Life Fit Chat with Laura Lewis: Stress and Your Blood Sugar

You never get stressed right? Ah, if only that were true. But to live is to be stressed at some level, and stress causes your blood sugar to rise. If blood sugar is high and your cells are insulin resistant, the elevation of sugar in your blood can cause all sorts of problems including weight gain and diabetes. Our bodies are designed to biochemically deal with stress based upon survival. To those who don't know how stress impacts the body or even to those who are "in the know" let this information serve as a huge reminder as to why you need to keep your stress level down.

Centuries ago, when primitive man walked the planet, threats to survival were around every corner. If one was faced with a saber-toothed tiger in their path, they would have three choices: to fight, to run, or die. During this "fight or flight response," the body is being prepared to expend energy. Adrenaline is released, blood sugar is elevated, digestion slows as most of the blood is in the muscles preparing for action all with the primary purpose of surviving a threat! Either way, energy is expended. Running or fighting, excess blood sugar is used, stress hormones are decreased and all returns to normal.

In modern day, stress looks like: Sitting in traffic and steaming that it isn't moving; being uptight about deadlines; worrying about money; aggravation relating to situations that are not going your way.; and _________. (You fill in the blank with your "stressors") To prevent blood sugar from rising due to stress, practice stress management. Stress reduction techniques can be as simple as focusing upon deep breathing for a minute or two, listening to calming music, "romantic" time with your sweetie, exercising and of course meditating and practicing yoga. As brushing your teeth is included as part of your daily routine, stress reduction techniques should also be on your list each day. What ways do you decrease your stress levels?