{"id":375,"date":"2019-01-31T08:10:32","date_gmt":"2019-01-31T08:10:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/wp\/?p=375"},"modified":"2019-01-31T08:10:32","modified_gmt":"2019-01-31T08:10:32","slug":"how-stress-makes-you-fat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lisajohnsonfitness.com\/how-stress-makes-you-fat\/","title":{"rendered":"How Stress Makes You Fat"},"content":{"rendered":"
We\u2019ve been hearing about it for years: if we\u2019re stressed out, we\u2019ll reach for the fatty, sugary foods and gain weight. \u00a0But why exactly does this happen? \u00a0How does stress, a far too common affliction, affect our bodies?<\/p>\n
The Gene Connection<\/strong><\/p>\n Researchers<\/a>\u00a0have recently isolated a gene that seems to be a stress\/fat trigger. \u00a0In fact they\u2019ve named it the \u201ccomfort-eating gene.\u201d \u00a0 When under stress, this gene pumps out a protein called Ucn3 which triggers our desire for comfort food and also seems to mess with our satiety. \u00a0So we\u2019ll eat more of the bad stuff and still feel hungry. \u00a0Dr. Alon Chen of the Weizmann Institute in Israel is literally calling this the \u201csmoking gun\u201d tying metabolism to genes.<\/p>\n What Cortisol Does<\/strong><\/p>\n When your body is under stress it produces more cortisol. \u00a0A system with too much cortisol responds to fat in two ways. \u00a0First, it breaks down fat so that energy is readily available for the body. \u00a0When your system is under stress we go back to our caveman days and think we\u2019re about to be attacked by something. \u00a0Cortisol is one way our bodies ready us for fight or flight. \u00a0 A whole cascade of events happen in the body; we actually breathe more deeply to oxygenate our blood supply and muscles and we even think more clearly (all the better to not make a wrong move under threat). \u00a0The body also temporarily suspends any hunger. Think back to when you were scared to death. Were you thinking about a Twinkie? \u00a0No, you were not.<\/p>\n However, when the stress alert subsides (think at home, after dinner in front of the TV after a long day at work) and you\u2019re back to a normal routine. The cortisol stays in the system to help right the body\u2019s chemistry. \u00a0It seems to trigger the hunger response so we can get back those calories we lost from being on \u201chigh alert\u201d earlier in the day. \u00a0How many of you were now craving a Twinkie when you were sitting in front of the TV?<\/p>\n This cycle works well for real dangers like a bad guy in an alley or a lion on safari, but doesn\u2019t work so well with the daily stress created by our society: long, arduous commutes, aggressive behavior from co-workers, etc.<\/p>\n How to De-Stress<\/strong><\/p>\n