Let my script Parley: Allostatic Load
Let us quickly review the impact of stress on human metabolism before we delve into different topics related to nutrition. Just thinking has a price in this world. Continually dwelling on the past or the future prevents the body from resting and replenishing its stores of nutrients and energy. An effective diet is impossible if the body is distracted by other factors. A person's ability to cope with daily stress has the greatest impact on their overall health. To maintain stability, your immune system continuously addresses the burden of daily stressors and major life events. For example, your body repairs your sore muscles, stores energy, fights off new threats, and clears out unwanted toxic substances. Human health depends on equilibrium. With age, responsibilities pile up, to-do-lists become your best friend, most things cost money, and just living day-to-day demands a lot of energy. Allostatis affects everyone, but the way people respond to stress differs. Stress is more prevalent in some people than in others. Stress is a challenge for others. Some people let life dictate how they live. There's probably something scratching your head like what is Allostatis and how does it relate to nutrition. Let my Script Parley.
Allostatis is a model developed by McEwen and Stellar in 1993 to illustrate the consequences of chronic exposure to instable and amplified neuroendocrine and neural responses to environmental challenges we perceive as stressful. The term Allostatis refers to the ability of an entity to remain stable during a period of change. Environmental challenges can include insufficient sleep, disrupted circadian rhythms, constant contemplation, inappropriate diet, insufficient exercise, and excessive alcohol consumption. Allostatic overload is another term to keep in mind. Because this considers the compounding effects of daily activities, major life events, and how these events affect a person's overall health. Allostatic overload occurs when a person's coping power is exceeded by stressors. This is the point at which the stress response system ramps up because the balance swings into an extreme state of instability. If the emergency is not handled promptly, the alert mechanism remains on autopilot. The following circumstances can keep a person in allostatic overload:
1. Extensive exposure to intense stressors that entice the body to recruit the stress response team
2. A failure to adjust to recurrent stressful events
3. Once the stressor is eliminated, the body cannot turn off the recruitment of the stress response team; it becomes an auto immune situation.
4. The allostatic response cannot remove the stressor (e.g. constant thoughts)
Different physiology systems respond to environmental threats in different ways, removing foreign invaders at varying levels. Neuroendocrine and immune systems balance and adapt to both interior and exterior stressors. During short periods of time, this mechanism is normal and robust. There are also several mechanisms in place for the body to adjust and cope with certain challenges. For long-term threats, the immune system is being pressed to produce more leukocytes, cytokines, and inflammation to fight them. These are a few examples of compounds associated to the stress response team. The body will resort to any lengths to make things happen, even if that means neglecting other organ functions. Consequently, these sacrifices can lead to impaired cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, sleep, and endocrine-metabolic function. To preserve what it deems vital, the body chooses which organs to disregard. Due to a person's sluggish immune system, the clinical symptoms they display are often signs of their predisposition health condition(s). Genetic and nongenomic factors influence the brain's configuration and the chemical compounds it generates. Environmental factors can enhance or suppress certain genes.
To demonstrate how the body uses the by any means necessary philosophy to maintain health in times of distress, let's examine my own situation.
During my early 20s, I earned a new job and soon discovered it was stressful. My sleep was interrupted, mood swings arose, and I was washed. Eventually, I developed digestive problems; irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) to be specific, and my vitamin D level was low. To maintain some type of equilibrium, my body neglected my digestion system as a result of being overwhelmed with stress. A combination of irregular bowel movements, unintentional weight loss, and stomach pain finally convinced me to take action. I took on a less demanding role. The use of probiotics, vitamin D supplement and a Mediterranean diet helped me to control my IBS gradually.
Daily stress allows the immune system to flex its muscles and stay prepared for the next potential danger. However, excessive amounts of stress are detrimental to our overall health. Every person's life circumstances are unique. Sociodemographics, age, work and environment, early life events (e.g., adverse childhood experiences), caregiving, lifestyle habits, pre-existing health complications, physical appearance issues, etc., can all burden someone. Stress management and reducing the number of stressors in our life are the real battles. The overall message our bodies and Mother Nature are trying to convey is to seek balance in your life. It is crucial to find balance in life, but everyone must figure out their own definition of balance. Until next time, Stay Strong & Stay Vivid!
Reference:
1. Guidi J, Lucente M, Sonino N, Fava G, A (2021). Allostatic Load and Its Impact on Health: A Systematic Review. Karger. https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/510696#.
2. Schulkin, J. (2003). Rethinking Homeostasis: Allostatic Regulation in Physiology and Pathophysiology. A Bradford Book.
3. Parker. H.W. et al. (2022). Allostatic Load and Mortality: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Elsevier. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0749379722001167.
