Fight the harmful effects of stress

Here’s a little humor to start your day about something we all have at one time or another—STRESS.

You know you’re too stressed if:

• The sun is too loud.
• You wonder if brewing is really a necessary step in the consumption of coffee.
• It appears that people are speaking to you in binary code.
• Antacid tablets become your sole source of nutrition.
• You begin to talk to yourself, then disagree about the subject, get into a nasty argument over it, lose, and refuse to speak to yourself for the rest of the night.

Although it can be a source of humor, the fact is, stress is no laughing matter.

While we all have stress now and then, the problem really arises when it becomes constant and chronic. 

Because in addition to the obvious mental pressure and emotional effects it causes, stress also affects your body physically in MANY different ways, some of which you might not be aware of.

But it's crucial to know ALL of the ways that stress may be affecting you so you can recognize it and most importantly, do something about it.

Let's take a look at three of the major, but sometimes unknown, physical prices of stress, as well as ways you can help fight back and keep your body in balance:

1- Stress and your hormones

When your body gears up to deal with outside stressors, the hormones adrenaline and cortisol are released to jump-start fats and carbohydrates in your body for quick energy.

This reflects the way our bodies functioned back in the day of our caveman ancestors, whose lives depended on how quick their "fight or flight" reactions were.

Although our modern-day stresses are usually more mental in nature, that biological programming is still in us.  And regardless of whether a stress is mental or physical, your body reacts the same way.

So when your body senses stress, adrenaline kicks in and increases your heart rate, blood pressure, cardiac output and carbohydrate metabolism.

Plus cortisol directs the necessary energy to meet the increased needs of your brain and muscles to respond to the stress.

Now, once the stressful event is over, your adrenaline level drops pretty quickly, but cortisol remains high for a while to refuel your body and bring it back to balance.

One way it does this is it gives you a huge appetite, hoping that you'll replace whatever fat and carbs you used up during the "crisis."

This reaction is fine if the stress you've just dealt with is sudden or temporary and short-lived, but it’s a different story when people have chronic stress, day in and day out.  With chronic stress, cortisol levels rise and stay high.

This can cause you to "stress eat” because the cortisol in your body is repeatedly telling you to refuel. 

And you know what THAT means...your clothes start getting tighter and tighter.

Chronically elevated cortisol can also lead to depressed immune function, low thyroid function, problems with blood sugar control and eventually adrenal burnout and chronic illness (like type 2 diabetes, repeated infections, chronic fatigue, high blood pressure and hypothyroidism).

2- Stress and your stomach

Chronic stress can also lead to an inflammation of the stomach called gastritis.

Its symptoms are like acid reflux or an ulcer and can include:

• Burning or ache in your stomach
• Loss of appetite
• Bloating
• Belching
• Hiccups
• Nausea and vomiting
• Vomiting of blood
• Dark stools
• Inadequate digestion and absorption of nutrients
• Feeling of extreme fullness after just a small amount of food

Antacids are usually prescribed for gastritis, but since they inhibit your stomach acid production, and acids are needed for proper protein digestion, they can make the underlying problem WORSE--not better.

Plus gastritis can also lead to Vitamin B12 deficiency.

You see, your stomach produces a compound called intrinsic factor which binds to Vitamin B12 so it can be absorbed in your intestines.  But with people with gastritis, intrinsic factor production can be hampered...and their Vitamin B12 levels can plummet as a result.

3- Stress and your intestines

Your brain and your intestinal tract are definitely connected, and this brain-gut connection is very evident when it comes to stress.

The "brain-gut axis" is a network of chemical and electrical signals that continuously pass between the central nervous system (the brain) and the digestive system.  It's such a close relationship that some experts have even called the gut your second brain!

Since there's such a profound, close relationship between the brain and the gut, chronic psychological stress can make you very physically sick.

For example, stress is a major factor in the emergence of IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) symptoms and in the worsening of the symptoms of colitis and Crohn's disease. 

Stress also causes your gut to become hypersensitive, which can contribute to food allergies and intolerances.

And there's another way that stress affects your gut--the inner lining of your intestines.

Stress causes this protective mucosal barrier to become less effective at defending your body against unfriendly bacteria and dangerous pathogens.

That means that you are more susceptible to catching viruses and infections when under chronic stress--your body literally cannot fight them off as well.

