Stress: Nutrients to Help You Cope

Earlier this week, I talked about the stress response that we all experience from time to time. As you learned, there are many diseases that are closely related to chronic stress levels and what the stress does to our internal balance. So, let’s all make an effort to lower our stress through our lifestyle and diet decisions.

Despite increased cravings for salt, sugar and carbs, focusing on nutrition is extremely important during stressful situations. The following nutrients are beneficial for someone who is experiencing short-term or chronic stress:

Vitamin C: Improves the capacity of the adrenal glands to adapt to stress; normalizes cortisol levels; increases immunity; acts as a powerful antioxidant. Food sources: fresh fruits and vegetables.

Thiamin (Vitamin B1): Provides energy; protects the nervous system and the heart. Food sources: Calf’s liver, nuts, brewer’s yeast.

Magnesium: Helps reduce cortisol levels after exercise; also known to help with strong chocolate cravings (many who crave chocolate are actually deficient in magnesium). Food sources: Nuts and seeds, leafy greens, salmon.

Zinc: Normalizes adrenal metabolism; important for bone health and immunity. Food sources: Calf’s liver, oysters, shellfish, beef, seeds.

Calcium: Deficiency associated with elevated cortisol production; critical nutrient in metabolism. Food sources: Dairy, leafy greens.

Riboflavin (Vitamin B2): Used in many metabolic processes including energy production. Food sources: Calf’s liver, leafy greens, seafood.

Pantothenic Acid (Vitamin B5): Used in energy production; plays a central role in adrenal-cortex function and cellular metabolism; sometimes known as the “anti-stress” vitamin. Food sources: Calf’s liver, egg yolk, fresh vegetables.

As you incorporate these important nutrients into your anti-stress diet, remember to eliminate foods that strain your adrenals and internal balance: caffeine, alcohol, refined carbohydrates, sodium, refined sugars, and any foods you may be allergic to.

In addition to focusing on good nutrition while under stress, don’t forget about the other lifestyle practices that can help significantly with stress reduction. Regular exercise, plenty of sleep, and taking time for yourself each day are all extremely beneficial. Even just taking a few deep breaths when you feel yourself getting worked up can really make a difference.

Enjoy the weekend!

Stress: Cortisol, Blood Sugar & Disease

I know I promised this stress information last week, but I had too much going on and could not find the time to post. Normally I’d try to squeeze it in, but given the topic, I figured it was better to let it go and revisit it this week when I have more time.

We experience stress when life’s demands exceed our ability to meet those demands. Each of us has a different capacity to handle stress – this is an important thing to remember. One person may be able to juggle a full-time job, family, cleaning the house, volunteering, and cooking meals all without issue, while another may experience severe stress and fatigue with a full-time job and no family to worry about. Another important point: stress can be physical (such as a knee surgery), emotional, psychological, or social; short-term or long-term; and real or imaginary/perceived.

Acute stress is the body’s initial response to stress, otherwise known as the “fight-or-flight” response. Remember, fight-or-flight refers to a series of changes that rapidly occur inside the body when we encounter a stressful situation. These specific changes actually prepare the body for quick thinking and fast-acting behavior so we can optimize our response to the stressful encounter. Energy reserves of fat, protein and carbs are rapidly mobilized through tissue breakdown, and this energy is transferred to our arms and legs so we can move quickly. Adrenaline levels increase, heart rate increases, blood pressure rises, body temperature increases, and we become very alert. The idea is that we will deal with the situation and then our body will quickly return to its normal balanced state.

Chronic stress, however, interferes with the natural fight-or-flight response. When someone is under chronic stress (and I think it’s safe to say we’ve all experienced chronic stress), cortisol levels increase. Cortisol is a hormone that helps the body respond to stress. It is useful in small amounts but very damaging in large amounts. The chronically high cortisol levels contribute to muscle loss, fat gain, and accelerated breakdown of bones and tissues. Symptoms of too much cortisol include weight gain, fatigue, blood sugar fluctuations, increased appetite, carbohydrate cravings, muscle weakness, low immunity, anxiety and depression, and low sex drive. Eventually, chronically high cortisol levels lead to inflammatory diseases such as diabetes, obesity, heart disease and arthritis.

Research has made it clear that there is a strong relationship between chronically elevated cortisol levels due to chronic stress, and long-term health. One of cortisol’s original roles is to encourage the body to refuel after responding to stress. However, when we have chronically high levels of cortisol, we are always hungry and craving certain foods, because our body thinks we need to refuel. This can lead to over-eating, and the fat tends to accumulate in the midsection – so it is readily available for the next stress response. This type of abdominal fat is associated with heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

Finally, I want to share the connection between chronic stress, elevated cortisol levels, and blood sugar imbalance. Insulin is another hormone I’ve talked about occasionally. Insulin’s primary role is to regulate our blood sugar levels. Other roles of insulin are to store fat in our cells, store sugar in our liver and muscle cells, and instruct proteins to build muscle. Someone with healthy insulin levels and insulin responses will optimally utilize the hormone and have internal balance.

