3 ms·
I recently ghostwrote a sizable text on diabetes, with one part dedicated to cortisol. In short, cortisol is secreted due to a real or _perceived_ threat, mean
by greendestiny_re 8y ago
I recently ghostwrote a sizable text on diabetes, with one part dedicated to cortisol.
In short, cortisol is secreted due to a real or _perceived_ threat, meaning that by framing everything around us as challenges we avoid activating the HPA (hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal) axis that normally works during danger. Rats put in stressful situations showed a propensity to gorge on sweet and fatty food (cookies), since they impacted the brain just as much as natural endorphins; the rats were trying to calm themselves down after stress. The literature is monumental, one study is here [PDF]:
https://www.medicinasistemica.it/doc/biblioteca/Stress,%20eating%20and%20the%20reward%20system.pdf https://www.medicinasistemica.it/doc/biblioteca/Stress,%20ea...
There are no threats, only challenges.
- technobabble 8y agoThank you for linking to the text.
- tomca32 8y agoAs a pretty stressed out T1, this sounds like some excellent advice to me. Thank you for this, I will definitely give it a read.
- gdubs 8y agoIs this why I eat crappy food when I’m under the weather?
- greendestiny_re 8y agoThe PDF I linked above shows that taking Naloxone, opiod antagonist, reduces the desire for junk food, meaning it's a literal addiction; trying to just quit cold turkey is just like opiod withdrawal that causes even more stress and binge eating. Exercise helps, but again don't overdo it because you'll be causing more stress. Tai Chi (slow-motion kung fu) has been found to really help, take a look here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18927159 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18927159 In some patients after 12 weeks of Tai Chi the metabolic syndrome, the dreaded pot belly that occurs because there are abundant cortisol receptors in the abdomen, shrinks or disappears completely.
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]