How Stress Influences Disease

Stress is something we all experience throughout life, which is not necessarily a bad thing. The stress response is a natural reaction to life experiences and can help us to cope with potentially serious situations. However, if this stress response doesn’t stop firing, then long-term stress takes a toll on your health.

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Prolonged stress wreaks havoc on the mind and body. Research shows that the effects of psychological stress on the body's ability to regulate inflammation can promote the development and progression of disease.

When under stress, cells of the immune system are unable to respond to hormonal control and consequently produce inflammation that promotes disease. Inflammation plays a role in many diseases such as heart disease, asthma, autoimmune disorders (like arthritis, crohn’s disease, hasimotos’s disease, Ulcerative colitis), and cancer.

Your hypothalamus, a tiny region at your brain's base, sets off an alarm system in your body in response to stress. Through a combination of nerve and hormonal signals, this system prompts your adrenal glands to release a surge of hormones, including adrenaline and cortisol. In response to stress, adrenaline increases your heart rate, elevates your blood pressure, and boosts energy supplies. 

Cortisol is known as the primary stress hormone. It increases sugars (glucose) in the bloodstream, enhances your brain's use of glucose, and increases the availability of substances that repair tissues. Cortisol also curbs functions in the body that would be considered as non-essential in a fight-or-flight situation. This hormone response suppresses the immune system, digestive system, reproductive system, and growth processes. 

When the natural stress response goes wild

Stress has a huge impact on your health when stressors are constantly present and you constantly feel under attack. The long-term activation of the stress response system and the overexposure to cortisol and other stress hormones that can disrupt almost all your body's processes. The impact puts you at increased risk of many health problems, including:

• Anxiety

• Depression

• Digestive problems

• Headaches

• Muscle tension and pain

• Heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure, and stroke

• Sleep problems

• Weight gain

• Memory and concentration impairment

• Cancer

Stress management strategies include:

• Healthy Lifestyle - Eating a healthy diet, getting regular exercise, and getting plenty of sleep

• Practicing relaxation techniques - such as yoga, deep breathing, massage, or meditation

• Keeping a journal and writing about your thoughts or what you're grateful for

• Happiness / Laughter - Having a sense of humour and finding ways to include humour and laughter in your life, such as watching funny movies or looking at joke websites

• Time Management - Organizing and prioritizing what you need to accomplish at home and work. Remove tasks that aren't necessary and say no!

• Seeking professional counseling to develop coping strategies to manage stress

• Avoid unhealthy ways of managing your stress - caffeine, alcohol, tobacco, drugs, or excess food. 

Next time you start to feel stress creeping back into your life, give these tips a try to maintain a healthy, happy, and stable body & mind.

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Create a Wellness Retreat at Home

Countrywide lockdowns, a slow economy, and a pandemic on your doorstep may have taken a toll on your mental health and lead to stress & anxiety. A lockdown is an ideal time to practice self-care and focus on your well-being to recharge your energy. 

 It's the wellness weekend you've been needing - relaxation, self-care, healthy meals, physical activity, and all your favorite wellness treatments. Retreats allow you to truly unplug, harmonise the body and mind, and recharge your energy. You don’t need to go anywhere to get these benefits and you can create your own wellness retreat at home. 

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Steps to create a home retreat:

1. Create a schedule for the day or week. Just like going on a retreat, give yourself an agenda. Schedule both energising and relaxing activities, meal plan, and create downtime. Type them up and put the agenda on your fridge.
   
   A sample day might look something like this - morning meditation and journaling, breakfast, mid-morning yoga flow class or walk, lunch, a nap after lunch, downtime, dinner, evening restorative or yin yoga or bedtime meditation or journaling, or an Epsom salt bath.
   
   

2. Eat healthy Wholefoods. Plan meals, eat meals at the table, chew slowly, consider doing intermittent fasting or a juicing cleanse. Create a healthy menu. Shop for groceries and prep food ahead of time.
   
   

3. Disconnect. Go on a digital detox on the weekend or one day a week.  Alternatively, limit screen time each day. Turn off your phone. No emails, no social media, and ignore the TV.
   
   

4. Home Day Spa. Create a home Day Spa experience. Do a home facial and facemask, have a bubble bath or Epsom salt bath, self-massage, manicure/pedicure, or dry skin brushing before a cold shower.
   

5. Be organised. Do all your household jobs before your retreat day / week. Plan to spend a few hours getting rid of clutter and cleaning up before you begin your retreat. Set aside a yoga mat, your journal, and other items you would take on a retreat to have them ready to go. They're all set aside and ready to go, just as they would be when you arrive at a retreat centre.
   
   

6. Schedule down-time. Make space for "Do-Nothing-Time." This allows you to reflect and to cherish this experience. Too often on Retreat, we try to cram in as many activities as we can. Read a book, sit in the sunshine, and lounge around the house.  Give yourself time to rest & recharge.

During the lockdown enjoy your self-care at-home wellness retreat! Have fun creating an at-home retreat that is perfect for you to rest and recharge.

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Dreams: Why do we have them and what do they mean?

