The Best Supplements For Anxiety in 2023

Q: Can probiotics help with anxiety?

Yes, they can. Our Favourite one we use is Seed DS-01 Daily Synbiotic . One small study found that daily supplementation with a probiotic containing Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species reduced anxiety and stress in medical students compared to a placebo. Another study found that a combination of probiotics and a prebiotic (a type of dietary fiber that promotes the growth of beneficial bacteria) reduced anxiety and improved mood in people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

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Are you struggling with anxiety and looking for natural ways to manage your symptoms?

If so, you may have considered trying supplements as a complementary treatment option. There are many different supplements that claim to help with anxiety, but it can be overwhelming to determine which ones are the most effective and safe.

In this blog post, we will review the best supplements for anxiety in 2023, based on the latest research and expert recommendations.

We will discuss how each supplement works, its potential benefits and risks, and how to use it safely and effectively.

Whether you are new to supplements or have been using them for a while, this post will provide you with valuable information to help you make an informed decision about which supplements may be right for you.

What Are The Best Supplements For Anxiety?

Anxiety and stress are among the most pervasive mental health issues affecting people today.

We’ve gone through the science and found evidence-based supplements for anxiety.

It is a normal part of life to experience occasional anxiety. We need it to survive, we don’t need it for no reason though. Some people experience anxiety that is persistent, uncontrollable, overwhelming and outright uncomfortable. When this happens, it interferes with your daily activities, work and relationships.

If this is you, or someone you know, this information can be life-transforming and give your life back from the shackles of anxiety.

Anxiety comes in many forms but we’ll be talking about Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Panic Disorder, and stress.

These can affect people of all ages, genders and backgrounds.

Although there is not one single answer as to why anxiety is so common, many attribute it to factors such as social media, poor sleep habits, lowered stigma, and historical underreporting.

Anxiety can be physiological processes inside the body, underpinning the reason why anxiety, panic disorders and stress happen.

This is where food, medications and supplements for anxiety come to benefit.

We’re going to talk about the best supplements for anxiety but there are a few things we have to talk about.

What are anxiety symptoms?

Anxiety disorders are a group of psychiatric disorders including social anxiety, generalized anxiety, panic disorder, PTSD, OCD, and phobias.

While not classified in the DSM, we’ve talked about the signs of high functioning anxiety before.

While we need certain anxiety to survive, too much becomes a problem in our lives.

Someone with anxiety will interrupt non-threatening signals as threatening, thus maintaining an unnecessarily high state of worry and arousal.

Underlying the exaggerated fear response is a network of brain structures that function improperly in a response to a stimulus.

The amygdala, which controls our fear response and fight or flight, is often overactive.

On the opposite end, the prefrontal cortex, which inhibits the fear generation of the amygdala, is under-active.

There are often other parts of the brain that are under-active, the hippocampus, anterior cingulate cortex, striatum, and insula can also be involved with anxiety.

Some of these “malfunctions” may be accompanied by disturbances in neurotransmitters (serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine, GABA), a dysfunctional HPA axis, altered immune functions, changes in heart rate variability, cognitive functions, and neurotrophic factors (BDNF and nerve growth factor)

What Are the best supplement Brands For Anxiety?

Not all supplements are created equal.

It’s important to choose a quality supplement over the cheapest and more of them.

The ones you can get off of the shelf are most likely not good, there have been tests on them and they have quality problems.

Poor supplements may contain lead, arsenic, or plastics… yes even the ones that say “natural”.

I’ve gone through and found quality supplements from trusted brands.

As a practitioner, quality is the most important factor to consider when looking for a trusted source to provide health products for patient wellness.

Fullscript offers practitioner-grade supplements of the highest quality.

The Quality of supplements is crucial as they help keep you healthy!

If supplements aren’t manufactured and resold under quality supervision, they can end up with expired ingredients, cross-contamination, improper labels, and other severe issues that can risk your health.

