Stress hormones make people fat! 4 ways to avoid stress obesity

Moderate stress can boost motivation, but long-term and excessive stress can cause serious harm. One of the most obvious consequences is obesity! Nutritionists say that if the body is under great stress for a long time, it will release "stress hormones", increase appetite, and store fat. If the correct way to deal with "stress fat" is not found, it will fall into a vicious cycle of getting fatter and fatter and becoming more stressed.

Excessive stress will stimulate the secretion of adrenal cortex hormone and cortisol, increase appetite, and make it easier to accumulate fat and form abdominal obesity.

Stress hormones are at work! With an increased appetite, it’s hard not to gain weight!

Lin Ruiyuan, a nutritionist at Miaoli Daqian General Hospital, said that stress obesity has a lot to do with human hormones. When the human body is under stress for a long time, it will be stimulated to release some "stress hormones", including adrenal cortex and cortisol. Adrenal cortex hormones increase appetite and cause weight gain.

Cortisol stimulates the liver to produce and release glucose, causing blood sugar to rise, and inhibits the absorption and utilization of glucose by peripheral tissues, increasing the resistance of insulin, making blood sugar more difficult to control, and also has the effect of increasing appetite and storing fat. In addition, because the fat tissue in the abdomen has more corticosteroid receptors than other places, it is more likely for fat to accumulate in the abdomen.

Stress makes you unhappy! Junk food relieves stress but makes you fatter

Emotional stress can also reduce serotonin, known as the "happiness molecule" in the brain, making people feel anxious. In order to relieve stress, people often unconsciously choose high-sugar, high-fat junk food, which causes blood sugar to rise rapidly, making them feel happy due to increased dopamine secretion in the brain. However, these effects are short-lived, and blood sugar and dopamine levels quickly drop, causing people to constantly want to continue eating, which can easily lead to stress obesity due to overeating.

In addition, stress can also inhibit the function of the parasympathetic nervous system, weaken gastrointestinal motility, lead to poor digestive function, decreased lipid metabolism, and fat accumulation.

Tip 1: Get rid of your belly fat easily. (Photo provided by Dr. Yang Yuting)

A good way to get rid of stress obesity! 30 minutes of aerobic exercise every day

How to relieve stress and balance stress hormones? Nutritionist Lin Ruiyuan said that engaging in aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, jogging, swimming, cycling, aerobic dance, etc., can prompt the brain to release neurotransmitters such as dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, etc., which can help reduce stress, increase positive energy and happiness, and promote physical and mental health. Studies have shown that 30 minutes of aerobic exercise per day can reduce anxiety, and the effect peaks at 8 weeks.

Doing aerobic exercise every day can improve stress-induced weight gain, but office workers often use "no time" or "too tired" as excuses to refuse to exercise. Yang Yuting, attending physician of the Rehabilitation Department of Daqian General Hospital, pointed out that taking a few minutes out of heavy work and using the office chair to do some stretching exercises can also easily relieve stress and avoid stress-induced weight gain.

★ The first trick: Easily get rid of the belly fat/ Sit on the front edge of the chair with your buttocks, support the chair with your hands, bend your knees and bring your feet towards your stomach. There is no need to stay. Do this 6 to 10 times each time, 2 times a day.

Tip 2: Keep your back and chest up and be in good spirits. (Photo provided by Dr. Yang Yuting)

★ Trick 2: Twist your waist and straighten your chest to be in good spirits/ Sit down, hold the back of the chair with both hands, straighten your chest and turn your waist to the right, then turn back to the left, hold for 10 seconds, repeat 6 to 10 times, twice a day.

Tip 3: Side stretching helps you lose weight. (Photo provided by Dr. Yang Yuting)

★ Trick 3: Side stretching helps you lose weight/ Stand up, raise your hands above your head, interlace your fingers, push up with your palms turned back, bend your upper body to the right, hold for 10 seconds, then switch to the other side after returning to the normal position, repeat 6 to 10 times, 2 times a day.

Tip 4: Stand away from a fat waist. (Photo provided by Dr. Yang Yuting)

★ Trick 4: Standing can help you avoid a dick waist / Stand with your hands on the back of a chair. First, lift your right knee and use your waist to rotate as close as possible to touch your left elbow, then switch sides. Repeat 6 to 10 times, twice a day.