HEALTH + WELLNESS
WRITTEN BY Nancy Palermo Lietz MD
Hitting the REFRESH Button
Incorporating Mindful Meditation to Optimize Wellness
O
Our society is filled with stress. Every
day we are bombarded by work deadlines, unrelenting traffic, dwindling
finances, family commitments and unrealistic expectations of who we should
be. This chronic stress is killing us.
When our bodies are continually
exposed to stress, we release stress hormones into the bloodstream. In normal
short-lived stress, like encountering a
barking dog while on a run, the body
triggers a fight or flight response. The
body produces stress hormones like
epinephrine, norepinephrine and cortisol. These hormones kick the body into
survival or reaction mode. Our hearts
beat faster, our breathing increases,
oxygen capacity increases and muscles
are primed to work faster and stronger.
The hormones released divert blood
from the GI system and redistribute
it to our extremities so we can run or
fight. Cortisol increases blood sugar
levels to give us energy. The increase
in glucose ultimately leads to an
increase in insulin. Your immune system is suppressed to free up energy
for survival. Lastly our minds act irrationally. Once the stressor disappears,
the hormone levels efficiently normalize. With chronic stress however,
our bodies attempt to adjust to the
repeated release of hormones, and
the result is persistent elevations in
insulin, cortisol and inflammatory
compounds called cytokines. Persistent
elevation of cortisol leads to muscle
loss, thyroid dysfunction, growth
hormone interference and sleep disturbance. The long-term effect is a metabolic dysfunction that leads to weight
Meditation can reintroduce you to the part that’s been missing.
RUSSELL SIMMONS
SUMMER 2016
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