Stress in manageable doses is not harmful to our health, but how we deal with it (or don’t) can be. From deadlines at work and battling traffic, to caring for ill relatives or a lack of sleep, there is an endless list of potential stressors everywhere we go.
On a practical level, a bit of stress fuels our productivity to finish a project on time. Physically, stress makes our bodies work faster and harder, a helpful trait when we need to remove ourselves from danger – think prehistoric man running away from being someone’s dinner, or moving away from an out-of-control car in today’s world. On a molecular level, stress triggers a chain reaction of chemical processes, with inflammation being our first line of defence against pathogens. Acute inflammation with its features of redness, heat, pain and swelling of the injured tissue, for example from a cut, used to be a lot more important before antibiotics were discovered, but it still saves our lives today.
However, a number of factors related to modern lifestyle perpetuate our stress response in ways that lead to chronic, low level inflammation detrimental to our health and wellbeing. Pollution and chemicals used in agriculture and typical homes can take years or even decades to make us ill, but so does obesity, a bad diet, long working hours and not enough down time. What connects these seemingly unrelated issues is the underlying chronic inflammation that goes on in our bodies largely unnoticed until something gives, and we suddenly find ourselves being diagnosed with one thing or another. So what can we do before it’s too late?
Improve your diet
Eat more fresh fruit and vegetables, healthy fats like avocadoes, nuts and seeds, olive oil, and fish – especially oily fish, due to its omega-3 essential fatty acids as our bodies cannot produce omega-3s themselves. Limit the amount of processed meats and snacks such as sweets, cakes and crisps.
Lose weight
If you are over 25-30% body fat, then losing the excess body fat should be a priority.
Exercise
Activity reduces inflammation and helps fat metabolism, encouraging the body to burn it off rather than store it. Start with gentle exercise, gradually increasing duration, frequency and finally intensity until you can do something active every day. Vigorous house chores and gardening also count.
De-stress
Although exercise is a great way to de-stress, most of us also need something else to help wind down, such as gardening, meditation, or talking to a friend. Keep a regular, predictable schedule of working and resting – our bodies thrive on routine, and remember that by dealing with your stress levels you will also dial down the inflammation in your body.