Wellbeing
Women's Health
How Stress Affects Your Body Shape

How Stress Affects Your Body Shape

Happy relaxed woman in a field by the beach

Stress and Your Body
How to Reduce Stress

By Lisa Campana

Do you have a belt of fat around your waist that is almost impossible to shift? Chuck away those fad diets and look at your hectic lifestyle – because, according to scientists from the University of California, those stubborn pounds may be a result of chronic stress levels, than our diets.

Effects of Stress

Our prehistoric ancestors had very real stresses between finding food, overcoming illness and running away from hungry sabre-toothed tigers. When your body is faced with these situations you need energy and lots of it, delivered to the parts of your body needed to either fight or flee.

To give you this burst of energy, your body releases energy in the form of glucose (from carbohydrates) and fatty acids, glycerol and ketone (from fats). A hormone called cortisol is also released into your system to keep those blood levels of glucose and fats high.

Modern women rarely have to run away from prehistoric tigers but unfortunately your body can’t differentiate between predator-related stress and modern daily pressures, such as rising bills, impending deadlines or juggling work and families. Your body still responds in exactly the same way - by releasing sugars and fats into your bloodstream.

And, because of our modern sedentary lifestyles, this energy is stored as excess fat rather than burnt off. The fat is stored in the areas closest to the liver (around your middle), where it can readily be converted back into energy in the future. Handy for your body but not for your waistline!