Stress Causing People to “Super Size”
By Georgianna Donadio, D.C.,
M.Sc., Ph.D.
It is currently reported that two out of three adults is either
overweight or obese, and the numbers continue to climb. As a result,
statistics demonstrate that a significant portion of our population is
being diagnosed with chronic conditions, such as diabetes and heart
disease. Even more shocking is that we are experiencing these conditions
at earlier ages than previously reported. It is not unusual today, to
hear about a young person in their 20’s diagnosed with mature onset
diabetes, normally developed during middle-age.
On May 7, 2004, a controversial and award-winning movie aimed at
exploring the obesity epidemic hit theatres. In “Super Size Me”, a
tongue-in-cheek look at the legal, financial and physical costs of our
hunger for fast food, filmmaker Morgan Spurlock explores the horrors of
school lunch programs, declining health education and physical education
classes, food addictions and the extreme measures people take to lose
weight. As a centerpiece of the film, Spurlock puts his own body on the
line, living on nothing but McDonald's for 30 days following three
rules:
1) Eat only what is available over the counter
2) No supersizing unless offered
3) Consume every item on the menu at least once
In the end, Spurlock has a weight gain of 24 pounds and experiences
harrowing visits to the doctor. The issues that are explored in “Super
Size Me” beg the question, what has changed in our environment to cause
this obesity problem to reach epidemic proportions? Furthermore, what is
causing people to overeat as we do?
A groundbreaking study, reported in 2003 by the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill, found that between 1977 and 1996, portion sizes
for key food groups grew markedly in the United States, not only at
fast-food restaurants but also in homes and at conventional restaurants.
In particular, portion sizes for salty and sugary foods, essentially,
“comfort foods” experienced the most dramatic portion size increases.
For example, the USDA's recommended serving size for a cookie is half an
ounce, while the average cookie sold in restaurants was found to be 700%
larger.
The by-products of our affluent American society, envied by many around
the world, have a definite dark side, our obesity rate, for starters. In
a culture where more is better and disposable income is abundant, when
it comes to eating we have developed a “more food, more conveniently and
more often” attitude.
Stress: A Pre-Cursor to Obesity
Certainly, no one forces us to eat more than our body needs, so what is
driving this “hunger” for more? Over the last two decades, almost
proportionally to the dramatic increase of food consumed and chronic
disease diagnoses, the amount of stress in our society and on each of us
individually has increased significantly. Stress is the term medical
researcher Hans Selye, M.D., PhD, gave to the experience our bodies go
through when we have to adjust or adapt to the various changes our
bodies experience during the course of the day. While many of us think
of stress in relationship to emotional states, many other factors can
exert an equally detrimental effect on our bodies as well. When we do
not get enough sleep or rest, work or exercise too much, nutritional
status, have an infection, have allergies, injuries or trauma, undergo
dental or surgical procedures, have emotional upsets, or deal with any
aspect of reproductive function such a pregnancy, menopause, etc., our
bodies must chemically and neurologically adapt in order to survive.
Part of this adaptation process relies heavily on the nutrition that is
available for the kidney’s adrenal glands to produce the adaptive
hormones. It is often this aspect of stress that can lead to overeating,
and what’s more, overeating the types of foods that cause unhealthy
weight gain.
How it works
Thanks to the work of M.I.T. Professor Judith Wurtman, Ph.D. and others
we now understand the significant role that a neurotransmitter or
“chemical messenger” called Serotonin plays in producing our cravings
for complex carbohydrates and sugars, two of the largest contributors to
unhealthy weight gain. Serotonin along with other neurotransmitters, are
produced by our bodies as "feel good" hormones. Under stress, we do not
have enough of these hormones and we become motivated to "self-sooth" by
behaviors that lead to the increase of Serotonin. Overeating of
carbohydrate and fatty-rich foods or “comfort foods” such as cookies,
ice cream, etc. significantly increases these hormones. Many addictions
such as smoking, alcohol, and drugs are also attempts to self-sooth and
increase Serotonin, but no other addictive or unhealthy behavior is as
socially acceptable and as easily available as over eating. We can do it
anywhere, anytime, alone or with company. It is no wonder we have such a
love affair with eating.