How to fight back

First and foremost, it's important to try and eliminate as much stress from your life as you can...but as we all know, many stresses are unavoidable.

So it's essential to give your body the help it needs to counteract the effects of stress.

In addition to extremely helpful measures like exercise, yoga, prayer, meditation and/or taking up a hobby, here are four ways you can help your body fight back against stress:

1- Give your body natural adrenal support

Like I mentioned above, chronic stress can lead to severe overtaxing of your adrenal glands and eventually adrenal burnout.

 

So it’s crucial to support the health of your adrenal glands to help minimize the harm that stress can cause.

And Dr. Salerno’s Adrenal Factor is the ticket here.

Adrenal Factor contains a unique, effective blend of adrenal-supportive vitamins (including the antioxidant vitamins A, C and E, as well as various B vitamins) plus herbal extracts that encourage normal adrenal function.

2- Have a healthy diet that encourages good digestion

Efficient digestion is crucial for proper nutrient absorption and can help eradicate the symptoms of gastritis and other GI problems. 

And eating a wide variety of good-for-you foods helps nourish the friendly, protective bacteria in your gut.

Trouble is, most of us eat lots of processed or fast foods that are anything BUT good for you.  Plus our typical modern meals can be next to impossible for your system to properly break down.

But I can guide you and help you turn that all around FAST--and you'll love every bite.

In the Great Taste No Pain system, or if you're gluten-sensitive, Great Taste No Gluten.

I explain the health dangers of the typical modern diet, show you how to structure delicious meals that are much easier for your system to digest and help nourish the friendly microbes in your gut, and even give you a book of scrumptious recipes to try. 

Believe me, you'll see there's nothing bland or boring about eating for great health once you taste these recipes! 

And it’s amazingly easy to do.  Just making a few minor modifications to your meals and incorporating more of the good stuff can make a tremendous difference in how you feel FAST!

3- Help balance your gut flora

Although a healthy diet can help encourage a good gut flora balance, since SO many other factors (like environmental toxins, medications, lack of sleep and STRESS) can affect your gut microbes, for many people, diet is not enough.

That's why supplementation with a good multi-strain probiotic formula can help SO many people.

Fighting the effects of stress on your gut is yet another great reason to take Super Shield probiotic formula every day.

One of Super Shield's 13 superior bacteria strains, Bifidobacteria lactis, has been shown to have high adhesion to human mucus.  That means it will stick to your colon wall and keep it strong and protective.

In addition, Super Shield also contains Lactobacillus rhamnosus.  This strain has been shown to stimulate antibody production and enhance phagocytosis, one of your body's weapons for destroying dangerous invaders.

It also helps strengthen the gut-barrier function, and can even have beneficial impact on autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis and allergies.

4- Be sure your B12 levels are strong

It is estimated that as many as 3 out of 4 people have Vitamin B12 levels that are either close to being low or are already dangerously low.

And if you've had stress-related stomach problems, that means you may not be absorbing nutrients (including B12) like you should, and/or your stomach may be having trouble producing the intrinsic factor needed for B12 absorption.

So that 3 out of 4 statistic just might include YOU.

The good news is that, just as a Vitamin B12 deficiency may be “easy to get,” it's just as easy to help reverse it!

You just need to make sure that you get a potent form of B12 and that you help encourage easy absorption by your body.

Hydroxaden 2.5 delivers on both of these important points.

Hydroxaden 2.5 is a convenient Vitamin B12 spray that gives you a daily dose of a high-quality form of Vitamin B12 (hydroxocobalamin).  Hydroxocobalamin has been shown in certain studies to be very efficient in raising B12 levels.

Just five sprays under your tongue each day gives you an effective 2.5 mg. dose of B12 which can be absorbed through the mucus membranes in your mouth.

This sublingual method of intake helps to sidestep any problems associated with lacking the intrinsic factor in the stomach that would be required to absorb B12 through the GI tract…so it helps ensure that you’re actually getting B12 into your system!

The bottom line here is, stress is all around us and it's not going away any time soon.

But when you support your body and help it fight the effects of inevitable stress that we all face, you are taking giant steps toward keeping your health strong no matter what stresses may come your way! 

To your health,

Sherry Brescia

PS: Always be sure to let your doctor or healthcare provider know what supplements you are taking.