During the stress response (fight-or-flight), all of our cells are instructed to ignore insulin, so as to keep the energy (fat, proteins and carbs) in the blood for rapid mobilization and use as our body responds to the stressor. Cortisol sends a message to the cells that rather than storing energy, they should break down their stored energy and send it into the blood. This is quite effective when we are actually facing a stressful situation, because we suddenly feel a surge of energy and can move quickly.

However, with chronic stress and chronically high cortisol, the body is continuously told to ignore insulin, which leads to insulin resistance. This is when our body becomes desensitized to insulin and therefore we have too much sugar in our blood, leading to weight gain, increased appetite, carbohydrate cravings, and diabetes.

Later this week I will talk about some important nutrients for someone who is under a lot of stress.

More Juicing!

Yesterday I talked about the benefits of juicing for optimal health. For those of you with juicers (or, potential juicer-owners), I’m going to provide a few more recipes today for good juices that target certain health issues. Enjoy!

Anxiety, Stress, & Panic Attacks

Healing fruits and vegetables for those who suffer from occasional or even chronic anxiety include apricots, bananas, broccoli, carrots, celery, fennel, leafy greens, onions and watercress. Some herbs that are helpful include alfalfa, borage, garlic, chamomile, lavender, lemon balm and parsley. Other helpful foods include almond milk, dulse, honey, kelp, almonds, tofu, and oats.

Foods rich in B-vitamins, such as leafy greens and whole grains, will help support the nervous system, which helps us cope with stress and anxiety. Some foods to avoid during times of anxiety or stress include caffeine, alcohol, refined flours and sugars, artificial flavors and colors, and any foods you may be allergic or intolerant of.

Juice for Anxiety, Stress & Panic Attacks

1 cup spinach leaves

1 cup kale leaves

1 beet

2 celery stalks

1 apple

Optional: dandelion root or blackstrap molasses

Cancer Prevention

The risk factors for cancer, as most of us know, include tobacco and alcohol use; exposure to toxins in food and/or environment; and family history of cancer. A diet of mainly whole foods that includes large amounts of fresh fruits and vegetables can be a powerful tool in cancer prevention, along with exercise.

Foods that help with cancer prevention include apples, apricots, berries, citrus fruits, figs, grapes, kiwis, mangoes, peaches, watermelon, asparagus, beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, leafy greens, onions, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and watercress. Herbs that are helpful include burdock root, calendula, echinacea, garlic, green tea, parsley, sage and turmeric. Other great cancer prevention foods include extra virgin olive oil, fish oil, flax, legumes, nuts, seeds, wheat grass and whole grains.

Juice for Cancer Prevention

¼ head cabbage, chopped to fit juicer tube

2 carrots

2 celery stalks

1 clove garlic

3 sprigs fresh parsley

1 beet

1 apple

1 spear broccoli

Hangover

As many of us know, a hangover can include things like headaches, fatigue, nausea, dizziness, depression, cravings, and more. Alcohol severely dehydrates the body, increases acidity in our digestive system, causes the loss of potassium and other vitamins, and affects our liver.

Healing fruits and vegetables for a hangover include apples, bananas, lemons, limes and leafy greens. Herbs that can be helpful include cumin, evening primrose oil, ginger, chamomile and lavender.

Hangover Helper Juice

2 apples

1 small piece gingerroot

1 lemon

Optional: 2 starfruits, crushed lavender buds

Note: Much of the above information was adapted from The Juicing Bible, by Pat Crocker

Adrenal Fatigue

We talked briefly about adrenal fatigue in class this week. I’ve been learning bits and pieces about adrenal fatigue throughout the past year, and it’s something that, in my opinion, many people experience. I’m not going to go into a lot of detail here, but I want to give you an overview of what adrenal fatigue is and what some of the symptoms are. I believe that if you have it, you should know how to recognize it and how to go about dealing with it.

Adrenal fatigue occurs when we experience chronic stress. Under stress, our adrenals increase production of the hormone cortisol. When the hormone is released, certain receptors on our cells need to process the cortisol. However, when we have prolonged periods of stress, our receptors experience “burnout” and fail to respond to the cortisol. This leads to fatigue and exhaustion. Besides chronic stress, other items that can lead to adrenal fatigue include too much caffeine, sleep deprivation, severe trauma, some prescription medications, and prolonged physical exercise.

