by
Take an informal poll of your friends these days, and you’ll surely find that many of the women in your life are suffering with feelings of stress and anxiety (diagnosed or not). It’s probably because in last 30 years anxiety has been on the rise—and that goes double for women. The pressures to beevery thing to every one is impacting women and their health. We have to look amazing, take care of family, acquire the latest iPad, get our hands on the cutest shoes or the land the biggest gig. Put it all into one big pot, and the we may just hit the boiling point.
Nearly 50 percent of American women say they don’t have enough free time, according to a study by the Families and Work Institute.
High stress levels in women can lead to a rise in cortisol, the hormone that takes charge of the adrenal glands, boosting our fight-or-flight response and long-term high cortisol levels can lead to long-term illness in women.
According to Dr. Sherita Hill Golden of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, high levels of cortisol increase a woman’s risk for developing diabetes, heart disease, thinning of the bones, cognitive impairment, and depression. They can also lead to obesity and fatigue.
In a 1994 study asking a random sample of thousands of Americans about their mental health, it was reported that 15 percent suffered from anxiety; by 2009 that estimate was up to 49.5 percent –all equaling to an average of 117 million U.S. adults.
Dr. Jean Twenge, professor at San Diego State University and author of Generation Me, says, “Anxiety rates have risen steadily over the past seven decades, during good economic times and bad. Recent generations have been told over and over again, ‘You can be anything you want to be. You can have the big bank account. And in the case of women, you can have this perfect body. That puts a lot on a person’s shoulders—and it’s also not really true. These are things that aren’t always under your control,” she says.
So, if you’re feeling stressed and ready to pull your hair out, 1-2-3.
1. Eat Well.
What we put into our body hugely impacts our brain chemicals as well as the rest of our body. Australian researchers recently found that women who ate a whole-foods diet, with lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meat and fish, were 32 percent less likely to experience anxiety. “Eating too much of the wrong kind of foods produces an inflammation effect that can cause disease in our brains,” says David Heber, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Center for Human Nutrition at UCLA. Fruits and vegetables, on the other hand, have the opposite effect and fight inflammation. And foods rich in omega-3 fats (like salmon and walnuts) and those containing tryptophan (like skim milk and turkey) can be like natural Xanax when eaten on a regular basis.
What we put into our body hugely impacts our brain chemicals as well as the rest of our body. Australian researchers recently found that women who ate a whole-foods diet, with lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meat and fish, were 32 percent less likely to experience anxiety. “Eating too much of the wrong kind of foods produces an inflammation effect that can cause disease in our brains,” says David Heber, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Center for Human Nutrition at UCLA. Fruits and vegetables, on the other hand, have the opposite effect and fight inflammation. And foods rich in omega-3 fats (like salmon and walnuts) and those containing tryptophan (like skim milk and turkey) can be like natural Xanax when eaten on a regular basis.
2. Exercise.
The link between exercise and improved mental health is almost irrefutable. Beyond alleviating pent-up angst, working out can actually teach your brain to be anxiety-resistant. “The physical stress that working out has on the body engages a lot of the same responses that mental stress does,” says Michael Hopkins, a researcher at the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory Laboratory at Dartmouth College. “Your heart beats faster; your blood pressure goes up. Over time, exercise appears to train the body to handle those changes, so when anxiety strikes, your body says, ‘Oh, OK, this is like when we go jogging. I know how to deal with this.’” Even if you can’t set aside time for yourself to exercise alone – find ways of building activity into your life. You’ll be surprised how much less anxious you’ll feel if you stay keep your body moving.
The link between exercise and improved mental health is almost irrefutable. Beyond alleviating pent-up angst, working out can actually teach your brain to be anxiety-resistant. “The physical stress that working out has on the body engages a lot of the same responses that mental stress does,” says Michael Hopkins, a researcher at the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory Laboratory at Dartmouth College. “Your heart beats faster; your blood pressure goes up. Over time, exercise appears to train the body to handle those changes, so when anxiety strikes, your body says, ‘Oh, OK, this is like when we go jogging. I know how to deal with this.’” Even if you can’t set aside time for yourself to exercise alone – find ways of building activity into your life. You’ll be surprised how much less anxious you’ll feel if you stay keep your body moving.
3. Breathe.
It seems so simple – yet it’s something we all forget to do. Research shows that people who are anxious do not breathe as deeply. As Americans we generally breathe shallow and fast. Many of us have never really learned how to breathe deeply. Find a quiet space even for 5 minutes a day and take 3 to 5 deep breaths from your stomach. These will help you slow down and regain perspective on all the “What Ifs” haunting you. We have our breath available to us at all times. It can literally be a wonderful tool in slowing us down.
It seems so simple – yet it’s something we all forget to do. Research shows that people who are anxious do not breathe as deeply. As Americans we generally breathe shallow and fast. Many of us have never really learned how to breathe deeply. Find a quiet space even for 5 minutes a day and take 3 to 5 deep breaths from your stomach. These will help you slow down and regain perspective on all the “What Ifs” haunting you. We have our breath available to us at all times. It can literally be a wonderful tool in slowing us down.
No comments:
Post a Comment