We all know that stress has far reaching effects on our systems. The range of effects can be Throughout the central nervous system, endocrine system, digestive system as well as the cardiovascular system. In fact, there isn’t a tissue of your body untouched by stress. There have been instances where stress turned a person’s hair white over night.
An article published in ‘Cell Metabolism’ last April showed that during times of stress, what we eat strongly affects our metabolism. The study showed that a key pathway in the brain which stimulates increased caloric intake and energy storage is triggered during these times of stress.
Using animal models, the study found that mice which were exposed to chronic stress while eating a high fat diet gained significantly more weight than those fed the same high fat diet in a stress free environment. Researchers found the weight gain was associated with a molecule in the brain called neuropeptide Y (NPY), which controls the stress eating phenomena they observed.
These researchers analyzed the neurons in the amygdala of the brain, responsible for processing emotions, especially fear and anger. What they found was an increased uptake of NPY on these neuron receptors for insulin when exposed to stress filled conditions.
Stress, coupled with a high fat diet increases insulin in the neurons, which over time causes them to become insulin resistant. As these neurons become resistant to insulin, NPY levels increase further in the neurons leading to increased energy intake and storage.
When production of NPY in the amygdala was switched off, weight gain was significantly reduced. The parasympathetic nervous system is then activated, allowing the body to initiate upkeep and repair.
I’ve always held that eating when emotionally stressed can poison your system. Going from the parasympathetic (feed and repair mode) to the sympathetic (fight or flight mode) with food in the digestive tract, robs the body of the appropriate digestive functions and allows food to rot and putrefy, poisoning the system. As many of us have learned over the years, our parents are much smarter than we ever give them credit for until we are older. My father would tell me not to eat if I was angry because the food would turn to poison. He was so very right.
This new information adds another aspect to what occurs in metabolism when we fail to rest and take nutrition into our body under the right circumstances. Often times on the symptom survey we use in the office, one of the most important pieces of information I get has to do with digestion and elimination. Quite obviously, if we can’t extract the nutrients from our food, the outcome is more of poisoning the body instead of nourishing it.
All too often I see those wishing to promote better health by making excellent choices in food, but because of unresolved anger or stress, those foods fail to truly meet the biochemical needs of their bodies. Taking time to relax and enjoy your meal, away from any stressors is a very healthy practice which we all should observe.
NPY exerts a powerful orexigenic (appetite stimulant) effect in the hypothalamus, which is your body’s metabolic thermostat. Drops in blood sugar have an effect of initiating hypothalamic appetite stimulation. This is natural to maintain stable blood sugar levels.
However, extra-hypothalamic nuclei (in this case, the amygdala) also produce NPY, but its influence on energy homeostasis is presently unclear. Here we see a previously unknown feeding stimulatory pathway, activated under conditions of stress in combination with calorie-dense food; NPY neurons in the central amygdala are responsible for an exacerbated response to a combined stress and high-fat-diet intervention. The result, increased intake and reduced metabolism. The result is that of enhanced obesity.
Because the primary root here is stress and anger, not so much the bad foods, attitude is critical if we want to maintain a healthy system. Emotions can be the very poison that’s killing you. In the lyrics of a song, “Be Happy, Don’t Worry.”
An article published in ‘Cell Metabolism’ last April showed that during times of stress, what we eat strongly affects our metabolism. The study showed that a key pathway in the brain which stimulates increased caloric intake and energy storage is triggered during these times of stress.
Using animal models, the study found that mice which were exposed to chronic stress while eating a high fat diet gained significantly more weight than those fed the same high fat diet in a stress free environment. Researchers found the weight gain was associated with a molecule in the brain called neuropeptide Y (NPY), which controls the stress eating phenomena they observed.
These researchers analyzed the neurons in the amygdala of the brain, responsible for processing emotions, especially fear and anger. What they found was an increased uptake of NPY on these neuron receptors for insulin when exposed to stress filled conditions.
Stress, coupled with a high fat diet increases insulin in the neurons, which over time causes them to become insulin resistant. As these neurons become resistant to insulin, NPY levels increase further in the neurons leading to increased energy intake and storage.
When production of NPY in the amygdala was switched off, weight gain was significantly reduced. The parasympathetic nervous system is then activated, allowing the body to initiate upkeep and repair.
I’ve always held that eating when emotionally stressed can poison your system. Going from the parasympathetic (feed and repair mode) to the sympathetic (fight or flight mode) with food in the digestive tract, robs the body of the appropriate digestive functions and allows food to rot and putrefy, poisoning the system. As many of us have learned over the years, our parents are much smarter than we ever give them credit for until we are older. My father would tell me not to eat if I was angry because the food would turn to poison. He was so very right.
This new information adds another aspect to what occurs in metabolism when we fail to rest and take nutrition into our body under the right circumstances. Often times on the symptom survey we use in the office, one of the most important pieces of information I get has to do with digestion and elimination. Quite obviously, if we can’t extract the nutrients from our food, the outcome is more of poisoning the body instead of nourishing it.
All too often I see those wishing to promote better health by making excellent choices in food, but because of unresolved anger or stress, those foods fail to truly meet the biochemical needs of their bodies. Taking time to relax and enjoy your meal, away from any stressors is a very healthy practice which we all should observe.
NPY exerts a powerful orexigenic (appetite stimulant) effect in the hypothalamus, which is your body’s metabolic thermostat. Drops in blood sugar have an effect of initiating hypothalamic appetite stimulation. This is natural to maintain stable blood sugar levels.
However, extra-hypothalamic nuclei (in this case, the amygdala) also produce NPY, but its influence on energy homeostasis is presently unclear. Here we see a previously unknown feeding stimulatory pathway, activated under conditions of stress in combination with calorie-dense food; NPY neurons in the central amygdala are responsible for an exacerbated response to a combined stress and high-fat-diet intervention. The result, increased intake and reduced metabolism. The result is that of enhanced obesity.
Because the primary root here is stress and anger, not so much the bad foods, attitude is critical if we want to maintain a healthy system. Emotions can be the very poison that’s killing you. In the lyrics of a song, “Be Happy, Don’t Worry.”
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