Recent studies show that stress doesn't only cause weight gain: it also affects what kind of food you crave and where fat is stored in the body.
It isn't just calories, the type of food and the energy we use that drive weight gain: our state of mind also plays an important role.
Psychological stress can cause both weight gain and weight loss. Severe short-term stress seems to cause weight loss, while chronic stress causes weight gain, especially around the belly, the most dangerous place for fat.
A recent study looked at the effects of stress on weight gain in mice. The researchers found that chronic emotional stress triggers the release of a chemical messenger called neuropeptide Y, which acts on body fat. It increases appetite, especially for carbohydrate-rich foods, and helps the body move these calories to the belly, which grows larger.
Interestingly, chronic stress on its own did little to weight over two weeks, and the same was true of a diet high in sugar or fat on its own. But together the two were toxic, increasing belly fat within two weeks.
Over a longer period of about three months, a high-sugar, high-fat diet caused obesity in the mice, and the rate tripled when it went with chronic stress. It also caused metabolic syndrome: glucose intolerance that can lead to diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and inflammation.
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