Lower Cortisol With Foods, Lifestyle Changes, and More (2024)

High levels of cortisol (the stress hormone) are associated with poor overall health and increase your risk of health problems. Your body produces cortisol to respond to stress. Cortisol released by the adrenal glands is natural and good, but too much can adversely impact your health.

Making lifestyle changes, managing stress, and choosing healthy foods can help keep cortisol levels low and reduce the chances of health concerns. Medication can also help regulate your levels. Unchecked cortisol levels can lead to a weakened immune system, diabetes, and high blood pressure, among other issues.

This article will discuss the ways to lower cortisol levels, both with and without medications. It explains how to lower cortisol through foods, exercise, herbs, and more.

Foods That Lower Cortisol

Nutrition can make a difference in lowering cortisol levels. It can help to limit or avoid processed foods and eat a nutrient-dense diet with plenty of vegetables and healthy fats.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

One review of foods that impact anxiety found that foods containing dietary fiber or omega-3 fatty acids or aged, fermented, or cultured foods may help people manage anxiety and thus lower cortisol.

• Dietary fiber: fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, whole grains
• Omega-3 fatty acids: salmon, chia, and flax
• Aged, fermented, or cultured foods: plain yogurt, kimchi, kombucha
  

Foods High in Vitamin B

Vitamin B helps increase the activity of a system that dampers the production of cortisol. This system regulated by the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA).

Eating foods high in vitamin B can help not only lower cortisol in your body, but also reduce inflammation.

These foods are good dietary sources of vitamin B:

• Fortified whole grains
• Enriched-grain products like bread, rice, pasta, and tortillas
• Beef
• Poultry
• Fish
• Pork

Magnesium-Rich Foods

Magnesium and stress are interrelated. By acting on related processes in the body, magnesium reduces cortisol levels. Conversely, stress may lead to low magnesium levels.

Eating foods high in magnesium may be able to reduce inflammation, metabolize cortisol, and relax the body. These foods include:

• Avocados
• Bananas
• Broccoli
• Dark chocolate
• Pumpkin sees
• Spinach

Gut-Healthy Foods

Maintaining healthy gut bacteria by eating gut-healthy foods like probiotics may be able to lower cortisol and stress levels.

Herbs

Adaptogenic herbs are also used to reduce cortisol. Adaptogens help your body manage stress and restore balance after stress. Examples include:

• Ashwagandha
• Holy basil
• Maca root
  

Exercise and Physical Activities

Many physical practices can help to lower cortisol levels in the body. Low- or high-intensity exercise will temporarily increase cortisol levels during physical activity. Cortisol levels begin to decrease immediately and in the hours after physical activity, which leads to an overall cortisol decrease.

Stretching is also a great way to reduce stress and lower cortisol levels. Start your day off with a calm attitude by doing morning stretches, or do evening stretches to lower stress after a busy day.

One 2014 randomized control trial comparing cortisol levels of people who participated in restorative (relaxing) yoga compared to stretching yoga hypothesized that the restorative yoga group would have lower cortisol levels after one year of participating in restorative yoga.

Much to their surprise, the stretching yoga group emerged with lower cortisol levels at the end of the year-long study. Although the study had some limitations, it did demonstrate the impact of stretching on lowering cortisol.

Good Sleep Habits

Sleep is an important part of maintaining good health. The combination of sleep loss and chronic stress is often seen in metabolic disorders like obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Get a good night's sleep by practicing sleep hygiene and getting treatment for any sleep disorders, such as obstructive sleep apnea.

Mindfulness and Relaxation Techniques

A number of mindfulness and relaxation techniques can be used to lower cortisol in your body.

• Breathing exercises: Diaphragmatic breathing can have a direct effect on your body's response to stress. When you're feeling stressed, take a few moments to breathe deeply from your belly. Make your inhales and exhales as slow as possible.
• Meditation: This mindfulness technique asks you to put away concerns for the future and worries about the past by being present in the moment. The key is to become aware of your body's sensations without judgment or criticism. When you practice meditation, your body relaxes and you may see cortisol levels decrease.
• Muscle relaxation techniques: Systematically tensing and relaxing muscle groups and recognizing how these sensations feel has been shown to decrease the stress you feel and the cortisol your body produces.
• Grounding: Aka "earthing," this practice is intentional direct bodily contact with the earth. It may include getting into a natural body of water, sitting or lying on the grass, or walking barefoot. Research has shown that grounding can have many positive health benefits, including lowering cortisol levels that are too high.

Relationship Practices (Including Pets)

Your relationship with yourself, others, and even your pets can contribute to reduced stress levels.

Self-regulation is any intentional practice you do to help improve or stabilize your emotions, thoughts, mood, or energy, which can help lower cortisol levels. For example, physical touch, such as hugging or being hugged by another person, can help to reduce cortisol levels. Another effective technique is placing a hand on your chest over your heart.

Your social network can affect your stress levels. Having solid social support can actually make you more resilient to stress and its effects, as measured by lower cortisol levels.

Interacting with animals can also help you lower cortisol levels. It can even help you lower blood pressure, reduce loneliness, and boost your mood.

Supplements

In addition to foods, dietary supplements, and herbs are sometimes used to help lower cortisol levels. The following supplements have been shown effective in reducing cortisol:

• Betaine
• L-ornithine
• Golden root (Rhodiola rosea)
• Eurycoma longifolia root (Malaysian ginseng)

Medication

Prescription medications to treat anxiety are sometimes used to lower cortisol levels. For example, benzodiazepines are antianxiety medications that have been shown to reduce cortisol levels when used short-term. Still, it is unclear if medications help you maintain low levels of cortisol long-term.

Other prescription medications, including antidepressants, may also lower cortisol levels.

Risks of Chronically High Cortisol Levels

It is entirely normal and healthy to have short-term increases in cortisol levels. Cortisol is an essential hormone that helps regulate daily bodily functions.

However, chronically high cortisol levels can negatively impact your health. For example, it can lead to increased inflammation and chronic pain and contribute to symptoms of certain conditions, such as arthritis and fibromyalgia.

Other adverse effects of chronically high cortisol include an increased risk of immune system challenges, diabetes, high blood pressure, and more.

Summary

Cortisol is considered the stress hormone. It is produced naturally in the body to respond to stress. It is beneficial in short-term situations such as exercise but can negatively impact health when levels are too high in the long term.

You can implement healthy eating, exercise, supplementation, certain behaviors, medications, or a combination of these to lower cortisol levels.