The war of opinions rages on the battlefield of health and science, but there’s something all sides will agree on…
Most diseases (including cancer) are exacerbated or even induced by stress. So doesn’t it stand to reason that acquiring a technique for understanding and managing stress will help…?
Here are some natural and perfectly healthy ways to limit or eliminate the stress in your life with ease…
You’re walking around your neighborhood on a beautiful, sunny day. Without warning, a T-Rex appears. It looks hungry, and its beady eyes are staring at you.
Congratulations! You are suddenly in a stressful event.
Within seconds of spotting the dinosaur’s enormous nine-inch teeth, your bloodstream becomes flooded with neurotransmitters and hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline. This launches your body into fight-or-flight mode, a gift from our primitive ancestors. It primes your body to survive by preparing it for attack or retreat. Against a T-Rex, I am confident your body is screaming, “flight!”
The influx of chemicals changes your body in seconds. Your heart starts to race, your blood vessels dilate, and digestion slows down. And don’t worry if seeing a prehistoric beast in your neighborhood made you wet yourself- stress also causes your bladder to relax.
Here’s the really important take-away from this:
Running from a deadly beast, speaking in public, or running late to work- it makes no difference. Your body reacts to dramatic and unspectacular stressful events equally.
Minutes after your body goes into stress response mode your body has new biochemical pathways, caused by the chemical influx. This disrupts your body’s natural balance- called homeostasis.
This normally isn’t harmful, but if your body stays in a stressed state for a lengthy period of time, the stress is now chronic. And that is when it can do an enormous amount of damage:
1. Obesity
Chronic stress causes overproduction of the hormone glucocorticoid and cortisol. The body tries to regulate itself by increasing the desire to eat foods that are high in fat and sugar. In other words, comfort foods. Instead of returning to homeostasis, the extra food is converted into fat.
Not only does this cause weight gain, it can elevate to the point where the amplified need to eat food becomes a disorder called reactional hyperphagia. Ironically, this is often a side effect of going on a diet, where stress is common.
Natural Solution
Saffron is a spice, and saffron extract curbs the compulsion to stress-eat by naturally increasing dwindling serotonin levels. It also produces the same feeling of happiness that occurs when you satisfy a certain food craving.
That’s right, saffron extract can make you feel full and happy- the way a tasty piece of chocolate cake can- without ingesting the extra calories!
2. DNA damage
DNA molecules have protective tops called telomeres. Telomeres keep the DNA safe from deterioration. However, each time a strand of DNA divides, the telomeres become shorter and shorter until they are so small that they are no longer functional and the cell dies. Stress drastically speeds up telomere shortening.
Enough cells die and the entire body will follow…
Natural Solution
Telomere lengthening and durability has been a proven outcome of increased omega-3 intake. Subjects that took it also reported an increase in happiness and a huge decrease in feelings of stress.
The best source for this healthy fatty acid is in fish oil supplements. Although it is not fully understood why this increases telomere length, it is theorized that that the balance of omega-3 to omega-6 fats in the blood stream plays a crucial role.
3. Heart attack
As I’ve explained, it is crucial that the body stays in homeostasis, which is impossible under chronic stress. It is especially important for the heart; without it working properly, nutrients and oxygen have no way of getting to the body’s cells.
Chronic stress can decrease blood flow. This can result in a myocardial infraction- better known as a heart attack.
Natural Solution
Cordyceps is a mushroom that comes from China. It has been used for ages by their healers. It can prevent heart attacks by dilating the aorta, which helps get much-needed oxygen to the heart during times of stress. It has also been shown to decrease high blood pressure in the same way.
Cordyceps extract is so beneficial to blood pressure and the heart that Olympic athletes commonly use it to recover from the stress of training and competition.
4. Anxiety
While stress is a reaction to something physical, anxiety is a reaction to our thoughts. Chronic stress causes an extended production of adrenaline, which completely exhausts the body. This adrenaline influx stops the body from achieving homeostasis.
The body loses the ability to produce the proper amount of serotonin. Serotonin is the body’s way of calming you down. If there isn’t enough of it, your mind starts to race and produce irrational thoughts. This, combined with a lack of calming hormones and an imbalanced nervous system, is a major cause of anxiety.
Natural Solution
Forget Xanax- Holy Basil is a plant that has been around for centuries. It has been shown to relax the mind and regulate hormone overproduction- the perfect remedy for relieving anxiety.
Even better, taking this plant on an on-going basis can stop anxiety in its tracks by reducing the amount of hormones that lead to anxiety in the first place.
So stop worrying about your stress- it only makes it worse! Be proactive instead and choose wellbeing over aggravation.
Bestselling author Donald Tubesing said it well: “Stress is like spice… too little produces a bland, dull meal; too much may choke you.”
