Stress Free Life |
Stress Management - So what exactly happens during the stress response?By Charlotte Watts Dip.ION BANT – Nutritionist Therapist at totalbeing.com and www.healthyconvenience.com The Adrenal Glands
For men and menstruating women the adrenal glands secrete only a small amount of the female sex hormone progesterone. However after the menopause when the ovaries stop producing progesterone, this amount can become highly significant, and have a dramatic effect on the intensity of menopausal symptoms like hot flushes, irritability and mood swings. Aldosterone is one of the hormone responsible for fluid balance in the body, helping to regulate the levels of the minerals sodium and potassium. Stress causes us to retain sodium and lose potassium through the urine – this is to raise blood pressure in the fight-or-flight response to make our heart beat faster in the face of danger. In chronic stress this can happen too frequently leading to high blood pressure and fluid retention; this can be seen as a common PMS symptom in women with stress. Cortisol influences carbohydrate, fat and protein metabolism, therefore our ability to derive energy most efficiently from the food we eat. To provide us with vital energy needed in a truly physically dangerous situation, it increases blood sugar by mobilising proteins for conversion to glycogen in the liver – glycogen is the form in which we store sugar in the liver and muscles, ready for an emergency. When glycogen stores in the liver are adequate, then adrenaline and the hormone glucagon work to maintain even blood sugar levels and energy between meals. They do this by converting the glycogen to glucose for immediate energy, ideally this should happen constantly and without highs and lows, however, high stress and the resulting high levels of cortisol impairs the uptake of glucose by cells, causing an elevation of blood glucose and leading eventually to diabetes. This can also be seen as weight gain around the middle (apple-shaped obesity) as the sugar is converted to fat to remove it from the bloodstream. The Fight or Flight MechanismThe stress response is the set of physical changes your body makes in response to a threat or stress. It sometimes is called the "fight-or-flight" response and this literally refers to the perceived need to either stay and fight a foe or run for your life. Even today our bodies still react in this way and the body releases chemicals that trigger:
The body is tense, alert, and ready for action, you can feel yourself preparing for this physical challenge even if you just forget to turn the gas off. Today, our bodies still react the way we are programmed, but the situation usually does not call for these extreme responses and we then have to work hard (and use up lots of nutrients) to bring down all the released hormones, glucose stores and neurotransmitters. If we don’t go through physical processes to use up these hormones we can literally be “stewing in our own juices”, which is why so many people feel the need to go to the gym and “let off steam”. One of the effects of the release of adrenaline in the fight or flight response is to release glucose by breaking down bodily glycogen stores in the same way as cortisol. This allows you to have an extra burst of energy and to be extra alert during an emergency, but in the long term it causes blood-sugar levels to drop, with subsequent loss of energy, concentration, appropriate response to stress and patience. Resorting to stimulants will eventually result in burnout, for some people the first time they listen to their bodies is when they have a physical or mental break-down. When you are anxious and tense, every single muscle cell is consuming energy, and in order to stay in a state of tension these cells use up B vitamins, vitamin C, calcium, and magnesium in great amounts. Other nutrients are consumed by the nerve cells which are activated to keep you alert and ready to react, resulting in a higher need for most other nutrients too. In fact, you probably need at least twice as many vitamins, minerals and amino acids, although certainly not twice the amount of food, so a high-powered supplement containing the major B vitamins is often the first step for a stressed person and a measure which can show quick relief of some of their symptoms such as energy slumps, insomnia, anxiety and mood swings. Ironically this can allow people to continue in their stressed state without addressing the underlying causes, an important part in health prevention. The decrease in digestion to prioritise energy to the muscles also means that the body does not absorb nutrients well whilst under stress. With prolonged or recurrent stress, the body becomes deficient in these, hindering body functions and leaving it less able to deal with the stress itself. Metabolism is raised to produce more energy, which with time, can actually lead to lowered metabolism through compromised thyroid function and weight problems. Many of the disorders that arise from stress are the result of these deficiencies, especially those of the B-complex vitamins which are very important for proper functioning of the nervous system and metabolism of food into energy. Stress can cause damage to body tissues and cell membranes by free radical activity -the gut, brain and immune system are most susceptible. A state of continual stress eventually wears out the adrenal glands and can seriously affect blood sugar regulation, especially as it can lead to more and more stimulants to prop up a body that cannot motivate itself through natural hormonal means. Because it suppresses immune response, stress increases susceptibility to illness and slows healing – many stressed people boast that they “never get ill”, but this can be a less positive reflection of a suppressed immune system. “Leisure sickness” is common in those who feel ill when they rest or go on holiday; the only chance their immune system gets to clean up all the infections and pathogens hanging around their bodies. These people can be prone to take active holidays, read thrilling books and watch exciting or scary films to fill their lives with activities that mimic stress and keep their adrenaline production up to avoid crashing. It is crucial to remember that serious illness can occur if the body is not given the chance to regulate, rest and heal and the body should be supported through nutrition, lifestyle and attitude to bring stress levels down in a safe and beneficial way. Considerations in bringing down stress levelsThe following considerations should be made to made considered, gradual changes to stress levels and avoid the negative health aspects associated with chronic stress:
Total Being OpinionOn a nutritional note, the most important consideration is to balance blood sugar levels – this is the major point as “highs and lows” are the most common underlying cause and effect of stress physically; this can then lead to mental and emotional problems and vicious cycles of cravings - all forms of “highs and lows”, reflecting general unbalance in life, health and hormone levels. Caffeine is the most common “drug” used to keep us going when physical and mental fatigue set in; unfortunately although it appears to increase our alertness, it is just a quick fix and just serves to perpetuate the stress cycle and blood sugar imbalance. Alcohol, cigarettes and recreational drugs as with caffeine are commonly misunderstood as “stress relievers” – they actually use up your energy in one quick surge, leaving you victim to the crash later that keeps you coming back for more. We have discussed mainly lifestyle issues here, as it is simply not good enough to just try and prop up people with nutrition when they also have other issues to address. As nutritionists it is our responsibility to look at the underlying causes of symptoms and this always applies to every aspect of your life as a whole.
See www.healthyconvenience.com for help remembering how to get healthy – for posters, shopping guides and recipes. Bibliography
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