Stress and our BIG BELLIES

It's no secret that stress is detrimental to your health. We all know the symptoms: sleepless nights, tension in your back, tooth grinding, heartburn and much more. Stress can even contribute to depression, heart disease and stroke.

Our belly fat is not only caused by what we eat. Even with diet and exercise, it may be difficult to get rid of the excessive belly fat that grows around your waist. The reason? Potentially it is due to the stress hormone cortisol. Heightened cortisol levels from stress can contribute to the battle of the bulge. Here is what you need to know about stress and weight gain.

Cortisol is produced by your body in response to stress. This fight-or-flight hormone can be the reason your midsection is growing despite your efforts to lose weight. Even worse, chronically high levels of cortisol can lead to serious health problems.

What is cortisol
Cortisol is a hormone released by the adrenal glands that works to support numerous functions in your body, such as immune function, blood pressure regulation, vascular tone, inflammatory response and insulin release. Cortisol has been tagged the "stress hormone" because it is released in higher quantities when your body reacts to stress.

Cortisol does have several positive influences over your body, such as heightened memory, quick bursts of energy and immunity as well as maintaining homeostasis. However, excessive stress in your life may lead to the negative aspects of cortisol (which actually counter all of its positive features) and result in lower bone density, immunity, blood sugar levels and muscle tissue. Most notably, large quantities of cortisol brought on by stress is largely responsible for excessive abdominal fat which leads to numerous other health problems.

Stress and belly fat
The link between cortisol and belly fat comes from the signal the hormone sends for fat storage to your belly fat cells. The fat cells in your belly have more cortisol receptors, making them more sensitive to cortisol and causing them to respond more strongly to the cortisol.

Stess is one of the most under-appreciated aspects of weight loss. Stress and cortisol are just as important as the basics diet and exercise.
That's why it's so important to set aside a few moments each day to unwind
Ways to relieve stress along with a daily fitness routine:

• Get more sleep
• Dietary supplements
• Have fun