Whether you’re still in the throes of holiday-related tension or are dreading returning to work, your diet can help your body manage stress.
However,chronic stresscan lead to trouble sleeping, poor appetite, and irritability with friends and family. Over time, not being able to manage stress effectively has been linked to negative effects on memory, cognition, immune health, cardiovascular health, and gastrointestinal function.
There’s no way to ensure you’ll live a stress-free life, but some research has suggested that including certain foods in your diet may help you even in times of trauma or strife.
Along with adopting stress-busting lifestyle habits like exercising, meditating, and getting enough quality sleep, here are six foods that may help you naturallymanage stress(or at the very least, nourish your body without making you more stressed out).
What Chronic Stress Does to Your Body
Walnuts
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Walnutsprovide a satisfying crunch and delicious flavor to many recipes. Studies have shown that eating walnuts may also offer some benefits in the stress-management department.
When researchers compared two groups of college students (one who did not eat nuts and one who ate two ounces of walnuts a day for 16 weeks) they found that the nut-eaters experience:
While more research is needed to find out how eating patterns that includewalnutscould influence the brain or affect mental health, we do know that walnuts have a unique matrix of bioactive nutrients and phytochemicals.
In fact, walnuts are the only nut that’s an excellent source ofomega-3 ALAper serving (2.5g/oz), which could be one reason why researchers saw some mental health benefits in their study.
Avocados
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The ever-popular topping for ho-hum toast could also be one of the best foods to help lower your stress levels.Avocadosare a natural source of magnesium and there is evidence thatmagnesium deficiencycould make the body more susceptible to stress.
You’ll be hard-pressed to find quality research data directly showing that eating an avocado will be your ticket to a stress-free day, but eating magnesium-rich foods like avocado could support that goal.
If you aren’t an avocado fan, dark chocolate, dairy milk, and nuts can fuel your body withthis key mineral, too.
Avocado and Other Foods That Raise Good Cholesterol
Salmon
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Salmon is one of the best dietary sources ofDHA omega-3 fatty acids. Getting enough of this “healthy fat” in your diet is linked to better stress resilience and other positive mental health effects.
You’ll also get plenty of other stress-management nutrients, includingB vitaminsandmagnesium, in a serving of salmon.
Green Tea
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Green tea has natural plant compounds that support your health in different ways. One compound found in green tea isan amino acid calledL-theaninethat’s associated with improvements in mood, cognition, and reduced stress and anxiety-like symptoms.
A cup of green tea is also a versatile beverage—it tastes great and provides you with these soothing compounds whether it’s hot or iced.
Chocolate
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There might be a scientific explanation for why many people crave chocolate when they’re feeling stressed out. One study in 2014 found that consuming 40 grams of dark and milk chocolate daily for two weeks was an effective way to reduce participants’ perceived stress.
The stress-reducing effect of chocolate might be related to its cocoapolyphenols, which have been shown to reduce stress in highly stressed people and people with normal stress levels.
That said, the color of chocolate choice matters—you won’t get those powerful polyphenols from white chocolate. Chocolate with a higher cacao percentage will give you those polyphenols and often have less sugar, too.
Fruits and Vegetables
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According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), only 10% of Americans eat the recommended amount of produce every day.There are plenty of health benefits to getting more fruits and vegetables in your day, and helping you deal with life’s stressors might be another to add to the list.
As far as the research goes, it doesn’t appear that choosing one fruit or vegetable over another has any major effect on stress levels. That said, eating more produce does seem to be associated with lower stress for some people.
For example, a 2021 study that looked at participants’ daily reports of stress and their produce intake found that higher stress levels appeared to be linked to eating fewer fruits and veggies that day.
CDC: Only 1 in 10 Americans Eat Enough Fruits and Veggies
10 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Anxiety UK.Stress.Yaribeygi H, Panahi Y, Sahraei H, Johnston TP, Sahebkar A.The impact of stress on body function: a review.EXCLI J. 2017;16:1057-1072. doi:10.17179/excli2017-480Herselman MF, Bailey S, Deo P, et al.The effects of walnuts and academic stress on mental health, general well-being, and the gut microbiota in a sample of university students: a randomised clinical trial.Nutrients. 2022;14(22):4776. doi:10.3390/nu14224776California Walnuts.Omega-3 ALA.Pickering G, Mazur A, Trousselard M, et al.Magnesium status and stress: the vicious circle concept revisited.Nutrients. 2020;12(12):3672. doi:10.3390/nu12123672Madison AA, Belury MA, Andridge R, et al.Omega-3 supplementation and stress reactivity of cellular aging biomarkers: an ancillary substudy of a randomized, controlled trial in midlife adults.Mol Psychiatry. 2021;26(7):3034-3042. doi:10.1038/s41380-021-01077-2Williams JL, Everett JM, D’Cunha NM, et al.The effects of green tea amino acid L-theanine consumption on the ability to manage stress and anxiety levels: a systematic review.Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2020;75(1):12-23. doi:10.1007/s11130-019-00771-5Al Sunni A, Latif R.Effects of chocolate intake on perceived stress; a controlled clinical study.Int J Health Sci (Qassim).2014;8(4):393-401. PMID: 25780358Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Only 1 in 10 Americans get enough fruits and vegetables every day.Gardiner CK, Hagerty SL, Bryan AD.Stress and number of servings of fruit and vegetables consumed: buffering effects of monetary incentives.J Health Psychol. 2021;26(10):1757-1763. doi:10.1177/1359105319884620
