Stress

Marig0ld

I wanted to ask if there's any scientific link between stress and weight loss/gain. I notice that when I relax and stop letting the "little things" get to me, my weight comes off a bit easier. Most of my weight loss has been about getting myself in the right mindset. So is there any scientific evidence you'd like to share or is it all just a big coincidence? Inquiring minds want to know :-)

Ange_

I'm not sure how well it stands up scientifically (although the author claims to have studied biochemistry and it's relationship to weightloss), but there is generally a very convincing discussion of this in the book 'The Gabriel Method' by Jon Gabriel.

He says that stress causes chemical changes in the body (yes we do know that to be true) and that depending on the situation your body may react differently to it depending on the stress. If your body interprets the stress as something that would advantageous to be heavier, you'll put on weight. For example if you go into starvation mode or are not eating enough nutrients, you'll put on weight as your body wants to have a big reserve for 'famine times'.
On the other hand if the stress is such that your body 'thinks' it would be better to be lighter (to be able to move faster), then you'll loose weight. So apparently if you do interval training you can simulate this effect by creating the stress signals that indicate you need the ability to move fast to get out of trouble.

Obviously your body doesn't 'think'. But i think what Gabriel is saying is that there are different chemical stress responses and thus different physical reactions that relate to your metabolism.

That book is certainly an interesting read anyway. Especially if you are interested in mind-body connections and 'mind-set' when it comes to losing weight.

LabRat529

I wanted to ask if there's any scientific link between stress and weight loss/gain. I notice that when I relax and stop letting the "little things" get to me, my weight comes off a bit easier. Most of my weight loss has been about getting myself in the right mindset. So is there any scientific evidence you'd like to share or is it all just a big coincidence? Inquiring minds want to know :-)

Just on a hunch and some rusty human physiology, I'll add my guess to what dirtbooksun says.

I'd guess there's at least two factors that link stress and weight loss. The first is an emotional response. Nearly everyone eats to soothe emotions. Some do it more than others. Some can learn to control the impulse, but if you think about it, it makes perfect sense that there's an emotional connection to food for so many of us. I've never had kids, but I've baby-sat my nieces and nephews and I know that nothing quiets a sobbing child quite like being cradles while also being fed a bottle. We learn to associate food with good things from the very beginning. Thus, when we're stressed and need comfort, we turn to food.

You might not be doing that though (If so, major kudos to you!!! I am a horrible emotional eater and I certainly eat more when I'm stressed).

The second factor that I'd guess has a role is cortisol levels. Or... maybe some of your other stress hormones (like epinephrine or norepinephrine)... but I'd bet cortisol. Chronic, long term stress leads to release of cortisol from the Adrenocortex, which makes physiological changes to help you adapt to stress. I'm most familiar with it in terms of pain. Chronic pain leads to high cortisol levels, which helps control inflammation and reigns in the immune response. They used to give cortisol shots for arthritis, but I'm not sure if they do that still because too much cortisol can, if I remember correctly, cause problems with bone density.

A quick flip through my endocrinology book (did not read in depth!) tells me that cortisol and the other glucocorticoids (a class of hormones released from the adrenal cortex) work to maintain carbohydrate reserves in times of stress... in other words, you're stressed, your body decides it needs some emergency storage for the impending doom it feels is coming, so it's going to hold on to those glycogen and fats stores as much as it can. It can't defeat a calorie deficit forever, but it does decrease protein synthesis, insulin sensitivity, glucose oxidation... and all of that will add together (presumably) to create a slightly lower metabolism in times of stress, which might affect weight loss.

What I don't know is if these hormones really make *that* big of a difference with a long-term calorie deficit. But they might. So what you are observing (slower weight loss when stressed) could be very real and not just something you're imagining.

Anyway... my facts could be slightly off. It's been a long time for me and I only skimmed the chapter.

Marig0ld

Thanks ladies! Interesting stuff. I think the moral of the story is it can't hurt to relax! :-)

CaptainMFP

I'd guess there's at least two factors that link stress and weight loss. The first is an emotional response. Nearly everyone eats to soothe emotions. Some do it more than others. Some can learn to control the impulse, but if you think about it, it makes perfect sense that there's an emotional connection to food for so many of us. I've never had kids, but I've baby-sat my nieces and nephews and I know that nothing quiets a sobbing child quite like being cradles while also being fed a bottle. We learn to associate food with good things from the very beginning. Thus, when we're stressed and need comfort, we turn to food.

The second factor that I'd guess has a role is cortisol levels. Or... maybe some of your other stress hormones (like epinephrine or norepinephrine)... but I'd bet cortisol. Chronic, long term stress leads to release of cortisol from the Adrenocortex, which makes physiological changes to help you adapt to stress. I'm most familiar with it in terms of pain. Chronic pain leads to high cortisol levels, which helps control inflammation and reigns in the immune response. They used to give cortisol shots for arthritis, but I'm not sure if they do that still because too much cortisol can, if I remember correctly, cause problems with bone density.

A quick flip through my endocrinology book (did not read in depth!) tells me that cortisol and the other glucocorticoids (a class of hormones released from the adrenal cortex) work to maintain carbohydrate reserves in times of stress... in other words, you're stressed, your body decides it needs some emergency storage for the impending doom it feels is coming, so it's going to hold on to those glycogen and fats stores as much as it can. It can't defeat a calorie deficit forever, but it does decrease protein synthesis, insulin sensitivity, glucose oxidation... and all of that will add together (presumably) to create a slightly lower metabolism in times of stress, which might affect weight loss.

This is pretty spot on to my understanding. I'll add that ultimate control of cortisol and its partner glucocorticoids begins in the hypothalamus...which is at the heart of the emotional brain. This is the best link between stress and weight gain.

startrekkermd

Hmmm - just wrote my endocrine exam so hopefully I haven't forgot all of it ... yet

Cortisol is basically a stress hormone - Think about basic fight or flight - you need energy NOW to get your muscles working, either to run or to fight. To that end, cortisol is going to increase your blood sugar level any way it can - it does this by breaking up glycogen (a storage form of glucose) and other things: hence it actually helps fat, protein, and carbohydrate metabolism

However, since it wants the energy only available to your muscle, it inhibits glucose use by other tissue in the body - overall you use less glucose. Also, since your body is mobilizing all this energy, your brain sends you hunger signals to replenish the loss it feels coming on

If you are under chronic stress, and have systemic sustained high levels or cortisol, weird things start to happen. For some reason, fat distribution shifts from extremities to central (bad, bad shift) , and cortisol also doesn't let your muscle turn amino acid into protein. In fact it eats away at muscle tissue and even leads to bone breakdown

The good news you ask ? Well studies have shown that exercise (in moderation - not pounding out 200lb dead lifts) is the best method for lowering cortisol levels that have risen in response to stress

CaptainMFP

Cortisol is basically a stress hormone - Think about basic fight or flight - you need energy NOW to get your muscles working, either to run or to fight. To that end, cortisol is going to increase your blood sugar level any way it can - it does this by breaking up glycogen (a storage form of glucose) and other things: hence it actually helps fat, protein, and carbohydrate metabolism

True, but don't oversimplify its function. Insulin and glucagon operate in the aftermath of meals to stabilize blood sugar. However, normal, non-stress-related releases of cortisol happen a couple of times a day to ensure that blood sugar doesn't crash between meals...I'm talking those extended periods (like sleeping) when no sugar is in-bound but plenty of cellular metabolism is still happening. That cortisol release is unrelated to stress and is an essential function in addition to the very accurate description you offered of its function in the context of stress.