Pressure brings about a big food monster? To prevent stress obesity, you must eat these happy foods

"I often feel very stressed. When I feel stressed, I just want to eat a big meal. I especially like to eat carbohydrates like bread. As a result, my weight keeps soaring..." Many people with chronic stress will encounter the problem of becoming "stress fat". They worry that they will become addicted to food due to chronic stress, leading to uncontrollable obesity! I originally ate to relieve stress, but the food I ate became a source of stress and my weight skyrocketed. What should I do? Let’s hear what psychiatrist Yang Congcai has to say.

Chronic stress can cause your waistline to start to expand and accelerate obesity

Modern people are under great pressure in work and life, and may suffer from mild insomnia, anxiety and other emotions. If these emotions accumulate over a long period of time, they can easily cause physical symptoms, including cardiovascular disease, myocardial infarction, and endocrine disorders. If you are a patient with hypertension or diabetes, once the pressure is too great, it is more likely to increase your blood sugar and cause your blood pressure to fluctuate, aggravating the symptoms. What is particularly easy to overlook is that long-term chronic stress will cause your waist circumference to begin to grow thicker and accelerate obesity. Why?

Chronic stress increases the secretion of cortisol in the blood, causing insulin resistance and abdominal obesity

Psychiatrist Yang Congcai said that long-term chronic stress will increase the secretion of cortisol in the blood, and as the concentration of cortisol in the blood increases, it will also cause insulin resistance and abdominal obesity. Studies have confirmed that there is a significant positive correlation between cortisol concentration in the body and metabolic syndrome, and higher morning plasma cortisol concentration is related to insulin resistance, glucose intolerance, and hypertriglyceridemia.

In addition, increased cortisol secretion will not only cause blood sugar to continue to rise, destroy the function of β cells to secrete insulin, and cause diabetes, but cortisol will also decompose adipose tissue to produce fatty acids and cholesterol. What is worrying is that excessive decomposition of adipose tissue will cause hyperlipidemia, which will increase the risk of blood vessel blockage and cardiovascular disease.

As for insulin resistance, it refers to a pathological condition in which peripheral tissues have a reduced physiological response to insulin, which can lead to metabolic disorders, namely type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, etc. Simply put, insulin resistance plays a connecting role between obesity and metabolic syndrome.

Excessive stress can lead to overeating, depression, and even depression

In addition to causing metabolic disorders and hormonal imbalances, excessive stress can also cause "binge eating", especially a preference for foods like bread and junk food. Because these foods are high in calories, long-term consumption can easily lead to weight gain. In addition, what is worrying is that long-term overeating may cause low mood without you even realizing it, and the chances of depression, drug abuse, etc. may also increase. Originally, people ate to relieve stress, but after eating, they experienced greater psychological pressure and guilt.

When you are under stress, choose to eat "happy food" to avoid obesity and keep a good mood

When facing stress, how should we choose the right food to not only have a good mood but also avoid obesity? Dr. Yang Congcai recommends choosing "happy foods", especially paying attention to the principles of high nutritional density and low calories.

“Happy foods” mostly contain nutrients such as tryptophan, alkaloids, niacin, omega-3 fatty acids and selenium. There are also B group vitamins such as B1, B2, and B12, which are also key nutrients in happy foods. They can convert food into energy in the body and help the body relieve stress. For example, foods rich in tryptophan can help you relax and even help you sleep. For example, eggs, bananas, nuts, etc. are all good happy foods. In addition, whole grains can help increase serotonin, and dark green vegetables are rich in folic acid, which is one of the B vitamins and can also help relieve stress.