In addition, our bodies need for certain nutrients, specifically
protein, Vitamins A, C, and E, unsaturated fatty acids, cholesterol, and
minerals, skyrocket when we are “adapting” under stress. Often, if we do
not stop the stress cycle or do not appropriately supplement these
nutrients, we can turn to overeating to satisfy the body’s demands for
the fuel it needs to keep dealing with the stress we are experiencing.
For a period of time, foods that comfort,
sooth or supplement can make us feel calmer until our level of Serotonin
drops again or until we become more exhausted and need to feed
ourselves, yet again. Then, we start the cycle all over and consume more
carbohydrate and fatty rich foods until we feel better. This is the
cycle of self-medication or self-soothing practiced in homes, offices,
restaurants, automobiles and yes, even bathrooms across America. The
long-term effect of such behaviors, apart from obesity and escalating
chronic diseases, is that our nervous systems are being
hyper-stimulated. Anxiety, exhaustion, depression, overeating and
insomnia are just a few of the symptoms we experience when our nervous
systems are working on overload.
As a result, it is no wonder that within the last year, low-carbohydrate
diets have proven effective for so many people. Approximately 20% of
Americans or 20 million people are currently on a low-carb diet. For
many of us, our stress level is a major factor in the over consumption
of carbohydrates, therefore reducing or eating normal amounts of
carbohydrates is spawning weight loss. The real issue, however, is how
long can we reduce are carbohydrate loading without reducing our stress
levels and the behaviors that create elevated stress in the first place?
Causes of Stress
Prior to the early 1970’s, the majority of family units were structured
as a one wage earner household where the male worked and the female
stayed at home, taking care of the house and family. Driven largely by
social and socio-economic factors, all of that has changed. Now, the
overwhelming majority of families include both parents working and we
find ourselves on a treadmill of more work, more responsibilities, more
demands and non-stop scheduling that has many of us in a state of
physical and, at times, emotional exhaustion.
Added to the mix is our competitive culture, which often leads to
isolation or a “them against us” thinking. Isolation of this nature
causes additional “hidden” stress. A Hindu Vendata truth is that “the
whole world is one family”. It is said that there is only one disease,
the disease of separateness; separating oneself from the awareness that
as members of the human family, we are one living organism. The drama
created by a “one-up” or “one-down” dynamic, that we find in competitive
societies, can lead to the exhaustion and the psychosocial behavioral
issues which can contribute to overeating.
Understanding Exhaustion and its’ Effect on Obesity
The tipping point at which our bodies can no longer compensate or adapt
from the stress it is under, is based in large part on the threshold of
nutritional competency and the state of integrity of our nervous system.
When our central nervous system, which governs every cell in our body
and makes life possible, is not working efficiently, we have a decrease
in bodily function and the ability to adapt to the world we live in.
Chronic Fatigue Syndromes, CFS, are rampant in our culture today and
growing at an alarming rate because of the over stimulation and
increased demands placed on our nervous systems. Add to this inadequate
nutrition and a decreased ability of our bodies to digest and absorb
properly because of the stress, and we see the foundation of the
epidemic of chronic diseases being currently reported.
What is so shocking for us, as Americans, is that while we live in one
of the most affluent societies ever to exist on earth and have one of
the most technologically advanced medical systems we are raked at
approximately twenty-sixth in the world health Olympics. This is not the
failure of our medical system, but in fact, the failure to live in our
bodies mindfully and respectfully, taking time for rest, proper
nutrition, reflection, intimacy with self and others and serving the
common good of society. It is this imbalance that leads us to chronic
stress, which leads to physical and, if you will, spiritual exhaustion
that is producing the levels of chronic diseases and the rampant obesity
we see today.
