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Food and stress - eating as a reaction to stress

Better Nutrition, May, 2000 by Martin Zucker

Why what we eat is how we feel

Stressed out from sitting in a morning traffic jam? If so, what you have for your morning snack may help soothe your nerves. Many people don't realize that some foods have an effect on stressed nerves.

Food for thought

A low-stress diet is low in fats, refined sugar and starches. It is also relatively low in protein. The best low-stress diets consist of several small meals throughout the day, allowing you to maintain a continuous supply of energy. Following a six-small-meals-a-day plan, consisting of breakfast, a mid-morning snack, lunch, a mid-afternoon snack, dinner and a mid-evening snack, will help maintain your energy supply. In addition, careful food selections at these mealtimes will help.

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Some good choices to incorporate into a low-stress diet are: unsweetened fresh/dried fruits, unsalted nuts, raw vegetables, low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese and high-fiber breads. These foods are "preferable to the biscuits, cake, fruit loaf, chocolate and mayonnaise-laden sandwiches that usually comprise midmorning, afternoon and evening snacks," says Helen Graham in Making Stress Work for You (Crossing Press, 1998). Also, water and natural, unsweetened fruit juices help calm stressed-out nerves.

Stress-triggers

Can some foods trigger or increase stress? Yes. These foods are called "pseudostressors" or "sympathomimetics," because they imitate stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system -- that part of the nervous system mostly involved in stress reactions.

Caffeine. Anything containing caffeine, like coffee, tea and cola, is a potential pseudostressor. Theobromine and theophylline -- both found in tea -- are also sympathomimetics. These chemicals produce a pseudostress response by accelerating metabolism and increasing alertness, and cause the release of stress hormones (such as adrenaline) -- which increase the heart rate and blood pressure. These chemicals also make the nervous system super-reactive, which means that it becomes more likely that stressors present in the body will produce a stress response.

Habitual coffee-, tea- and cola-drinking is a factor in causing "many stress-related disorders and psychological disturbances, including anxiety states, depression and psychosis," says Graham. These beverages are also all diuretics, things which increase the rate at which the body eliminates fluid. The diuretic effect, over time, causes dehydration and thickening of the blood, digestive disorders and metabolic imbalance.

Refined sugar and carbohydrates. Foods which have refined sugar and refined carbohydrates -- such as white flour, rice and high-fructose corn syrup -- are stressors, and a body under stress has an even harder time processing these carbs. In addition, taking in a lot of sugar in a short period of time (or missing meals and then consuming sugar) can result in hypo glycemia, which is marked by headache, dizziness, anxiety, trembling and irritability.

A sugar-caused stress response and accompanying cortisol production raise blood glucose levels which, in turn, burdens the pancreas. This heightened blood-sugar level leads to insulin resistance and can bring on fatigue, depression and emotional instability.

Fats. Consuming the wrong kinds of fat can cause "stress damage" to your body. The consumption of too much fat prevents your body from properly using carbohydrates, initiating the cascade of problems mentioned above.

Processed foods. Processed foods, such as junk foods and fast foods, contain synthetic additives -- preservatives, emulsifiers, thickeners, stabilizers and flavor-enhancers. Some of these, including Tartrazine and Sodium Yellow are thought to cause stress-related. These colorants are believed to excite the central nervous system, and have been implicated in stress-related conditions, such as childhood hypersensitivity, attention deficit disorder and certain allergies.

Alcohol. The diuretic and insulin resistance enhancing effects of alcohol add to the whole sugar-and-stress problems mentioned earlier.

In addition to maintaining a proper diet, exercise and plenty of rest are needed to reduce stress and maintain a good, healthy energy level.

Food and stress - eating as a reaction to stress

Better Nutrition, May, 2000 by Martin Zucker

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