Highlights from the article:
1. Many people are eating under a state of physiological stress or anxiety. e.g. eating on the run, eating at work, eating with while watching tv or the news, eating while arguing with their family.
2. Physiolgocial Stress Response is our body’s mechanism to escape predators. It increases heart rate, increases blood pressure, shunts blood away from the mid section to the arms and legs for quick fighting, thinking or fleeing. Physiological Stress is considered a negative stress or a dis-stress especially when inappropriately timed and timed with eating.
3. While under stress your body cannot properly digest, assimilate or burn calories correctly even if you are eating the healthiest foods on the planet.
4. The stress response causes: Decreased nutrient absorption, decreased oxygenation to your gut, 4 times less blood flow to the digestive system and as much as a 20,000 fold decreased enzymatic output for breaking down your food.
5. Water soulable nutrients, macrominerals and micro minerals are excreted by the body during physiolgocial stress. An example of your body under stress is calcium excretion which can reach 60-75 mg in the first hour of stress.
6. Under chronic stress hormones like cortisol are increased which increases the inablity to lose weight, increases the inability to lose body fat, the inability to build muscle and commonly causes more weight gain around the mid section.
7. Under stress blood cholesterol and triglycerides go up while helpful gut flora populations decrease and increased food sensitivities and gastroesophageal reflux (heartburn) are common.
Action Steps:
1. Practice gratitude, prayer, deep breathing prior to eating. Take a minute or 5 and relax, breath before, during and after your meal. Allot enough time to have a non-rushed, uninterrupted meal. Put your fork down and chew, taste, enjoy your food. Strive to eat nutrient filled, local foods you love.
2. Eat your meals in a quiet, comfortable and relaxing place. Try not to eat in front of the tv or in the car.
3. Exercise helps decrease stress and inspires me to make healthier food choices and eating strategies: Studies have shown that during exercise, relaxing chemicals (endorphins) are released in the brain that bring pleasurable relaxation and rejuvenation.
3. Proper sleep 7-8 hours in a dark room between 10pm and 7am are best. Lavender, calming music, gratitude journals, light reading, avoidance of caffeine and tv are great ways to help sleep and bust stress.
4. Meditation sitting or laying with relaxing music or meditations from youtube.com are great ways to relax prior to or after a meal. I also recommend stretching before or after your meal to help the body relax and digest better and to help you unwind.
5. Make sure you are getting your weekly chiropractic adjustments to improve the communication between your brain and your body and maximize you life potential.
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