According to ancient knowledge, everything is connected. 21st-century life is very fast-paced. Speed kills, they say, even if you don't own or drive a vehicle.
Let's investigate speed from the way a normal person conducts his/her life. Here are some wise words from Marc David (Institute for the Psychology of Eating), "When moving through life too fast we inevitably eat fast, which destroys our metabolism and creates digestive upsets. It results in meals eaten under a physiologic stress-response, which diminishes our calorie-burning power. It allows us little pleasure from food, decreasing cellular energy production and encouraging us to eat more. It shortens our breathing, which results in less oxygen intake and more fat accumulation. And, it prompts us to abandon our deepest self and our true purpose for being here, leaving us with toxic thoughts and troublesome emotions that age the body and harden the heart".
Most people feel the pressure and anxiety to perform leading to issues such as, stress, fatigue, low energy levels, depression, bad eating habits, and substance abuse and to top it off lack of movement.
The human body does not differentiate between physiological stress and psychological stress; it is all stress. There is a need to keep the Body in Balance amidst all the rushing between meetings/ errands, temptation to skip meals or try some new substance to get extra energy to stay awake which can lead to adrenal fatigue and depression. Just because you lead a fast-paced life, doesn't mean you have to eat junk. Everything is really connected, and eWellness Solutions says people must consider the biochemical burden of stress.
What is Stress? Functional medicine gives a broad meaning of stress and points to a big path to follow in order to get a better understanding. Stress is the salt of life; that’s according to Hans Selye. Selye states that “stress is the non-specific response of the body to any demand, and a stressor is any agent that produces stress at any time”. ‘The holy’ book of good medicine (The Textbook of Functional Medicine) IFM 2010 stretches one’s mind by saying “Stressors may be loosely classified as direct physical systemic threats: e.g. starvation, heat, cold, pain, haemorrhage or "processive": e.g. psychosocial threats such as social isolation, helplessness).
While direct systemic threats are not processed primarily by the cortical and limbic areas of the brain, psychosocial stressors involve higher brain functions as part of the primary processing of the sensory input. This is a bit wordy but it is the best definition of stress. It calls for clinicians to expand the working concept of stress to include the psychosocial factors like separation, job loss, cultural context, as well as a stress response to episodes of low blood sugar, chronic pain, or food restriction.
Imagine the feeling of going to varsity or starting a new job in an unfamiliar environment. It becomes clear that the quality of social relatedness predicts general health and mortality, and one’s emotional adjustment to stress.
In the 21st century society where employment and residence change is the norm, the reliability of social support which is supposed to have social networks, social relationships, and social integration as a buffer against stress has diminished. In Johannesburg, South Africa additional stressors include crime, traffic, lengthening commute times in the city Centre, and a starvation diet of fear. The good physicians ask patients "What are the main stresses in one's life, how long ago it occurred, how much, when, what is the quality of relationships?” Other things may include finances, medical illness, education stress, socioeconomic status, social support networks etc. The young and old experience stress daily and most stress drives people into depression and finally suicide.
What about Depression? There are many conditions and illnesses that lead to depression such as Hypothyroidism, Allergies, Hormonal Imbalances, Hypoglycemia, and Nutritional Deficiencies. Depression is a symptom of Hypothyroidism according to mayoclinic.com. The hormone progesterone has been used in the treatment of depression, fatigue, anxiety, strange thoughts, poor appetite and night sweats. Nutrients such as magnesium helps excrete estrogen and promote estrogen detoxification. Deficiency of these nutrients may cause PMS (post menstrual syndrome). Estrogen blocks vitamin B6, accelerating the metabolism of tryptophan, making it less available for conversion into serotonin and thus causing depression.
Women who are on oral contraceptives have impaired vitamin B6 absorption. Amongst the youth who are insulin resistant, there is a danger of exposing the brain to excess stress hormones. Vitamin B6 is very important for the conversion of tryptophan into the feel-good hormone serotonin. It has been found out that 75% of depressed people had inadequate vitamin B6 intake- British Journal of Psychiatry.
WHAT CONSTITUTES STRESS?
· Fight or flight responses; fear, anxiety or worry as a result of study pressure.
· Depression: feelings of defeat or helplessness
· The pain syndrome
· Infection and inflammation
· Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)
· Inadequate sleep
· Disrupted sleep
· Disrupted light cycles
· Toxic exposure
Cortisol and DHEA are the main stress hormones produced in the adrenal glands whose levels are known to change throughout the day according to a circadian rhythm.
Stress is good, but only in the short term. It allows us to heal. The stress response is designed only to last for a short period as it allows us to break down sugar and provide fuel to our muscles. In the long-term stress has a negative impact on health as it results in loss of muscle, high cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and high sugar levels.
Stress allows us to heal and repair ourselves in the short term.
The human body is unable to differentiate between physiological and psychological stress hence there is a need to maintain a balance between the two. For instance, the body can interpret pressure of studies, work or personal relationships as a fight or flight response.
The Stress response will cause:
· Decrease in nutrient absorption.
· Decrease in Gut micro-flora populations; this alone can lead to depression as 95% of our feel-good hormone ‘serotonin’ is made in the Gut.
· Loss of Muscle mass.
· Increased inflammation.
· Insulin resistance.
· Mitochondria- these are the energy powerhouses of the cell. When these tiny cellular organelles are diminished, we literally produce less energy, leading to chronic fatigue.
· Cortisol- excessive output prematurely ages the body.
· Thermic efficiency -one’s ability to burn calories is diminished.
· Nutrient deficiencies go up.
· Nutrient excretion goes up.
· Gastric emptying- leading to constipation.
· Food sensitivities and allergies go up
· High acidity levels
eFortify's Micronutrient Testing is of great help in terms of getting to the root of depression.
“Cortisol Steals”
Stress and Steroid Synthesis
“Wear & Tear” vs “Rest & Recovery”