Everyone dreams every night, yet 95% of dreams are forgotten before we wake in the morning. The ones that are remembered can be entertaining, fun, adventurous, vivid and often bizarre. Yet there is still much about sleep and dreams that remain a mystery for experts. Even the question of why we dream is one yet to be answered. However there are studies that can help us to understand what triggers intense dreams and the health benefits of dreaming.

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What are dreams?

Whether you remember your dreams or not, everyone dreams anywhere from 3 to 6 times each night. Dreams are a series of images, stories, emotions and feelings that occur throughout the stages of sleep. The dreams that you remember happen during the REM (rapid eye movement) cycle of sleep. REM sleep happens approximately 90-120 minutes after you have fallen asleep and lasts around ten minutes. The brain is very active at this point and is when our more memorable dreams happen. Dreams can occur as a way for us to play out events and process things that have happened during the day.

Do dreams affect our sleep quality? 

Sleep helps your brain absorb new information and consolidating memories. If you experience vivid dreams immediately after you have fallen asleep, it could be a sign of a sleep condition called narcolepsy. 

Nightmares can make it more difficult to fall asleep and cause difficulty in moving between sleep cycles. Research shows that those who have negative dreams also have higher rates of stress during the day and are more likely to have sleep disorders. Likewise, those who have positive dreams are less likely to have sleep disorders.

When someone is sleep deprived there is a greater sleep intensity, meaning greater brain activity during sleep; dreaming is definitely increased and likely more vivid. Less Sleep = more dreams.

What are the health benefits of dreams?

Some studies suggest dreaming can help the brain with its memory function. Dreaming can also help with cognition and your ability to process events.

However why we dream is still a common topic of debate among experts. Considerable evidence points to dreams playing a role in facilitating brain functions like memory and emotional processing. Dreams appear to be an important part of normal, healthy sleep. At the same time though, nightmares can disrupt sleep and even affect a person during their waking hours.

How can you stop bad dreams and nightmares?

• Behavioral therapy and/or medications

• Improving habits and sleep hygiene can help reduce bad dreams. 

  • Practice relaxation techniques to minimize stress and anxiety, both of which can provoke nightmares.

  • Give yourself time to wind down before bed in a calm and comforting bedroom environment.

  • Avoid screen time for an hour or more before bed, and make sure not to watch scary or bothersome content at night

  • Avoid drinking alcohol, which affects your REM sleep, in the evening and especially before bed

  • Keep a consistent sleep schedule, even on weekends, to avoid sleep deprivation, which can spur more REM sleep and intense dreaming.

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8 Tips to keep your Immune System Strong

When we’re feeling strong and healthy we can take our immune healthy for granted. Yet when the sniffles start we hope our immune system will pick up the slack. The colder months often make it harder to keep up with a healthy lifestyle. However your first line of defence is to choose a healthy lifestyle.

Every part of your body, including your immune system, functions better when protected from environmental assaults and bolstered by healthy-living strategies. I’ve listed my top 8 tips for keeping your immune system strong as the seasons change.

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1. Sunshine

Vitamin D is important in keeping your immune system ready to fight infections. When possible, get outside and soak up the sun. Foods that contain Vitamin D include oily fish and eggs, however the skin's exposure to sun produces the largest amount in the body. If you're not getting enough sun you can try taking a Vitamin D supplement.

2. Get your dose of Vitamin A, C and E to help fight off nasty infections

• Vitamin A is a powerful antioxidant that helps rid the body of free radical waste that is produced during normal bodily functions. A deficiency can weaken the immune defences of the respiratory tract by damaging the mucous membranes that form a protective barrier against bacteria and viruses. Top food sources for Vitamin A are all orange and dark green fruit and vegetables (carrot, sweet potato, papaya, spinach, silverbeet etc).

• Vitamin C is an antioxidant is responsible for keeping the number of infection-fighting white blood cells and antibodies needed to ward off bugs. 

• Vitamin E for an extra healthy immune system – this antioxidant has been known to improve upper respiratory immunity. 

3. Minerals

Iron, zinc and selenium help nourish the immune system and cells active and healthy. Include mineral-rich foods such as. nuts, seeds, meat, fortified cereals, kale, broccoli, quinoa, and pulses. 

4. Sleep

Getting enough sleep is one of the ingredients to keeping strong and healthy. Rest is important to keep your heart and other organs functioning correctly. 

5. Exercise

Regular exercise promotes good cell circulation, improves mood, energy levels, heart health and prevents weight gain. 

6. Water

Drink plenty of water in winter because your body needs just as much hydration as it does in summer. Drinking water can help maintain regularity and flushes out toxins.

7. Lay off the sugar

Refined sugars negatively impact the body's defence structure. Sugars increase inflammation and can damage your cells. Try to avoid refined sugars as much as possible. To curb a sweet craving, eat more foods with protein and fats to stabilize your sugar levels.

8. Try to minimize stress

When we're stressed, the immune system's ability to fight off antigens is reduced to make us more susceptible to infections. The stress hormone cortisol can suppress the effectiveness of the immune system.

