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How to Manage
Stress
“Chronic stress leads
to high levels of cortisol, and in turn weight gain.”
Stressed out? Welcome to the club. As Prevention magazine found in 1996, 75% of survey respondents felt they suffered from great stress at least one day a week, with numbers only increasing since then. Part of the reason, according to RoseMarie Gionta Alfieri, M.A., in the Basic Health Publication User's Guide to Stress-Busting Nutrients, is technology: "All the technological advances that seem on the surface to alleviate psychological stress in our lives in reality only keep us constantly connected and 'on' 24 hours a day, seven days a week," she states.
Importance of Managing
Stress
Being "on" 24/7, along with daily stresses of family life,
relationships, and money, is giving Americans a higher stress rate than
ever before. Along with the rising level of stress comes the importance
of managing it properly. "How you manage stress may be more important
than how much stress you are under," Alfieri says.
What Is Stress?
Before you can begin to manage your stress, it is important to understand
what stress is and how it affects your body. In Alternative Medicine:
the Definitive Guide, compiled by The Burton Goldberg Group, stress
is defined as "a reaction to any stimulus or interference that
disturbs mental or physical health."
How the Body Reacts
to Stress
Our bodies elicit a physical response to stress. Managing Stress from
Morning to Night, published by Time-Life Books, explains that stressors
spark the hypothalamus, which secretes a hormone called CRF. CRF then
sends messages in two pathways: first, to nerve cells in the brain system
and spinal cord, which relay impulses to the adrenal glands. The adrenal
glands in turn secrete neurochemicals that prime the body for action
by increasing heart rate, breathing alertness, and muscle response.
The second pathway causes the pituitary gland to produce a hormone that
tells adrenal glands to release cortisol into the bloodstream. The cortisol
then sets off reactions that speed up the body's metabolism. In normal
cases, these two tracks feed back to the pituitary gland to regulate
this response.
Danger of Chronic
Stress
It's when we are too stressed out all the time that problems begin to
occur. In The Doctor's Guide to Instant Stress Relief, authors Ronald
Nathan, Ph.D., Thomas Staats, Ph.D., and Paul Rosch, M.D., write, "Many
stressful minutes can lead to an exhausting day. If you have the response
intensely and repeatedly over weeks and months, stress begins to attack
your health and happiness... the toll over the years can be enormous."
High Levels of Cortisol
Not Good
In addition, chronic stress leads to high levels of cortisol, which
in turn increases appetite, states Shawn Talbott, Ph.D. in The Cortisol
Connection. The fat that accumulates as a result will store itself in
the abdominal region, leaving you increasingly susceptible to heart
disease, diabetes, and cancer, he warns.
Along with weight gain, there are several other indications of troubling stress levels. Phyllis Balch, CNC, and James Balch, M.D., warn us in Prescription for Nutritional Healing that stress causes fatigue, chronic headaches, irritability, high blood pressure, shallow , insomnia, and gastrointestinal disorders. Because of its effects on the immune system, stress also makes the body "an excellent breeding ground for illness." We are more susceptible to infection and illness when we're stressed out.
Techniques to Reduce
Stress
There are simple breathing techniques you can try that may alleviate
symptoms immediately. In Coping with Stress, Gwen Packard offers, "Deep,
slow breathing can reduce the symptoms of stress by relaxing muscles
and slowing down the heart rate.
Supplements to Combat
Stress
If breathing methods don't provide enough relief, nutritional supplements
can help. Alfieri offers some typical examples. You should consider
B complex vitamins, which in addition to being anti-stress vitamins
needed by the thymus gland, are necessary for health and proper functioning
of the nervous system. When the body is under stress, vitamin C assists
the adrenal glands in the regulation of stress in hormones and reduces
blood pressure and feelings of stress. In addition, the hormone melatonin
will help produce natural sleep when stress causes insomnia. You can
also try calcium or magnesium supplements: both are lost during stress,
which can result in anxiety, fear, and even hallucinations.
Herbs to Cope With
Stress
Nathan, Staats, and Rosch also advise the use of several herbs which
can be taken directly or used to brew a mild cup of tea. Chamomile,
for example, is not only a mild sleep aid, but soothing to the digestive
tract. Ginseng also helps the body naturally cope with stress. In addition,
St. John's wort eases depression and nerve pain by preventing nerve
cells from reabsorbing serotonin, while wild oats restore balance to
the nervous system.
Supplements to Decrease
Cortisol
If you are worried about high levels of cortisol, Talbott suggests supplements
that specialize in decreasing cortisol levels. Among others, he recommends
magnolia bark, which treats low energy levels and also helps the digestive
tract; theanine, an amino acid found in green tea leaves, is a non-sedative
relaxant; and finally, tyrosine, another amino acid, which reduces the
effects of stress and fatigue on physical and mental performance. WF
References:
“Basic Health Publication's Guide to Stress Busting Nutrients”, by Rose-Marie
Gionta Alfieri, M A.
“Coping with Stress”, by Gwen K. Packard.
“The Cortisol Connection”, by Shawn Talbott, Ph.D.
“Prescription for Nutritional Health”, by Phyliss Balch, CNC, and James
Balch,M.D.
“The Doctor's Guide to Instant Stress Relief”, by Ronald Nathan, Ph.D.,
Thomas Staats, Ph.D., and Paul Rosch, M.D.
“Managing Stress from Morning to Night”, published by Time-Life Books.
“Alternative Medicine: the Definitive Guide”, compiled by The Burton
Goldberg Group. WF