Self-Esteem and Health
We have an innate understanding of how we need to choose to live to be
healthy.
Yet, adages about health i.e., “early to be, early to rise, makes a man
healthy wealthy and wise”, are often ignored in place of our instant
gratification or immediate comfort.
Physical labor has taken a back seat to “mind work”, and today we work
harder than ever before to have the money to buy a membership to a gym
or spa so we can do the physical exercise we need to be healthy and
attractive. However, rarely do we actually have the time to go to the
gym we pay membership fees to. Statistically, the average gym membership
is used for the first 4 – 6 weeks after signing up and then falls off
dramatically. Workout facilities count on this phenomenon when planning
their recruitment and enrollment numbers. Likewise, diet plans and
weight loss centers know that 90% or more of their customers will
continue to have body weight issues, in spite of their best efforts to
re-direct to a different way of eating. Why?
The Oprah Syndrome
One of the most powerful, successful people in the world, Oprah Winfrey
is a brilliant example of the “super size” syndrome in our culture. With
every possible service, care and expert available to her, Oprah has
continued to struggle with significant weight gain and loss for many
years. In 2001, a chart published in a popular magazine, documents her
weight gain and loss over the previous 20 years. Even during the height
of her popularity and professional success, her body weight rose to
dangerously elevated levels. The reasons most of us give for not taking
care of ourselves include; not having enough time to shop for or cook
the right foods; not being sure what’s best for our body type; not
enough money for domestic help so we can exercise, meditate or relax;
stress over money and achieving success. Oprah is an individual who has
more than enough money and success to eliminate all those concerns, yet
in spite of that she still does not consistently maintain a proper body
weight.
Driven by personal history and ambition, Oprah offers a perfect example
of the potential outcome of Serotonin driven self-soothing, which
invites us to ask and answer questions about self-esteem and self care.
When we understand the relationship between our unconscious mind, our
self-esteem and the serotonin connection, it becomes quite clear that
what is at the core of our “super sizing” is not solved by the “diet of
the month” or the next “how to” bestseller. Rather, an examination of
our personal worldview, our ego state, our treatment and regard for
nature and for others, what we value, what we believe in, how much we
consume and how much we accumulate. When these aspects of self are
aligned with choices that lead to moderation rather than ambition, that
produce balance rather than extremes, that debunk the thinking that
“more is better”, we then select the foods we innately know are healthy,
even when we must choose from the fast food menu.
In a culture comprised of 5% of the world population, using 75% of the
world’s resources, we have come to accept excess as a way of life and a
standard to subscribe to. In the 1980’s, Robin Leach’s television show,
“Life Styles of the Rich and Famous”, tainted our appetites for a
standard of over consumption that has brought us to where we are today –
obese and chronically diseased.
Take a Tip from the Gurus
Eastern philosophies offer us an opportunity to re-think our approach to
the way we live. Quite opposite from our “in your face” attitude of
self-manifestation, Eastern wisdom invites us to ponder, “how much do I
really need; to do; to have; to eat; to own; to control; to be content
with my life; and what is the role of gratitude in my life?” Shouldn’t
having a calm, well functioning nervous system, the source of all life
in the body, be a main objective for all of us instead of trying to
trick the body into doing what we want with the latest diet craze or
vitamin pills available?
Change the Question
It may be time to change the questions we not only ask ourselves, but
the questions we are asked as consumers. Maybe, if when making his fast
food purchases, Morgan Spurlock was asked the question “super size or
down size, sir?” the choices he might have made could have resulted in
significant weight loss rather than weight gain, but then Spurlock would
not have a movie to make, or the millions that will be realized from it.
Georgianna Donadio D.C., M.Sc., Ph.D., has conducted a private practice
in Whole Person Health Care since 1976. She is the Founder and Director
of The New England School of Whole Health Education, the pioneer of
Whole Health Education and a provider of patient and healthcare
professional education since 1977. For more information, visit
www.wholehealtheducation.org or call 1-888-354-HEAL (4325).
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/
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