The Ultimate Diet Plan for a Happier, Less-Stressed You


KONTAK PERKASA FUTURES - Stress might seem harmless, but it’s anything but. While short-term stress can lead to bothersome headaches, stomach cramps, weight gain, and more bouts of colds and flu, chronic, unremitting stress impacts every part of your body, from your digestive and reproductive systems to your immune system.

KONTAK PERKASA FUTURES - Left unaddressed, chronic stress can even increase your risk for conditions such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, depression, and anxiety, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

That’s right: Stress isn’t just making you grumpier — it may also be making you fatter and sicker.
For Everyday Health’s United States of Stress story, of the nearly 6,700 people we surveyed, 35 percent rated their stress as a 6 or 7 on a scale of 1 to 7 (with 7 being the highest), over the past month. We also asked respondents how they deal with stress, and among the various coping mechanisms they could pick, 22 percent of people reported turning to food.

How Your Diet Can Affect Stress Levels, for Better or Worse

Problem is, people may be making their stress worse by taking that very action. That’s because diet choices can make or break your stress levels.

Let’s put it this way: Those cookies and potato chips aren’t doing you any favors. Ali Miller, RD, CDE, an integrative dietitian at AliMillerRD.com and author of The Anti-Anxiety Diet, says that refined carbs such as these spike blood sugar and then cause it to crash, increasing stress and anxiety. But choosing healthy foods — including healthy fats such as avocados, eggs, and walnuts — has the opposite effect, creating a “favorable hormone signaling in the brain, which supports satiety, mood regulation, and sleep and energy balance,” Miller says.

An urge to make a beeline for the vending machine when stress is sky-high isn’t your fault. When you’re stressed, your body pumps out hormones that rev your appetite and send your cravings for unhealthy comfort foods soaring, according to Harvard Medical School. Meanwhile, stress can lead to a loss of lean muscle mass, which decreases your metabolism and increases your risk for weight gain.

Of course, that’s just part of the equation. From sleep, diet, and exercise, to work, family, and romantic relationships, stress can take a toll on every aspect of your life.

Fortunately, there’s a solution — and we can help show you the way.

To help you build the ultimate stress-busting diet, we came up with a detailed food list and 14-day meal plan that’s specifically balanced to meet all of your nutritional needs while calming stress hormones, increasing feel-good hormones, and keeping energy high. We also offer some expert-backed tips and tricks that we hope will help you tame your stressors once and for all.

Preparing healthy food may be the last thing you want to do when you’re pressed for time and strung out. But rest assured that your time and effort will pay off in a big way — and that you’ll likely notice the benefits of this plan when your stress levels are at their highest. What you’ll potentially be getting out of this plan: more energy, a calmer mind, a boosted immune system, and maybe even a slimmer waistline. Need we say more?

Source : everydayhealth.com