Some symptoms of adrenal fatigue include the following: difficulty waking up and becoming alert and energized in the morning; afternoon “crash” between 2:00 and 4:00 pm; energy burst in the early evening, and possibly again later at night (some people refer to this as their “second wind”); cravings for foods high in salts, sugar, or fats; sensitivity to cold or always feeling chilled; mild depression; mood swings; feeling rundown; lack of ability to deal with stress; prolonged sickness or inability to kick a cold or cough; decreased sex drive; increased food allergies or sensitivities. Obviously there are different degrees of adrenal fatigue, and if you are experiencing one or two of the above symptoms that does not necessarily mean you have adrenal fatigue. However, if you are experiencing a few of them, you may want to find out how you can better support your adrenals.

When left untreated, adrenal fatigue can lead to many different health problems. It is something that will drain your energy and weaken your bodily systems, to the point that they are not functioning properly and are more susceptible to disease.

Someone with health adrenals will have a daily energy curve that is something like this: medium energy in the morning that slowly rises to its peak level; a slight dip around lunchtime but then an increase right after lunch; a gradual decrease in early evening until bedtime. This person will wake up easily and fall asleep easily, because their body is balanced.

Someone with adrenal fatigue will have a daily energy curve that looks more like this: very low energy in the morning; huge energy spike after morning coffee and breakfast, but then huge dip right before lunch; slight spike after lunch but then another huge dip; gradual decrease until bedtime; possible spikes right before bed or while that person is trying to sleep. This person has a hard time getting going in the morning and tends to be more of a night owl or sleep more restlessly.

Does this sound like you in any way? If so, check back tomorrow for some tips on how to deal with adrenal fatigue.

Stress and Fight-or-Flight

My grandfather, Grampie Ed, was a storyteller in a big way. A classic line found in many of his stories was about someone being so scared/surprised/shocked that “he wet his pants!”. As a kid, this was always very funny. Grampie Ed was known to create stories where he could insert his famous one-liners just to hear all the grandkids laugh hysterically.

Grampie Ed’s stories actually have some scientific backing. When the human body goes into “fight-or-flight” mode, all systems shut down except those necessary for survival at that exact moment. Increased blood flow to the brain, heart, lungs and muscles is done at the expense of things with lower priority, like the digestive system (and the urinary system!). This is a good thing because it helps us to be sharp, quick and strong in those rare times when we are facing danger.

What many do not know is that constant stress from our jobs, family life, or anything else can cause the body to remain in fight-or-flight mode. The fight-or-flight chemicals are released continuously into the body and can interfere with our natural balance. Therefore, those who experience chronic stress might not be digesting and absorbing the nutrients of their food into their bodies. If priority is always given to our brain, heart and lungs in order to cope with the continuous stress in our lives, when will we digest our food?

Marc David, in his book Nourishing Wisdom, describes fight-or-flight well:

During any kind of stress, whether a real or imagined one, the body clicks into the classic “fight-or-flight” response. This nervous-system mechanism is an evolutionary adaptation that protects us against outside dangers threatening biological survival – hostile attackers, natural disasters, and anything we must forcibly overcome or quickly avoid.

In the fight-or-flight response blood pressure increases, heart rate increases, blood flow is shunted away from the midsection and digestive system and toward the arms and legs, and digestive functions are shut down. All of the body’s energies are rerouted for powerful arm and leg movements and heightened respiration used for fighting or fleeing. What is most intriguing about the fight-or-flight stress response is that during a stressful day at home or at work when there is no actual danger to your life, the body interprets the emotional stress as life-threatening, and the stress response clicks in to varying degrees, depending on the level of stress.

If you decide to eat a meal in this state, the blood flow to your digestive system may be as much as four times less than the usual amount, and nervous system impulses to the digestive system may have signaled a complete shut-down. You may be eating, but you will not be digesting. Depending on the intensity of the stress and the rate at which your digestive system returns to normal function, food may sit for hours in the stomach undigested or pass through the small intestines with nutrients only minimally assimilated.

So no matter how healthy our diet, an unhealthy mood radically depreciates the nutritional value of a meal. We quite literally have less ability to digest food when our mind is improperly digesting life’s experiences.

And when we aren’t absorbing nutrients from our food, we create bodies and minds that are more susceptible to poor health.

Try to eat in a relaxing environment, even if you are stressed out. Take some time, even ten minutes, to get away from your computer, kids or anything else that stresses you out, and eat your meal in silence. This will help ensure proper absorption of all the essential nutrients.

It will also ensure you don’t wet your pants!