Dietary supplements and wellness products are approached differently than pharmaceuticals. In Canada, Natural Health Products (NHPs) are regulated by Health Canada under the Natural and Non-prescription Health Products Directorate (NNHPD).

Fullscript is incredibly easy to use, is certified carbon-neutral (important if you’re going to be shipping as a company).

You can order once or you can use the authorship feature, so you don’t run out of your supplements.

Do you have to use Fullscript? No.

You can still find quality supplements in stores but it’s hard. I constantly look for these and have found some for sure.

Remember that it’s a highly profitable business sector and they spend a lot of money on advertising – they are designed to sell you.

Not all magnesium does the same thing. There are different types of B12, some better and more effective than others.

Some formulations will make you deficient in other nutrients. This is why I highly suggest practitioner-grade supplements, they focus more on the quality and purpose of the supplements rather than selling you to make a profit (though, that’s their goal too).

Why I Take An Alternative Approach To Anxiety First

Traditional pharmaceuticals often come with unwanted side-effects
More people are learning to natural based medicine for treatments first
There is hard science for their benefits of supplements for anxiety
Easier to stop them than pharmaceuticals
Less chance for addiction or abuse

Why supplements for anxiety might be an appropriate start for you to manage your anxiety.

There are many pharmaceutical drugs that have been developed which can help alleviate anxiety, they often come with unwanted effects.

It’s hard to call them side-effects nowadays because we know a lot more about the human body than we did years ago.

We know that we can’t direct just one aspect of the body, the body works in complex systems.

For these reasons, there are a lot of people out there who are skeptical about jumping right into these types of drugs to control their anxiety.

These people are looking for other approaches and want to control their anxiety in more of a “natural” way and not rely on psychiatric medications.

With this all in mind, let’s look at what the science currently says about the best supplements for anxiety.

Certain supplements are especially effective at calming and balancing the brain, which can lessen feelings of anxiety.

The Best Suppplements for Anxiety

The majority of people with anxiety should look into – magnesium, kava, inositol, ashwagandha, saffron, and have more green tea.

Magnesium – Best for general anxiety disorder
KAVA – not recommended unless under doctor supervision
Inositol – best for panic attacks
Ashwagandha – best for stress and anxiety
Lavender (quite calming)
Red Clover Extract– not recommended unless under doctor supervision
GABA – be careful and it’s not recommended unless under doctor supervision
Saffron – best for anxiety, depression, and obsessive tendencies
5-HTP – be careful and it’s not recommended unless under doctor supervision
L-Theanine quite calming – can supplement but we suggest drinking more green tea
Multi-Vitamin – great if you have attention issues or some anger
Vitamin D – most people need to supplement with this
Omega 3 Fatty Acids – we like this for depression, inflammation, and ADHD

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Magnesium is best used to relax – this goes for your mood, muscles, and blood vessels.

Magnesium is good for relaxing tight muscles, headaches/migraines, and improving sleep quality.

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AOR Magnesium Glycinate – Good for stress, anxiety, and muscle relaxing tense muscles

The typical adult dose of magnesium is 50-400mg for anxiety

The most common side effect associated with Magnesium tends to be diarrhetic effects, which is highest with Magnesium Oxide (due to having the least absorption, and the greatest percentage of oral dose being rectally excreted).

Magnesium is used for more than 300+ different biochemical reactions in your body, it’s vital to make energy, plays a key role in blood sugar regulation, and it has a calming effect on neuronal function.

Low magnesium is associated with inflammation, diabetes, seizures, anxiety, and depression.

Magnesium is an essential dietary mineral and the second most prevalent electrolyte in the human body.

Magnesium deficiencies are common in the western diet because grains are poor sources of magnesium.

In Canada, magnesium, calcium, vitamin A and vitamin D (see Box 1) were the nutrients with the highest prevalence of inadequate intakes.

