Can stress cause you to gain weight?

We often hear that 'stress can kill you'. Not sure about the actual killing and its estimated time-frame, but it can cause a havoc in your health for sure. In times of stress, our health gets affected. In fact, when you’re particularly stressed out, you might notice an unpleasant side effect cropping up, which in turn makes you feel even more overwhelmed and stressed out. Yes, we are talking about the weight gain. You may even think:- "I don't even eat much and yet I weight more. How can that happen?" Sounds familiar?

Why does weight gain often accompany stress? It’s not just a nature's cruel joke that it's playing on you: it’s a biological response to stress. Let's explore it below.

The Link Between Stress & Weight Gain

Hormones

When we feel stressed out, our brains trigger certain hormones when a threat is detected. These include adrenaline, cortisol, and Corticotropin-releasing hormone, or CRH. To prepare you to deal with the stress head-on, your brain and body effectively make you very alert. While adrenaline may curb hunger in the short term, when it wears off, cortisol takes over, telling your body to refuel - EAT.

This would not have presented a big problem if we lived in medieval times and had to hunt to feed our families and run from predators or enemies. But unfortunately, the evolution applied some changes that play not in our favor. Thus, our hormones still make us reach for food in times of stress, even if we haven’t really engaged in calorie-burning “fight or flight” activity.

Fat Storage

Our hormones don’t just make us reach for the food during stressful situations — they also affect where our fat is stored. Typically, stress-related weight gain comes in the form of “visceral fat” in the abdomen. As if the extra padding on the midsection wasn’t bad enough, an excess of abdominal fat cells can cause an increased risk of diabetes and heart disease.

Carb Comfort

Let's talk about food now. What kind of food do you reach for when you are stressed? Let's guess...... it's probably not anything related to leafy greens or even fruit. Typically, we crave the JUNK. Potato chips, ice cream and wine are always a great options that can be found in any household. This happens in response to heightened Cortisol level which makes us crave high-carbohydrate foods. Once we indulge and feel comforted by foods full of starch and/or sugar, our bodies release Serotonin, a brain chemical that produces a calming effect. While the serotonin takes effect, our bodies remember the nice feeling and take note. This makes us more likely to reach for the same comforting junk foods in future times of stress.

Slowed Metabolism

As if that wasn't enough, Cortisol also affects your metabolism. Essentially, our bodies are trained to go into “survival mode” in stressful situations, leading to slowed metabolism and increased fuel (fat) storage. This means even if you’re eating the same amount of calories as usual, even avoiding the junk, an increase in cortisol can still make your metabolism stagnate. This will follow by a weight gain. Once this system sets in place, it's very hard to lose the weight by changing the diet alone.

No time for change.

Stress is often related to a busy and scattered schedule, trying to accomplish it all. These days everyone is stressing out more than ever to succeed, be better, please everyone. Work, kids, school activities, homework, sports - it never ends.  Thousand and one thing on your "to do" list and taking care of yourself might never make the list.  You might not feel you have the time to eat well, meditate or work out. As a result, you might just want to throw in the towel, grab more fast food and collapse on the couch at the end of the day.

You might think you’re too busy to take steps to a healthier lifestyle, learn to relax, meditate and exercise. In reality it doesn't take a lot of time at all.  Even 10 minutes of fast walk in a neighborhood makes a lot of difference and may change the perspective. And it will help you combat stress! Try and see. 

Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years. It is considered a type of mind-body complementary medicine. Meditation produces a deep state of relaxation and a tranquil mind. Spending even a few minutes in meditation can restore your calm and inner peace. Anyone can practice meditation. It's simple and inexpensive, and it doesn't require any special equipment. If you are not familiar with the process, current technology can lend a hand. Just download CALM app on your phone and you can meditate anywhere with the help of a guide and even track your progress.

Don’t let your stress cause weight gain. Stay tuned for more tips and advise.