Stress and stress management are growing concerns in today’s work force. It decreases work productivity, affects our health, distracts us from work, increases absenteeism and most of all, it affects the company’s bottom line.
Managing stress has dealt mostly with telling people to take the time to smell the roses, exercise, deep breathing, meditation, visualization, journaling, etc. But, what exactly is stress? Isn’t the body designed to handle stress? Yes, but acute, short-term stress - NOT constant prolonged stress.
Stress is more than a mental or emotional problem. It is typically described as any type of mental stimulus that triggers worry, anxiety and fear. It’s that ‘fight or flight’ mode that we’ve heard about - running from the proverbial saber tooth tiger. This signals the body, specifically the adrenal glands, to produce stress hormones… adrenaline, cortisol and norepinephrine. This real problem occurs when we constantly produce our stress hormones and overwork our adrenal glands. The constant production of our stress hormones have a direct effect on our ability to lose weight, cravings, diabetes, depression, high blood pressure, cholesterol, PMS, hot flashes, insomnia and the list goes on.
It’s easy to identify your stress if it is work, finances, relationships, etc…but what about the stresses we don’t think of? Can we be adding to our stress levels and not even know it? Have we focused only on the mental stresses and overlooked how diet and exercise can contribute to stress?
Stress is cumulative….
Yes, diet and exercise can increase the stress in your life! Keep in mind, stress is anything that triggers our adrenal glands to produce more of its stress hormones. Digestive difficulties, blood sugar imbalances and exercise cause the body to produce more of its stress hormones. This constant demand can eventually deplete and exhaust our adrenal glands and cause adrenal fatigue and exhaustion, which is an underlying problem to many of our health issues.
1. Blood sugar - When we skip meals - our blood sugar drops. Low blood sugar is associated with cravings, irritability, mood swings and lightheadedness. Basically it affects our concentration, focus and ability to think clearly. Worst of all it takes us out of our ‘fat burning’ zone. Low blood sugar due to skipped meals or poor dietary choices triggers the adrenal glands to produce more cortisol and adrenaline. Eating processed, refined, junk foods will also throw our blood sugar out of balance and triggers additional demand on the adrenal glands. Add that to all the mental stress going on and you can eventually deplete and exhaust your adrenal glands.
2. Digestive difficulties - The second culprit, which is often overlooked, is bloating, gas, indigestion, heartburn and other irritable bowel problems. Digestive difficulties are a huge problem! Antacids and other digestive products are in the top 5 sellers for prescription and OTC drugs!
Digestive problems cause irritation and inflammation in your stomach. This triggers your adrenal glands to produce additional cortisol, which works as a powerful anti-inflammatory, needed to reduce the inflammation in your stomach. The result is the adrenals are over-taxed, which further depletes and fatigues them! Continue >>
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