Other prominent sources of magnesium, like nuts and leafy vegetables, are not eaten as often.

It is possible to fix a magnesium deficiency through dietary changes.

If magnesium is supplemented to attenuate a deficiency, it acts as a sedative, reducing blood pressure and improving insulin sensitivity.

68 percent of Americans eating the standard American diet do not consume enough magnesium.

This mineral is found in green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, kale, and Swiss chard; legumes; nuts; and seeds.

In general, the foods that contain dietary fibre provide magnesium but the degradation of our soil has drastically reduced the magnesium content in our foods – which may explain why magnesium deficiency is prevalent.

Maintaining healthy magnesium levels is also associated with a protective effect against depression and ADHD.

The intestinal absorption of magnesium varies depending on how much magnesium the body needs, so there are not very many side-effects associated with supplementation of magnesium.

A 2010 review of natural treatments for anxiety found that magnesium could be a treatment for anxiety

If there is too much magnesium though, the body will only absorb as much as it needs.

If you take too much magnesium for your body, it may cause gastrointestinal distress and diarrhea – a tummy ache and may shit your pants… start low and work up to it!

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Kava seems to be quite reliable and effective in treating non-psychotic anxiety, with less reliability for generalized anxiety (check lavender).

There is a notable increase in overall well-being with people with take kava – particularly cheerfulness. It’s noted that kava can also decrease reaction time, depressive symptoms associated with reducing anxiety, aggression, and blood pressure (though small). Kava has also been shown to improve sleep quality

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When supplementing Kava for anxiety, initially an extract known as WS1490 should be sought out.

300mg of this extract daily (in three divided doses of 100mg) appears to be reliable and effective for the treatment of anxiety and other cognitive issues.

Doses of up to 800mg of the WS1490 extract have been tolerated for short periods of time.

Otherwise, supplementation of any product conferring 250mg collective kavalactones (the active ingredients) is used.

Although it is usually taken at multiple times throughout the day with meals, if a single dose per day is being used it tends to be used prior to sleep.

101 patients suffering from non-psychotic anxiety using Kava (WS 1490 extract) over 25 weeks noted statistically significant benefits starting after week 8.
In 61 persons with non-psychotic anxiety, Kava was more effective than placebo at improving sleep (both quality and recuperative effects) and reducing anxiety at 200mg of WS 1490 daily over 4 weeks
150mg of an extract of Kava (WS 1490, aka. Laitan) in persons with non-psychotic anxiety with a total HAMA score of greater than 18 was significantly more effective than placebo in reducing the HAMA rating on anxiety when assessed by a per-protocol analysis.
This study model used low dose Kava (WS 1490 extract) at 50mg and worked up to 300mg while concurrently reducing pharmaceutical usage (benzodiazepeine) from 50% of the normal dose when Kava was introduced, tapering off at 2 weeks for anotehr 3 weeks of Kava treatment.

Kava showed efficacy in reducing anxiety and was an effective substitute for benzodiazepines, with statistically better results (relative to placebo, which tapered off and got nothing to replace it with) after 8 days.

It is possible that long-term usage of kava may have similar side-effects as long term usage of benzodiazepines (not demonstrated, but wholly logical) and most studies on kava are of a few weeks in duration without any problems.

It’s probably not suggested the use of Kava for long-term supplement use and it’s important to work with your doctor to assess your liver health. There have been reports of liver failure in some people but that seems to come down to quality of the product – the whole plant vs the root.

Kava has been traditionally consumed by people from various Polynesian cultures.

It was primarily used ceremonially and as an intoxicant (like alcohol).

Unlike benzodiazepine drugs, which impair cognition long-term, when standardized extracts of kava root are taken at recommended dosages (between 60 and 300 mg per day) most people don’t experience any impairment of their cognitive abilities.

Kava has been studied thoroughly in both clinical trials and case studies.

