How can chronic stress lead to weight gain?
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Dr. Dean Ornish answered:Chronic stress causes your body to secrete a cascade of hormones from your hypothalamus to your pituitary gland in your brain to other organs in your body (such as your adrenal glands and your thyroid), which, in turn, secrete hormones such as glucocorticoids and insulin, which cause you to gain weight and accumulate fat tissue, especially around your belly, where it’s most harmful and least attractive.
Chronic stress also causes stimulation of hormones such as cytokines that promote inflammation. Also, obesity itself causes a low-grade inflammation that, in turn, tends to promote more obesity in a vicious cycle.
Your brain sends messages to your body during times of stress via the sympathetic nervous system. This prepares your body to either fight or run. In the short run, these changes can be beneficial, even lifesaving. But when chronically activated during times of long-term stress, these same mechanisms may be harmful, even fatal.Chronic stress causes your body to secrete a cascade of hormones from your hypothalamus to your pituitary gland in your brain to other organs in your body (such as your adrenal glands and your thyroid), which, in turn, secrete hormones such as... More -
Chronic stress leads to weight gain for several reasons. First, stress causes many people to stress eat. Stress eating is a type of emotional eating, which contributes to excess calories and when done often enough causes weight gain. In addition, the types of food people crave when stressed are usually high fat and sugar. Second, stress causes the body to produce more of the hormone cortisol. Cortisol is a stress hormone that promotes body fat and makes it harder to lose weight, especially around the stomach. Third, when someone is stressed they generally sleep less. Less sleep, chronic fatigue causes the hormone ghrelin to rise. Ghrelin is the primary hunger hormone, and causes someone to feel hungry even when they don’t need to eat.
Chronic stress leads to weight gain for several reasons. First, stress causes many people to stress eat. Stress eating is a type of emotional eating, which contributes to excess calories and when done often enough causes weight gain. In addition,... More
