Amanda Pittas: Clinical Nutritionist

Balancing lifestyle with nutrition, for a happier, healthier life!

What is Cortisol (The Stress Hormone)

Cortisol is namely a steroid hormone produced in our adrenal glands. You may have noticed when you are really stressed you can feel your heart pumping widely and the adrenaline kicks in, this is partly cortisol at play. Its actual job is to regulate our blood pressure, hence the rise in blood pressure when your stressed! Cortisol is also involved in glucose metabolism, insulin release for blood sugar maintenance, and for our body’s inflammatory response. It usually helps us when our body is slightly inflamed and we feel stiff, rigid and in pain. (See my blog on How to Reduce Your Body’s Pain & Inflammation). So, a little cortisol is good because it’s designed to help us to respond to and cope with stress, trauma and life in general. It even helps to improve our memory and increased sustained energy. Then what could be so bad with that you ask! Well when we are chronically stressed by lifestyle pressures, work and family commitments, as well as poor food choices we can have unnecessary elevated cortisol levels. That’s when the body’s hormonal processes starts to breakdown and the weight starts to creep on and we feel sluggish and poor. Eventually elevated cortisol levels will produce negative effects resulting in decreased bone density (osteoporosis) and blood sugar imbalances (diabetes). High concentrations of cortisol are also related to short-term memory loss and can even contributes to Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.  You’ll also find that when your chronically stressed your immune system will suffer, so it’s all downhill from here as we all know. 

How does Cortisol Affect Our Weight?

Our Cortisol hormone levels change over the day, being high in the morning (around 6 am) to help wake us up. By lunch time our cortisol levels have almost halved and by night-time (around 6pm) our levels are quite low. By 10pm levels are quite minimal and continue to stay very low until around 2am when they slowly and very steadily begin to rise again. Ever heard the saying – 1 hour of sleep before midnight is worth 2 after!

When we feel chronically stressed, cortisol releases glucose, thus elevated cortisol levels cause fat to be stored on the tummy (muffin top, paunch) call it what you may, but the gut fat is all the same and it can be really hard to shift! In the right amount’s cortisol can help buffer the effect of insulin, meaning optimum amounts help you continue to burn body fat for energy whilst also maintaining stable blood glucose levels. But elevated cortisol levels make us overeat because cortisol is designed to help us conserve fuel for when food is scarce. Well we don’t live in prehistoric times anymore, we have an abundance of food, in fact we have too much food on offer, but that’s another story for another day. 

When we eat protein rich foods, cortisol breaks down the protein into amino acids (the building blocks of life). Our muscles are made of proteins and cortisol signals them to break down as the body requires fuel (for flight or fight emergencies). Additional amino acids are required in the blood for tissue repair (build muscle). But over time cortisol itself may break down some of your muscles, so now there is less space for glucose (energy) storage. As a result, some of the blood glucose returns to the remaining muscles whilst the leftovers are converted into body fat. Thus, elevate cortisol can make you put on weight!

How to Lower Your Cortisol Levels

You may not know it, but food can actually relieve our stress. I’m not talking about the tub of ice-cream you may devour whilst sitting on the couch when you’ve had a bad day, or the large packet of chips you might consume when you’re watching the football, but real food. Food such as a warm bowl of oatmeal will boost your serotonin (a calming chemical in the brain).

To Carb or Not to Carb?

All carbohydrates release serotonin in the brain. The best way to get that feel good feeling is to eat complex carbohydrates because they take longer to digest. The good carbs are breads, pasta’s and cereals made from whole grains. Not only do complex carbs help you feel relaxed they also stabilise your blood sugar levels so that doubles the benefit.  

Now it’s the simple carbohydrates you need to eliminate in your diet. That includes sweets and cakes etc, the processed carbs. This is purely because they are quick to digest and so you’re not going to get that lasting serotonin calmness or nutrition for that matter.

Stress Less Foods

Studies show that vitamin C helps curb stress hormones whilst at the same time supporting your immune system. I make a tasty salad by peeling an orange and pulling apart the segments, then tossing it into a green leafy salad with some snow peas, snow sprouts, cucumber and a splash of dressing made from orange juice, maple syrup, white wine vinegar and olive oil. It literally takes 10 minutes to make!

Magnesium is a critical nutrient and one that I think we need more of in life. Too little magnesium can trigger stress headaches and fatigue. Magnesium is found in our green leafy veggies, think spinach, kale, broccoli and asparagus to name a few. 

Need some nutritional Stress Less recipes to get you started? Then download Nutritional Balance’s FREE Stress Less Recipe Book. 

Omega-3 fatty acids found in salmon and other fish can also help prevent surges in our stress hormones as well as protecting us against depression and heart disease. Fish doesn’t take long to cook, and the healthiest way is to steam or bake it. Add some quickly chopped veggies tossed in a little olive oil onto your baking tray alongside your fish and presto in 20 minutes dinner is served. 

Almonds are full of good vitamins, including vitamin E for immune support plus B vitamins that help you be more resilient during bouts of stress. Not only are they tasty but they are a great convenient portable snack. I love roasting them in the oven and sprinkling them over salads and in soups. 

Try crunching on raw veggies. Not only will you benefit from the nutrients they provide but the mechanical action of munching on a carrot or celery stick helps release a clenched jaw which will ward off tension and stress headaches.  

What Else Can I Do to Stress Less?

 Lastly, not a food but a well-known stress remedy, is to exersize. Aerobic exercise boosts oxygen circulation and helps your body make feel good chemicals called endorphins. Aim for regular exersize for at least 30 minutes a couple of times per week and it will make you not only look better but feel so much better. So, get moving!

Supporting optimal health is the key to achieving a balanced lifestyle and continued wellbeing. At Nutritional Balance we use food as medicine by providing individual advice through tailored nutritional plans supported with detailed meal guides to address:

• Gut mismanagement

• Nutritional deficiencies

• Skin problems

• Weight gain

• Autoimmune conditions

• Diabetes

• Cardiovascular disease

• Arthritis

If you would like to know more on how to balance your life with nutrition and keep that passion for food alive book an appointment with me. Skype appointments and health rebates are available.

Need some nutritional recipes to get you started? Then download Nutritional Balance’s free Anti-Inflammatory Recipe Book or Balancing Your Gut Recipe Book. Or if you’re really serious you can purchase our Beat Pain & Inflammation Meal Plan or Gut Healing Meal Plan.

The information provided in this blog is intended for your general knowledge only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for specific medical conditions. None of Nutritional Balance’s services shall be used to diagnose or treat any health problem or disease. We cannot and do not provide medical advice. You should seek prompt medical care for any specific health issues and consult your physician before altering your diet. The information provided in this blog should not be used in place of a consultation with your physician or other health care provider. We do not recommend the self-management of health problems. Should you have any healthcare-related questions, please consult your physician or other health care provider promptly. You should never disregard medical advice or delay in seeking it because of the information provided in this plan.