The 2022 US national overweight and obesity statistics are shocking. Fully seventy-two percent of Americans ages twenty and over are overweight, and forty-two percent obese! While we all understand that primarily diet and secondarily exercise play large roles in this national health crisis, chronic stress is often overlooked. In fact, stress can play a significant role in weight loss, and be a key reason why many people fail in their efforts. Why is that?
When you are stressed, your adrenal glands (located on top of your kidneys) produce a powerful hormone called cortisol. Cortisol switches the body from a relaxed state to a “fight or flight” state, increasing blood pressure and spiking blood sugar (so you can think and act quickly). While it is necessary for the body to deal with perceived threats or demands, if this stress response becomes too frequent or prolonged, these changes will have a significant negative effect, often leading to chronic high blood pressure, prediabetes, and unwanted weight gain.
During isolated times of acute stress cortisol decreases appetite, explaining why initially people often do not feel like eating. Long-term stress, however, does two things. It shuts down the production of leptin, an important hormone that tells the brain we are full and need to stop eating. Simultaneously, it often increases the presence of ghrelin, our hunger-stimulating hormone! And why can’t we just be satisfied with eating a bunch of broccoli? Why oh why do we always reach for the ice cream and potato chips? Like cocaine and heroin, eating sweets and starches causes an extra big dump of temporary “feel good” dopamine in the brain!
It gets worse. Chronic stress leads to a buildup of cortisol in the tissues which over time causes cellular resistance. This resistance is a direct cause of chronic inflammation which has been directly correlated with stubborn weight gain. Since coffee and sugar both spike cortisol, you can see why this is “a perfect storm”.
Finally, our body interprets persistent stress as “danger, famine potentially ahead”, and flips from a fat-burning to a fat-storing state. This is a powerful reason why many otherwise effective weight loss diets may fall flat. This is also the source of “belly fat”; prolonged cortisol exposures put our body in “survival” mode, laying down fat protectively around our organs.
At Vital Health, we understand the complexity of weight loss, and can help you to achieve the results you are looking for safely and permanently. Using acupuncture to “reset” the nervous system, together with diet and lifestyle changes unique to you, we have a high rate of success in helping your stubborn weight to finally come off—for good!
Want to hear more from Vital Health? Check out our podcast. Search for VitalHealth4You on your favorite podcast listening app or go to vitalhealthcda.com/podcasts/
©2023 Darcy Greenwald, M.S.O.M., L.Ac. and Vital Health
