Cortisol, Stress, and Weight Gain
Stress Hormones in Weight Gain
Eating when under stress isn't just about filling an emotional need. Your body has a system of hormonal checks and balances that actually promote weight gain when you're stressed out.
Stress weight gain occurs when the so-called "stress hormone" cortisol is released in the body during times of stress along with the hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine. These triggers constitute the "fight or flight" response to a perceived threat. Following the stressful or threatening event, epinephrine and norepinephrine levels return to normal while cortisol levels can remain elevated over a longer time period. In fact, cortisol levels can remain persistently elevated in the body when a person is subjected to chronic stress.
How does cortisol influence weight gain? Cortisol has many actions in the body, and one ultimate goal of cortisol secretion is the provision of energy for the body.
Increase in Appetite
Cortisol stimulates fat and carbohydrate metabolism for fast energy, and stimulates insulin release and maintenance of blood sugar levels. The end result is an increase in appetite. Thus chronic stress, or poorly-managed stress, may lead to cortisol levels that stimulate your appetite, with the end result being weight gain or difficulty losing unwanted pounds.
Cortisol not only promotes weight gain, but it can also affect where you put on the weight. Doctors have shown that stress and elevated cortisol tend to cause fat deposition in the abdominal area rather than in the hips. This fat deposition has been referred to as "toxic fat" since abdominal fat deposition is strongly associated with:
- cadiovascular disease
- heart attacks
- strokes.
Whether or not your stress levels will result in high cortisol levels and weight gain is not readily predictable. The amount of cortisol secreted in response to stress can vary among individuals, with some persons being innately more "reactive" to stressful events.
Attention Women!
Studies show that women who react negatively to stress have elevated levels of cortisol production. Research showed that these women also tended to eat more when under stress than women who secreted less cortisol. Another study confirmed that women who stored their excess fat in the in the hips and stomach had higher cortisol levels and reported more lifestyle stress than women who stored fat primarily in the hips.
What is Cortisol Cortisol Stress
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