Your Health strategies

Stress Relief Techniques … If you don’t do them will you get fat? When doing a little research on the subject I have come to believe there is a solid link between the 2.

You see, our body contains a system called the neuroendocrine system which activates a series of hormones whenever we feel threatened or stressed.  Many years ago this system was useful to assist us in fleeing when there was danger near. 

The Hormones released include adrenalin (for the burst of energy), corticotrophin releasing hormone (CRH) and Cortisol (helps us to replenish our bodies after the stress has passed).  The downside is Cortisol can hang around in our system for a while after the stress and cause your appetite to increase.

This system is great when you’re under physical danger but isn’t so good on the everyday stress that we all face like paying the bills, work pressure and family pressures.  In other words your neuro-endocrine system can’t tell the difference between non-physical stresses and still responds with the need to replenish your system – or eat.

By listening to the messages from the neuro-endocrine system can not only lead to weight gain, but also leads to visceral fat which is fat that lies around the stomach area of the body and increases the rate of heart disease and diabetes.

What does that all mean?  Put simply, if you experience stress you are more likely to gain weight.  This is interesting when you consider more people are under stress today than 30 years ago and we currently have a record obesity rate.  Interesting.

It all comes back to Stress Relief Techniques and playing a part in learning how to

a) Release built up Stress

b) Developing new methods for handling Stress

There are many forms of Natural Stress Relief available to show you how to handle stress more effectively and release built up stress.  There options available include: Stress Relief CD’s, Relaxation Programs, Stress Management Activities and Relaxation Breathing Techniques.  Whether you like it or not stress is in everyone’s life. It’s more a question of how you handle it.

You are what you eat, and if you’re feel like you need some sort of stress relief or you experience anxiety attacks it may have something to do with your diet. 

Let me explain … there are several factors that determine the level of stress and anxiety you experience daily.  They include: your environment, your psychological status, your methods for releasing stress and your diet. Diet has shown to impact how we handle stress at work, our level of concentration and the ability for our bodies to function normally.

There are several parts of your diet you may believe help to relieve stress, but few people are aware that these are the same things that actually cause stress.  Take for instance, smoking.  Many people believe that smoking helps to relieve stress.  But if you read this article you’ll understand smoking is one of the main causes of stress.

Here are some of the foods and drinks you should take in moderation to reduce your stress and experience natural stress relief:

—> Foods that contain caffeine – This is found in coffee, non-herbal tea, chocolate, coke, etc.  Caffeine causes the release of adrenalin which increases the level of stress.  Too much caffeine has the same effect as long term stress on the body. 

—> Alcohol – Excessive consumption of Alcohol stimulates the secretion of adrenaline and is shown to result in nervous tension, insomnia and irritability.  Excess alcohol will deposit fat around the heart and in excess limits the liver from removing toxins from the body.  During stress your body produces several hormones that are normally filtered by your liver.  If your liver isn’t functioning properly, then your body can’t remove the toxins resulting in serious damage

—> Sugar – Sugar has NO essential nutritional benefits what so ever. Sugar provides short burst of false energy that can not sustain the body.  These short bursts of false energy result in irritability, poor concentration and depression.  High consumption of sugar can also result in diabetes.

—> Fat – Avoid foods rich in saturated fats as they place unnecessary stress on the cardiovascular system.  These include: deep fried foods, bacon, sausages, cakes and pies. 

—> Salt – Foods high in salt increase the blood pressure affect the adrenal glands and cause emotional instability.  Look for salt substitutes that contain potassium to still enjoy the flavor of salt without all the nasty side-effects.

These foods mentioned are all Ok in moderation, but should never be used solely as a method of stress relief as they will result negative side affects.

Of course diet is essential in stress relief, but nothing can beat well chosen stress relief techniques like exercise, yoga, a stress relief CD, meditation, relaxation breathing techniques or other beneficial stress management activities.