managing stress through nutrition, lifestyle & mindset strategies
As someone who experienced many health issues due to stress while working in a demanding career in the advertising industry, this topic is incredibly close to my heart. I really believe I would have had a completely different experience if I knew what I know now as a Holistic Nutritionist, which is why I'm so passionate about sharing my knowledge with professionals so they can reach their health goals without sacrificing their health and well-being (you can learn more about my workplace wellness seminars here).
That said, I want to share these teachings with a larger audience because stress management is so important: you can do 'everything right' in terms of nutrition and exercise, and it won't matter if you're not managing your stress (I've learnt this lesson time and time again).
A certain amount of stress is inevitable, but there are nutrition, lifestyle, and mindset strategies that can hugely influence how stress affects our health—which is exactly what I teach!
In this post, I’ll cover:
The stress response (& why stress it’s not always a bad thing)
How chronic stress affects our health & the signs to look out for
The type of stress that’s within our control
+ My top nutrition, lifestyle & mindset strategies to manage it
what is stress?
Stress is a physiological and psychological response triggered when an individual perceives a situation or event as challenging, threatening, or demanding. The key word is 'perceives' because your body doesn't know the difference between actual physical danger or simply a stressful situation at work; either way it'll trigger the same physical reaction, which is the stress response.
the stress response
When the brain perceives stress, the adrenal glands (two small glands located above the kidneys) are activated, and the adrenal cortex releases cortisol. This reaction causes the body to go into 'fight or flight' mode to prepare the body for danger. Increasing heart rate, dilating airways, redirecting blood flow to vital organs, and releasing glucose to give the body energy to act are a few ways the body responds to 'danger'.
why it’s not always a bad thing
As you can see, the stress response is actually a positive thing: it helps us stay safe from immediate danger! In small amounts, it can have benefits like supporting our metabolism, boosting our immune health, and more. For example, while it's technically a stressor, moderate exercise helps our body adapt and become stronger and healthier.
when stress becomes chronic
Where this response becomes a problem is when we're chronically in fight or flight mode, which causes our body to produce high amounts of stress hormones, like cortisol. When this happens, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis can become dysregulated (previously known as ‘adrenal fatigue’). Common symptoms to look out for include:
Brain fog
Digestive issues
Feeling ‘tired but wired’
Extreme fatigue
Infertility
Insomnia
Low immunity
Low libido
Mood swings
PMS
Slow healing
Thinning hair
Thyroid issues
Poor concentration
Unexplained weight gain or loss
long term effects of chronic stress
Not only does chronically high cortisol lead to a wide range of unpleasant symptoms, but it can also lower our capacity to handle external stressors (it’s a vicious cycle!) and lead to a whole range of long-term health issues like:
Reproductive and thyroid issues
Chronic inflammation
Autoimmune disorders
Insulin resistance and the development of type 2 diabetes
Cardiovascular issues
Chronic fatigue syndrome
Mental health issues like anxiety and depression
Inflammatory skin conditions
the type of stress that’s within our control
When we think of stress, we usually think of emotional or psychological factors (think career, finances, relationships, parenting/caring for an ageing parent, etc.). But stress can be physical as well. As mentioned, stress is inevitable, but being conscious of these physical forms of stress can help to reduce the amount of stress we’re putting on our bodies to help control the emotional and psychological stress that is often out of our control.
Some physical factors that contribute to stress include:
Over or under-exercising
Lack of sleep
Poor nutrition and nutritional deficiencies
Skipping meals/under-eating
Blood sugar imbalances
High caffeine intake
Poor gut health
STRATEGIES TO MANAGE STRESS
So now that we’ve addressed why chronic stress can be so detrimental to our health and wellbeing, let’s get into the nutrition, lifestyle and mindset strategies to manage it.
NUTRITION
general guidelines:
Eat breakfast within 1 hour of waking up: Intermittent fasting can have some benefits depending on the person and their health status/needs, but breakfast isn’t something to skip if you're super stressed! Our cortisol is naturally highest in the morning, and when we skip breakfast, our body releases more to provide the body with a quick source of energy. Our energy should be coming from our food, not our stress hormones!
Build balanced meals and snacks: Eating simple carbs (let's say just a piece of toast) without balancing it with protein and healthy fats leads to blood sugar spikes throughout the day, which also causes our body to produce more cortisol, so having balanced meals and snacks is so important (think avocado toast with two eggs instead).