Animal studies show that the anxiolytic effect of kava may be due to its ability to block serotonin receptors in the brain. Kava has been shown to interfere with noradrenergic neurotransmission and bind to both gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and N-methyl D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, both of which regulate mood. It has been suggested that kava may help alleviate symptoms associated with a generalized anxiety disorder by affecting vagal heart rate control (Watkins 2001).

Kava may have the most amount of evidence and magnitude of effect for reducing anxiety.

It also tends to be regarded as a safe and effective anxiety-reducing supplement alternative to Benzodiazepine drugs without the addiction factor

One study looked at introducing Kava at 50mg (WS 1490 extract) when the current Benzodiazepine dosage is reduced by 50%, to later replace the benzodiazepines with 300mg WS 1490 extract daily.

This substitution appeared to be effective, and Kava does not appear to be significantly more or less effective than some standard drugs used to treat anxiety.

Animal studies using injections show the anti-anxiety effects of Kava and its kavalactones can be very rapid and occur as soon as it hits the brain.

A meta-analysis established the range of 210-240mg for Kava to be more effective than placebo at reducing anxiety in the short-term (1-24 weeks)

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Inositol may be the best supplement for anxiety and panic attacks. Inositol works incredibly well for women with fertility troubles and PCOS. Inositol can also help improve acne.

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The dosage for inositol ranges from 12-18g per day

18g of inositol taken daily for one month in persons with panic disorder was associated with a significant reduction in panic attack symptoms (more potent than the reference drug of fluvoxamine) and anxiety symptoms (comparable in potency)
12g of inositol daily for a period of 4 weeks is associated with reductions in symptoms of panic disorder and anxiety, particularly a reduction in agoraphobia (extreme or irrational fear of entering open or crowded places.
Supplementation of 18g inositol in persons with binge eating disorder or bulimia was effective in reducing symptoms of binge eating as well as both anxiety and depression. *The lone male patient did not respond to treatment.*

Please check back for an updated list but as far as we can tell it seems safe for consumption. Confirm with your doctor or healthcare provider.

Inositol is a type of sugar that influences both the body’s insulin response and several hormones associated with mood and cognition.

While it’s not actually a vitamin, it’s commonly referred to as vitamin B8.

It also has antioxidant properties that help fight the damaging effects of oxygen-free radicals in the brain and other body tissues.

Inositol is found naturally in cantaloupe, citrus fruit, and many fibre-rich foods (such as beans, brown rice, corn, sesame seeds, and wheat bran).

It is believed that inositol improves depression, anxiety, and mental disorders by stimulating the release of the “feel-better” hormones serotonin and dopamine.

The benefits of reducing anxiety with inositol have mainly been seen in people with panic disorder.

A small study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology investigated the effect of Myo-inositol on 20 people with panic disorder.

After being provided with a daily 18-gram dose of Myo-inositol for four weeks, the participants were given a daily 150-mg dose of Luvox (fluvoxamine)—a commonly prescribed psychiatric drug—for the four weeks. When compared to a matched set of individuals not given Myo-inositol, those who were given Myo-inositol had an average of 2.4 fewer panic attacks per week.

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Ashwagandha is best paired for high stress people who get anxious and have some sleep troubles, it has been shown to reduce your cortisol levels. It’s also been shown to boost testosterone in men, have antidepressive effects, decrease fatigue, and improve motivation.

The typical dose of Ashwagandha for anxiety is 300-500 mg of a root extract with meals.

Lower doses, 50–100 mg, have been shown to help in some instances, such as reducing stress-induced immunosuppression and enhancing the effect of other anxiolytic agents.

Ashwagandha root extract is statistically effective though at 1 gram per day after 2 weeks and even more so after 6 weeks of treatment.

