Keep stress from overtaking your life and your waistline

“Stress is the trash of modern life—we all generate it but if you don’t dispose of it properly, it will pile up and overtake your life” — Danzae Pace.

And I would like to exercise my literary license to add that it can also overtake our waistlines. We have learned that stress has more effects than previously thought. In addition to increasing our risk for heart disease, hypertension and stroke, it can also lead to obesity and the myriad of conditions that accompany an increase in weight.

Dr. Nina’s What You Need to Know: About Stopping Stress From Overtaking Our Waistlines

What happens when we are stressed?

Our bodies release stress hormones called epinephrine (aka adrenaline) and cortisol. Epinephrine utilizes energy stores to fuel an increase in heart rate and blood pressure and thereby enable a “fight or flight” response. Cortisol sends signals to our body to replace the fuel and store fat, making us feel hungry.

While this is an effective mechanism when mankind had to wrestle with predators or run from dinosaurs, stress in this day and age does not typically involve fight or flight. Instead, it is centered around finances, family and our health which can make this response maladaptive: we are no longer burning fuel but we are consuming calories and fat as if it is going out of style. The end result is increased weight.

What other effects do stress hormones have on our bodies?

• Eating the wrong foods. Stress makes it more likely that we reach for comfort foods such as cookies, chips and soda instead of fruit, veggies, nuts and other nutritious items.

• Increases abdominal storage of fat. When we refer to fat, what typically comes to mind is subcutaneous fat—the kind we can grasp with our hands. However, abdominal or visceral fat lies deep within the abdominal cavity and in between our abdominal organs. Increases in abdominal fat have been shown to increase our risk for heart disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus and breast cancer.

• Decreased testosterone. By affecting our sleep and contributing to weight gain, stress can also decrease testosterone levels. In men, testosterone is responsible not just for maintaining muscle mass and libido, but also in keeping them healthy. Adequate levels have been shown to fend off depression, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

What can I do to decrease my stress and weight?

• Move it. Think of our body as a pressure cooker. When the stress builds up, we need to blow off steam so we don’t burst (or gobble up calories like Pac Man). Instead, moving our muscles can be an effective stress reliever. Consider going for a walk, taking a flight or two of stairs or even stretching.

• What’s for breakfast? Use our first meal of the day to not only keep our tummy from growling, but also to nourish us and prevent vitamin and nutrient deficiencies. Studies have shown that not having enough Vitamin B, C, calcium and magnesium can be stressful to our bodies. The solution can be found in low-fat yogurt, whole grains, eggs, strawberries and peanut butter. Bon appetit!

• Get our ZZZ’s. Getting enough shuteye when stressed can be quite the Catch 22. Poor sleep can result in stress but stress can prevent good quality sleep. Additionally, sleep deprivation can lead to weight gain by throwing our hunger hormone—ghrelin—completely out of whack. One provocative study showed that a single night of poor sleep can lead us to consume an extra 600 calories on average. The key is to maintain good sleep hygiene; in particular, calming and soothing routines such as meditation, yoga, prayer, reading, listening to music or writing down our problems on a piece of paper and putting it in a drawer so that we can relax and drift off to sleep.

• Avoid caffeine. It is a stimulant that increases our blood pressure, heart rate, and cortisol levels. It can put us on a fast track towards stress overload.

• Take our time. When stressed, we often find ourselves acting like we are in an eating contest, eating quickly and with haste. But here’s an important piece of information: it takes our stomach 20 minutes to relay to our brain that we are full and to stop eating. This can lead to eating more than we would if we had eaten slowly. Additionally there is some evidence that eating slower, savoring each bite, and paying attention to feelings of fullness may lower cortisol levels. In turn this can help to decrease the amount of food we eat.

Stress has evolutionary origins to keep us alive—“fight or flight.” In this day and age, it can serve us well by improving our focus and performance (e.g. presentations, exam). But when stress becomes chronic it can be disastrous to our happiness and health. Like worrying, chronic stress does not change anything. In addition to stealing our joy, raising our blood pressure, heart rate and risk for chronic illness, it packs on the pounds. Let’s dispose of stress properly!

This information is for educational purposes and should not be considered specific medical advice. Always consult with a qualified medical professional regarding your individual circumstances.

Dr. Nina Radcliff is dedicated to her profession, her patients and her community, at large. She is passionate about sharing wise preventive health measures. Contact her on Facebook or Twitter @drninaradcliff.