When recovering from alcohol addiction, fixing these nutrient deficiencies for your overall health is important. Consult your healthcare provider if your drinking can compromise the medication or supplements you’re currently taking and vice-versa. If you’re having issues with your drinking habits, don’t hesitate to seek out treatment options to help you stay sober. Magnesium supplements can improve cognitive deficits caused by chronic alcohol abuse by improving cerebral blood flow10. While people naturally produce some vitamins or receive them from healthy food, taking dietary supplements is a great way to deal with nutrient deficiency.
Diet for Alcoholics: Dealing with Different Cravings After Quitting Alcohol
Heavy meals can be difficult to keep down when you are in detox, especially if you have withdrawal symptoms like nausea or vomiting. Instead, focus on consuming soups and other liquids to replenish nutrients and keep yourself hydrated. You can also drink decaffeinated teas and fruit or vegetable juices. Nowadays, labeling requirements vary for alcohol contents, its calories and nutrients, and the ingredients. Despite many attempts to add labeling to alcoholic beverages, the regulations concerning nutritional labeling remain convoluted.
Vitamins to Take After Drinking
They’ll help you create a diet that addresses your unique health situation, weight, and personal diet needs. Ask your doctor for a referral, or contact your local hospital, community health center, or university. best vitamins for recovering alcoholics There are holistic addiction treatment centers and substance use treatment programs that emphasize nutrition education, too. It may leave you anxious, out of sorts, and make it hard to sleep.
- Seeking help for addiction may feel daunting or even scary, but several organizations can provide support.
- Restoring your body’s nutrient levels after quitting alcohol can benefit both your physical and mental well-being.
- Increased alcohol can lead to heart issues, sleep disturbances, cancer, cirrhosis, dementia, diabetes, organ failure, and many other conditions.
- While there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution for alcohol cravings, supplements can play an essential role in reducing them.
- You’ll also get access to anti-craving medications, expert medical advice, handy digital tools, and more—all through an app on your phone.
- Chronic alcohol intake can lead to diminished calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc levels.
Vitamins Needed for Recovery From Long-Term Alcohol Abuse
Passionflower supplements can help reduce alcohol cravings by calming the nervous system and reducing stress-related triggers. Magnesium is a mineral that helps reduce stress, anxiety, and irritability, which can trigger alcohol cravings. It also promotes healthy sleep and improves mood, making it easier to overcome alcohol cravings.
Once the problem has been recognized, alcoholism is best addressed initially by total abstinence from alcohol, followed by assessment, treatment and resolution of the underlying triggers for seeking alcohol. Antioxidants are necessary for avoiding free radical-induced cellular damage. Vitamin E is a lipid-soluble vitamin that is carried as a component of lipoprotein, and efficiently reduces peroxidation susceptibility both in in vivo and in vitro assays [93,94]. It’s important to select snacks that not only nourish the body but also help to manage cravings and maintain steady blood glucose levels. Inclusion of complex carbohydrates like root vegetables and legumes can aid in balancing serotonin levels, promoting relaxation and well-being.
- A good first step is to speak with a primary care physician who can provide treatment referrals and medications.
- Taking supplements can help alcoholics in experiencing withdrawal symptoms or undergoing detoxification.
- This deficiency can lead to problems, such as slow wound healing, softening of the bones, skin problems, decreased blood clotting, and neurological damage.
Selenium deficiency is common in those who struggle with alcohol, especially if they have liver disease. Limited information is available about whether selenium is helpful in those who struggle with alcohol or during alcohol withdrawal. However, because it supports the immune system and alcohol suppresses it, some people may take supplements with selenium for its immune-boosting properties.
Why is Vitamin Supplementation Essential for Drinkers?
Deficiencies in vitamin C can cause symptoms that include irritability, weakness and muscle fatigue. The best source of vitamin C in the United States is orange juice from frozen concentrate (more of the vitamin is preserved when the oranges are frozen). The vitamin B complex in general, and particularly vitamins B1 (thiamin), B3 (niacin) and B5 (Pantothenic Acid), play a role in turning sugars into energy. Niacin, or vitamin B3, can also be found in pork, as well as in fortified cereals, salmon, and swordfish. Whole grains, milk, eggs, and liver are perhaps the best food sources for B5, or Pantothenic Acid. Additionally, alcohol can block the body’s absorption of many of the nutrients from food.
DL-phenylalanine is an essential amino acid which plays an important role in the functioning of your nervous system. If your body is deficient in this amino acid, it’s common to experience fatigue, confusion, memory problems, a decrease in alertness, and to https://ecosoberhouse.com/ have a reduced appetite. D-phenylalanine also slows the breakdown of endorphins, which act as the body’s natural painkiller, prolonging their release into the body. Caring for your whole self as you overcome alcohol addiction is critical to lasting success.
In addition, folate deficiencies can cause anemia, wherein the body lacks red blood cells for carrying oxygen to the tissues3. Alcohol affects nutrient absorption by damaging the stomach lining and intestines’ cells, disrupting nutrient transport2. Excessive drinking can cause malabsorption, causing further vitamin deficiencies. Vitamin C helps to keep the skin healthy, and plays an equally important role in the health of bones, teeth and blood vessels.
