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cramming for a test trying to get more
done than you have time to do stress is
a feeling we all experience when we are
challenged or overwhelmed but more than
just an emotion stress is a hardwired
physical response that travels
throughout your entire body in the short
term stress can be advantageous but when
activated too often or too long
your primitive fight-or-flight stress
response not only changes your brain but
also damages many of the other organs
and cells throughout your body your
adrenal gland releases the stress
hormones cortisol epinephrine also known
as adrenaline and norepinephrine as
these hormones travel through your
bloodstream they easily reach your blood
vessels and heart adrenaline causes your
heart to beat faster and raises your
blood pressure over time causing
hypertension cortisol can also cause the
endothelium or inner lining of blood
vessels to not function normally
scientists now know that this is an
early step in triggering the process of
atherosclerosis or cholesterol plaque
build up in your arteries together these
changes increase your chances of a heart
attack or stroke when your brain senses
stress it activates your autonomic
nervous system through this network of
nerve connections your big brain
communicates stress to your enteric or
intestinal nervous system besides
causing butterflies in your stomach
this brain gut connection can disturb
the natural rhythmic contractions that
move food through your gut leading to
irritable bowel syndrome and can
increase your gut sensitivity to acid
making you more likely to feel heartburn
via the guts nervous system stress can
also change the composition and function
of your gut bacteria which may affect
your digestive and overall health
speaking of digestion does chronic
stress
affect your waistline well yes cortisol
can increase your appetite it tells your
body to replenish your energy stores
with energy dense foods and carbs
causing you to crave comfort foods high
levels of cortisol can also cause you to
put on those extra calories as a
visceral or deep belly fat this type of
fat doesn't just make it harder to
button your pants it is an organ that
actively releases hormones and immune
system chemicals called cytokines that
can increase your risk of developing
chronic diseases such as heart disease
and insulin resistance meanwhile stress
hormones affect immune cells in a
variety of ways initially they help
prepare to fight invaders and heal after
injury but chronic stress can dampen the
function of some immune cells make you
more susceptible to infections and slow
the rate you heal want to live a long
life you may have to curb your chronic
stress that's because it has even been
associated with shortened telomeres the
shoelace tip ends of chromosomes that
measure a cell's age telomeres cap
chromosomes to allow DNA to get copied
every time a cell divides without
damaging the cell's genetic code and
they shorten with each cell division
when telomeres become too short a cell
can no longer divide and it dies as if
all that weren't enough chronic stress
has even more ways it can sabotage your
health including acne hair loss sexual
dysfunction headaches muscle tension
difficulty concentrating fatigue and
irritability so what does all this mean
for you your life will always be filled
with stressful situations but what
matters to your brain and entire body is
how you respond to that stress if you
can view those situations as challenges
you can control and master rather than
as threats that are insurmountable you
will perform better in the short run and
stay healthy
long run
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