600 mg of an ashwagandha extract (“full spectrum”) for 60 days in persons with chronic mental stress was able to improve all tested parameters and reduced serum cortisol by 27.9%.
300 mg ashwagandha (1.5% withanolides) twice daily over the course of 8 weeks in persons with anxiety disorders also given counselling (placebo also given counselling) noted that supplementation was associated with a 56.5% reduction in anxiety symptoms as assessed by BAI while placebo only say a 30.5% reduction.
Six weeks supplementation of Ashwagandha (250mg twice daily of the root extract) in persons with diagnosed generalized anxiety disorder (mixed anxiety and depression) noted significant improvements in both depression and anxiety symptoms. *This study had a high dropout rate (18 out of 39 persons)*

It has also been found to be safe to use while on SSRIs

Ashwagandha is an Indian herb usually consumed in a root extract.

It’s one of my favourites (along with maca) because it’s an “adaptogen” – it may help correct imbalances in the hormonal and immune systems.

It’s also great for restoring the biological functions disturbed by chronic stress.

Ashwagandha has been shown to reduce mood fluctuations and anxiety in 51 women with menopausal syndrome and some researchers have suggested that it may be useful in treating anxiety disorders in conventional psychiatric practice

Evidence suggests potent anti-anxiety effects in the context of chronic stress and anxiety disorder, with lesser potency in standard forms of anxiety not related to stress.

In 2012, a study looked at 64 randomized volunteers and asked the subjects to take either ashwagandha or a placebo twice a day for 60 days.

The group with the ashwagandha contained 300 mg of the concentrated extra made from the root.

During the treatment period, regular phone call check-ins that the volunteers were taking the herbs or placebo and to note any adverse reactions.

The group taking the ashwagandha for anxiety showed a significant reduction in anxiety scores after the 60 days relative to the placebo – without side effects.

More notably, the serum cortisol levels were substantially reduced in the herbal group – a marker for stress. Cortisol is commonly known as the stress hormone and goes up when we are stressed.

High levels of cortisol long-term create problems done the road which include fatigue, mental fogginess, and damage to brain structures for emotion and memory.

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There appears to be a notable decrease in symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder and with oral ingestion of lavender supplements; aromatherapy seems effective and implicated in reducing state anxiety (acute, situation based, anxiety), but has less robust evidence to support it. One study suggesting oral supplementation was comparable to lorazepam. Improvements in sleep quality have been noted in insomniacs and persons with generalized anxiety disorder mostly.

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To supplement lavender, take 80 – 160 mg of a supplement containing 25 – 46% linalool.

Accurate dosing is difficult to determine during aromatherapy, but most studies use at least 30 minutes in a well-ventilated room.

Recently, several clinical trials have substantiated the efficacy of oral supplementation with lavender oil at a dose of 80mg once daily for symptoms of anxiety, depression, restlessness, agitation, and disturbed sleep

Topical application of lavender can result in contact dermatitis, which is characterized by red and itchy skin.

Lavender is one of few essential oils used in aromatherapy with evidence for general anxiety reducing effects, alongside rose oil having some evidence.

Lavender supplementation can temporarily alleviate anxiety.

Though lavender does not have a sedative effect, lavender aromatherapy can improve sleep quality, as well as reduce insomnia. Some evidence suggests lavender can increase slow-wave sleep patterns.

There is some evidence to suggest lavender may offer benefits for people suffering from dementia, but it is very preliminary and much more research is needed.

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GABA has been shown to inhibit the excitatory impulses in the brain, including those responsible for panic, alarm, anxiety, worry and fear. Classically, those who experience these symptoms are prescribed anti-anxiety medications like Ativan or another benzodiapene, for example. While they can be clinically effective, these medications often create unwanted side effects. This is where a supplement like GABA can shine as it delivers the deficient neurochemical to help balance the brain and nervous system, without the related side effect concerns.

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The typical recommended dosages of GABA range from 100 to 1,500 mg daily for adults and 50 to 750 mg daily for children. GABA should be taken in two or three doses a day.

GABA is a main neurotransmitter in the brain and may adversely react with any neurally active prescription medication or anti-depressants.