ power doesn’t lie in reducing feelings of anxiety, but rather in decreasing the effects of hormones and other compounds that are released into the body in times of stress, such as kinase, nitric oxide, and cortisol. Adaptogens’ adeptness at reducing the presence and harmful effects of these compounds has been observed in clinical studies, such as a 2007 report from Drug Target Insights or another 2010 paper in Pharmaceuticals. 

6 Surprising Inflammation Causes.

The last time you were bitten by a mosquito or stubbed your toe, you likely noticed some redness and swelling, plus maybe a little heat and itchiness. Those are all classic signs of inflammation, a part of your body's natural response to infections and injuries. Thankfully, acute inflammation like this usually only lasts a few hours or a couple days.

But lower-grade inflammation can be lurking in your body—without any of the telltale symptoms of that itchy bite or throbbing toe—for months or even years. "This is the inflammatory response gone awry," says Joel Linden, PhD, a professor in the division of inflammation biology at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology in California.