Any real connection between stress and gaining weight?

[old mark]

Or conversely, lack of stress and weight loss?
I have finally begun losing weight after 1 1/2 years of retirement. I had been unable to lose any when I was working in a very stressful environment.

Do you think there is a real connection or is it just coincidental ?

mark

[LeftyMom]

1. Are you eating better at home?

A lot of people eat shitty food on work lunches.

[old mark]

6. "Shitty" pretty much covered it.

I am eating much better, and sleeping much better, doing more regular exercise and just enjoying the hell out of every day. I am profoundly glad to be away from the miserable folks I worked with, and I am happier than I have been probably ever.

I guess it all contributes, but what ever it is, I am not going to worry about it.

mark

[MissMillie]

2. I don't know what the statistics are

but I know that burning fuel for energy takes oxygen, and I think that at times of stress we don't process oxygen like we do when we're not stressed.





(I'm not a doctor, but I play one in bed...)

[lizziegrace]

3. There's more than just anecdotal evidence

it's real. Involves hormones, insulin production and the way stress impacts all of it.

Google stress and weight gain.

[flvegan]

4. A very real connection, yes.

Depends upon the type of stress, but your body can change metabolically and hormonally due to stress and both of those situations can cause you to gain weight. A shift away from those situations can cause your body to actually lose weight fairly quickly upon correction.

[NJmaverick]

5. Most studies have shown there is a relationship

between the two.

[Sanity Claws]

7. Yes real connection

A few posters already pointed out some of the biological reasons for stress resulting in weight gain. Another is sleep deprivation. Stress often impacts a person's ability to get a full night's sleep. Sleep deprivation is tied to weight gain -- apparently people look to food for energy when they really need sleep to increase their energy.

[dembotoz]

8. food is a comfort. When stressed I can pig out like there is no tommorrow

do not really know why but food traditionaly has been a coping mechanism for me.
Often I did not even really realize i was eating.
Enlightenment came when I was using a food diary to get a handle on why i am so fat.
Do not know biological parts, do not really care.
Just want to control it better.

[old mark]

9. Thanks for all the good responses.

I am just so happy to be away from the situation I was in, and I am happy again to be losing weight. I did google this just now and found some pretty interesting stuff once I got past the ads.

Thanks again.

mark

[Tikki]

10. YES!!!!

I ate right along side of my son when he was going through divorce/custody hearing...

Now that it's calmed way down...I'm down in pounds and motivated to keep losing..:)


Tikki

[bertha katzenengel]

11. YES YES YES YES YES

Yep.

:)

[old mark]

12. Thanks, BK.

Thanks for the replies.
I have lost about 40 pounds over the last few months, still going, slo but steady.
I guess I finally stopped being stressed from work.


mark

[bertha katzenengel]

16. Good for you, old mark!

That is something to be proud of.
:yourock:

[Connonym]

17. I don't mean to be a party pooper

but 40 lbs in a few months is an awful lot to drop without really working at it. Whether you need to lose the weight or not I think that kind of rapid loss needs to be investigated by a doctor. Seriously.

[pitohui]

13. no correlation

we used to believe that when we were stressed we couldn't eat and in fact, i guess i still believe it, since i can't even swallow these days when stressed (for example during the recent hurricane evacuation)

ever noticed how among older people the worriers are skinny? do you really think DNA has suddenly changed all that much in just three or four decades?

do not hypnotize yourself to believe that if you are under stress you will be fat, there is always some great grief in the world and always a reason to be under stress

[yellowdogintexas]

18. with the right body chemistry, stress can contribute to weight gain...or

weight loss. It does not necessarily follow that one has gained weight due to a stressful situation.

I know some of my stressful work situations contributed to an inability to lose weight. However I have been through stressful situations where in I actually lost weight, due to anxiety killing my appetite.

There is definitely something to the cortisol connection though.

[SPKrazy]

14. stress can raise cortisol levels which can fuck with

insulin levels etc and cause weight gain

also psychologically stress eating is not uncommon

so yeah, there is a pretty well understood connection between stress and over and undereating for that matter.

[Fire Walk With Me]

15. I find Krispy Kreme donuts to be extremely stressful.