Eat every 3-4 hrs: I know it can be so tempting to push through meals and snacks when you're stressed, but having regular meals and snacks is super important to keep your blood sugar balanced and cortisol in check throughout the day. I think we all know that hangry, frazzled feeling.
Chew mindfully and slowly: We tend to eat faster when we're stressed out, but this can really mess up our digestion. Poor gut health can be a cause of physical stress, so it's really a vicious cycle. I know an hour-long lunch break isn't always realistic (although I think it should be standard), but taking even just 10 minutes to step away from your work and eat your lunch slowly and mindfully can make such a difference.
top nutrients to support adrenal function (+ food sources):
Protein: poultry, meat, fish, eggs, dairy, beans, nuts, tofu
Omega-3 fatty acids: fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines), cod liver oil, flaxseeds, chia seeds, walnuts
B vitamins: sunflower seeds, spirulina, eggs, avocado, mushrooms, trout, salmon, turkey, beef
Vitamin C: citrus fruit, kiwi, strawberries, bell peppers, tomatoes, broccoli
Adaptogens: functional mushrooms, ashwagandha and turmeric root
L-theanine (amino acid): green tea and matcha
L-tyrosine (amino acid): soy products, chicken, turkey, fish, peanuts, almonds, avocados, bananas, milk, cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese, pumpkin seeds, and sesame seeds.
substances to limit:
Irritants: caffeine, alcohol, nicotine
Refined carbs: white pasta, bread, crackers, pastries
Highly processed foods: fast and frozen foods, processed meats
Refined sugar & artificial sweeteners: fruit juices, soft drinks, chocolate, candy
Allergies, sensitivities, intolerances: anything you are personally sensitive to (gluten, dairy, nuts, etc.)
LIFESTYLE
Choose balanced movement: While moderate movement helps to lower cortisol, studies show that high intensity exercise and chronic cardio (HIIT, running etc.) increases cortisol (even after working out), which could lead to chronic stress. Doesn't mean we shouldn't do it (exercise comes with a lot of benefits too) we just need to be strategic. Cortisol is also a ‘catabolic’ hormone, meaning it breaks down lean muscle mass and can lead to an adapted metabolism, which is counterproductive to our health and fitness goals. If you’re having a super stressful week, 30 minutes of gentle daily movement, like walking, hiking, yoga, swimming or weights is often your best bet.
Get 7-8 hours of quality sleep: This one is pretty obvious! We all know how horrible it feels to be running on a lack of sleep, but even poor sleep quality can have an impact on our stress levels, causing our body to secrete more cortisol during that day in effort to stimulate alertness. Avoiding caffeine in the afternoon, limiting screen time before bed and having a pre-bed ritual can all help to improve our sleep quality.
MINDSET
Don’t stress, stress: Science has shown that how we perceive stress changes how it affects our health (I found this TedTalk to be super interesting if you want to learn more). A study showed that when participants were told that the stress response was helpful their blood vessels stayed relaxed during times of stress and the stress had little effect on their health. Basically, don't stress, stress that is outside of your control.
The importance of connection: It can be tempting to put your social life to the side when you’re stressed, but connection is key to stress management. During the stress response, the body produces the neurohormone oxytocin (the ‘cuddle hormone’), which motivates you to seek human connection. We're literally hard-wired to seek connection in times of stress! And studies show that those who connected with others during times of stress didn't experience negative health outcomes, whereas people who didn't have a support system did.
TAKEAWAYS
Stress is inevitable....but our eating habits, movement and mindset can help us to better handle external stressors and lead to more positive health outcomes
Stress isn't necessarily bad...but we need to listen to the signs that our bodies give us
Don't stress about stress
Don’t go at it alone!
MY WORKPLACE WELLNESS SEMINARS
I teach all of this and more in my workplace wellness seminar, Managing Stress Through Nutrition, Lifestyle and Mindset Strategies.
All of my seminars are:
Offered both virtually and in person (within the GTA)
~30 minutes in length, followed by a 15-minute Q&A period
Engaging, science-based and packed with tangible and easy-to-implement tips
Accessible to all and size inclusive (read: no diet culture or extreme wellness trends!)
To help your employees reach their health goals—without sacrificing their health and wellbeing—book a seminar for your organization.