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How to tell you have reached the point of Burnout?

Burnout is when you reach a state of mental and physical exhaustion. The main cause of burnout is stress. It is when you wake up feeling exhausted and dread getting out of bed. If you continue to push through burnout it can lead to depression, anxiety, heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.

The signs of burnout can be exhaustion, isolation, irritability, frequent illness, change in appetite, sleep changes, insomnia, depression and anxiety.

The hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis is our central stress response system. The HPA axis is responsible for the neuroendocrine adaptation component of the stress response. Stress causes increased overall cortisol output. Cortisol is your bodies main stress hormone and regulates a wide range of processes throughout the body, including metabolism and the immune response.

Long-term stress can result in negative feedback to the HPA axis which results in burnout. Whether or not chronic stress results in high or low cortisol output depends on the nature of the threat, the time since onset, and the person's response to the situation.

Tips to Prevent Burnout:

1. Take a long weekend and fully unplug from work. This will provide some temporary relief and the opportunity to rest & relax.

2. Know your breaking point and limit. When you are feeling overwhelmed and stressed, create more time for yourself to slow down & reset.

3. Take a Nap. Sleep 20-30 minutes after lunch to refresh your energy and the brain.

4. Take consistent mini-breaks throughout your day and the week to re-centre yourself:

   • Yoga or Tai Chi - Try a relaxing activity to calm the nervous system.

   • Daily Meditation - To calm the mind and bring your awareness to your breath.

   • Exercise - Regular physical activity can help you to better deal with stress. It can also take your mind off work.

5. Supplements:

   • Vitamin C - The production of cortisol and the other adrenal hormones depends on an adequate supply of vitamin C.

   • Vitamin B - Beneficial during times of stress and contains nutrients that play an essential role in energy production in the body. It contains nutrients involved in hormone synthesis and modulation. Pantothenic acid is required for the function of the adrenal glands and supporting the manufacture of adrenal hormones which counteract the stress response. Pyridoxine (vitamin B6), which is required for the synthesis of several neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, GABA and dopamine.

6. Herbals Medicine:

   • Green oats - A nervine to ease tension, decrease stress and promote nervous system health.

   • Withania (Ashwaganda) - Adaptogen to help your body manage stress.

   • Liquorice - Help support HPA axis balance by impacting morning cortisol levels.

   • Ginseng - Adaptogen to fight against stress and fatigue, for increased endurance and memory improvement.

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Intermittent Fasting and 8 Ways to Support Longevity

Intermitted fasting or fasting mimicking diet have become a hot topic over the last couple of years. Fasting has been used for centuries for healing purposes and part of religious or spiritual practices to deepen your connection to spirit or God.

For a lot of people, the thought of fasting seems extreme and challenging. It takes a lot of commitment and support to do proper water fasting for 3 to 5 days. However, recent research is showing that intermitted fasting or fasting mimicking diet creates similar results to water fasting. When we fast it gives the body a chance to heal and repair. It is being used for healing chronic illnesses as well as part of treatment plans for cancer.

The research is showing by simply reducing the time period for eating during the day and increasing the fasting period overnight has a huge impact in longevity and optimal health. For intermitted fasting you fast for between 12 and 16 hours overnight. This would be like stopping eating after dinner at 7 pm and then not eating breakfast until 9 am in the morning. This time period would be fasting for 14 hours.

Top tips based on the research from Dr Valter Longo, PhD the director of the Longevity Institute USC:

1. Eat a mostly vegan diet with some fish. Minimise bad fats (from animal products and dairy) and sugars, and maximising good facts (like nuts and seeds) and complex carbohydrates (like vegetables, beans, lentils and whole grains). During the eating window it is about getting optimal nutrition into the body that is easy to digest.

2. During the eating window it is best to eat twice a day plus a snack unless your weight or muscle mass is low and then it would be three meals plus a snack. During ageing the body requires more protein to maintain muscle mass.

3. Exercise is also important for longevity. Walk fast for one hour getting your heart rate up, alongside doing some sort of weight training or weight-bearing exercises can help to build bone density and maintain muscle mass especially as you age.

4. To be nourished in the modern day world vitamins and minerals supplements can be helpful as our soil no longer provides certain nutrients. Nutrients and minerals are important for bodies repair, replacement, and defence system to boost immunity.

5. When planning our meals we quite often eat the same things from day to day. However, to provide the right required nutrients for the body we need to eat a variety of foods that are in season. It is helpful to eat foods that is are locally grown.

6. Eat the table of your ancestors by choosing foods that would be common to your ethnicity. Ie - Asian countries traditionally would not have a lot of dairy in their diet and when they try to follow a western diet it causes a lot of health problems for them leading to autoimmune conditions.

7. Time restricted eating restrict your eating to 11 to 16 hours. Shorter periods of feeding have been shown to have an positive effect in promoting health and longevity.

8. For optimal health you can also follow the practice of periodic prolonged fasting which would be the more traditional way of fasting. This would be undergoing a water fast or calorie restricted diet for five days. This is known to have remarkable effects on disease risk factors and optimisation of health and longevity.