10 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Anxiety UK.Stress.Yaribeygi H, Panahi Y, Sahraei H, Johnston TP, Sahebkar A.The impact of stress on body function: a review.EXCLI J. 2017;16:1057-1072. doi:10.17179/excli2017-480Herselman MF, Bailey S, Deo P, et al.The effects of walnuts and academic stress on mental health, general well-being, and the gut microbiota in a sample of university students: a randomised clinical trial.Nutrients. 2022;14(22):4776. doi:10.3390/nu14224776California Walnuts.Omega-3 ALA.Pickering G, Mazur A, Trousselard M, et al.Magnesium status and stress: the vicious circle concept revisited.Nutrients. 2020;12(12):3672. doi:10.3390/nu12123672Madison AA, Belury MA, Andridge R, et al.Omega-3 supplementation and stress reactivity of cellular aging biomarkers: an ancillary substudy of a randomized, controlled trial in midlife adults.Mol Psychiatry. 2021;26(7):3034-3042. doi:10.1038/s41380-021-01077-2Williams JL, Everett JM, D’Cunha NM, et al.The effects of green tea amino acid L-theanine consumption on the ability to manage stress and anxiety levels: a systematic review.Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2020;75(1):12-23. doi:10.1007/s11130-019-00771-5Al Sunni A, Latif R.Effects of chocolate intake on perceived stress; a controlled clinical study.Int J Health Sci (Qassim).2014;8(4):393-401. PMID: 25780358Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Only 1 in 10 Americans get enough fruits and vegetables every day.Gardiner CK, Hagerty SL, Bryan AD.Stress and number of servings of fruit and vegetables consumed: buffering effects of monetary incentives.J Health Psychol. 2021;26(10):1757-1763. doi:10.1177/1359105319884620
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Anxiety UK.Stress.Yaribeygi H, Panahi Y, Sahraei H, Johnston TP, Sahebkar A.The impact of stress on body function: a review.EXCLI J. 2017;16:1057-1072. doi:10.17179/excli2017-480Herselman MF, Bailey S, Deo P, et al.The effects of walnuts and academic stress on mental health, general well-being, and the gut microbiota in a sample of university students: a randomised clinical trial.Nutrients. 2022;14(22):4776. doi:10.3390/nu14224776California Walnuts.Omega-3 ALA.Pickering G, Mazur A, Trousselard M, et al.Magnesium status and stress: the vicious circle concept revisited.Nutrients. 2020;12(12):3672. doi:10.3390/nu12123672Madison AA, Belury MA, Andridge R, et al.Omega-3 supplementation and stress reactivity of cellular aging biomarkers: an ancillary substudy of a randomized, controlled trial in midlife adults.Mol Psychiatry. 2021;26(7):3034-3042. doi:10.1038/s41380-021-01077-2Williams JL, Everett JM, D’Cunha NM, et al.The effects of green tea amino acid L-theanine consumption on the ability to manage stress and anxiety levels: a systematic review.Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2020;75(1):12-23. doi:10.1007/s11130-019-00771-5Al Sunni A, Latif R.Effects of chocolate intake on perceived stress; a controlled clinical study.Int J Health Sci (Qassim).2014;8(4):393-401. PMID: 25780358Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Only 1 in 10 Americans get enough fruits and vegetables every day.Gardiner CK, Hagerty SL, Bryan AD.Stress and number of servings of fruit and vegetables consumed: buffering effects of monetary incentives.J Health Psychol. 2021;26(10):1757-1763. doi:10.1177/1359105319884620
Anxiety UK.Stress.
Yaribeygi H, Panahi Y, Sahraei H, Johnston TP, Sahebkar A.The impact of stress on body function: a review.EXCLI J. 2017;16:1057-1072. doi:10.17179/excli2017-480
Herselman MF, Bailey S, Deo P, et al.The effects of walnuts and academic stress on mental health, general well-being, and the gut microbiota in a sample of university students: a randomised clinical trial.Nutrients. 2022;14(22):4776. doi:10.3390/nu14224776
California Walnuts.Omega-3 ALA.
Pickering G, Mazur A, Trousselard M, et al.Magnesium status and stress: the vicious circle concept revisited.Nutrients. 2020;12(12):3672. doi:10.3390/nu12123672
Madison AA, Belury MA, Andridge R, et al.Omega-3 supplementation and stress reactivity of cellular aging biomarkers: an ancillary substudy of a randomized, controlled trial in midlife adults.Mol Psychiatry. 2021;26(7):3034-3042. doi:10.1038/s41380-021-01077-2
Williams JL, Everett JM, D’Cunha NM, et al.The effects of green tea amino acid L-theanine consumption on the ability to manage stress and anxiety levels: a systematic review.Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2020;75(1):12-23. doi:10.1007/s11130-019-00771-5
Al Sunni A, Latif R.Effects of chocolate intake on perceived stress; a controlled clinical study.Int J Health Sci (Qassim).2014;8(4):393-401. PMID: 25780358
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Only 1 in 10 Americans get enough fruits and vegetables every day.
Gardiner CK, Hagerty SL, Bryan AD.Stress and number of servings of fruit and vegetables consumed: buffering effects of monetary incentives.J Health Psychol. 2021;26(10):1757-1763. doi:10.1177/1359105319884620
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