Can eating restaurant food increase anxiety and hyperstimulation symptoms?

Video Transcript

My recovery is coming along nicely, as I’m seeing a lot of my hyperstimulation symptoms subsiding, thanks to your information! Since I’m feeling a lot better, my wife and I treat ourselves once a week by going out for dinner. However, sometimes I notice my symptoms spike up later that night and for the next few days. Could there be a connection between eating restaurant food and increased hyperstimulation symptoms?

Yes, there could be a connection depending on your food and how the restaurant prepares it.

For instance, many restaurants highly salt their food and use MSG (Monosodium Glutamate) to enhance the flavor, enticing people to return. Unfortunately, both ingredients could stimulate the sympathetic nervous system, causing an increase in hyperstimulation and its symptoms.

This is especially true if you are sensitive to salt and MSG.

While eating at a restaurant might not bother some people, it could if you are hyperstimulated and sensitive to salt and MSG.

MSG is particularly hard on the sympathetic nervous system because it is a neural excitor, which can aggravate hyperstimulation and its symptoms.

You can remedy this by asking the restaurant not to use MSG in your meals or selecting foods that have much less (or none) and where you can salt your own food. However, this might be a tall order for many restaurants, especially those that are protective of their reputation.

You can also reduce the effects of high salt and MSG by drinking plenty of water the next day. Increasing your fluid intake can flush excess salt from the body, reducing its effects on the brain and sympathetic nervous system.

For more information, Recovery Support members can read the following articles in Chapter 22:

• Can ingesting a lot of salt increase my anxiety symptoms?
• Can MSG increase anxiety symptoms?