By Sarah A LoBisco, ND
Phew, Happy Holidays.
I just went through an extensive and fun biochemistry lesson on my homepage on how stress affects our mood and biochemistry.
To summarize, stressful thoughts have negative impacts on our hormones, immune function, weight management, and more.
Now, what’s the solution?
Here are some simple tips:
1. Take a breather!
Studies show that mediation and relaxation actually reprogram your brain’s response to stress and boosts your immunity:
Studies have shown the medical effectiveness of meditation overall. A 2003 study of mindfulness-based meditation showed enhanced antibody production after someone receives a flu vaccine. Another study from that same year found cancer patients who were trained in mindfulness-based stress reduction showed a boost in their immune system.
Jen Christensen. Medical advice from the Dalai Lama’s doctor. CNN Health. 12/5/12. http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/05/health/dalai-lama-doctor/index.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_health+%28RSS%3A+Health%29
2. Take Your Fish Oil
We are all aware now of the brain-boosting effects of fish oil.
Here’s more proof:
Intake of n-3 PUFA improved cognitive performance in healthy subjects after five weeks compared with placebo. In addition, inverse relations were obtained between cardiometabolic risk factors and cognitive performance, indicating a potential of dietary prevention strategies to delay onset of metabolic disorders and associated cognitive decline.
Source: Nilsson A, Radeborg K, Salo I, Björck I. Effects of supplementation with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on cognitive performance and cardiometabolic risk markers in healthy 51 to 72 years old subjects: a randomized controlled cross-over study. Nutr J. 2012 Nov 22;11(1):99. [Epub ahead of print]
3. Take Care of Yourself First!
Tis the season for giving, but it can take a lot out of you! If you are too busy with others, how will you be there for anyone else?
A study with 31 caregivers of dementia patients showed a decline in the caregivers more than the dementia patients themselves!
Oken, B. Fonareva, I, Wahbeh, H. Stress-Related Cognitive Dysfunction in Dementia Caregivers (abstract). J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol December 2011 vol. 24 no. 4 191-198.
a. Nurture Quality Relationships
The quality of a woman’s social networks — the personal relationships that surround an individual — appears to be just as important as the size of her networks in predicting breast cancer survival, Kaiser Permanente scientists report in the current issue of Breast Cancer Research and Treatment.
Kaiser Permanente. High-Quality Personal Relationships Improve Survival in Women With Breast Cancer. Science Daily. 11/9/12. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121109091158.htm
b. Get Your Mojo Back!
– The Natural Nurse and Dr. Z – 12/18/12.
Listen to fun podcasts, such as this interview on the Gary Null Network with the Natural Nurse and Dr. Z.
In this interview, Ellen Kamhi, PhD RN interviews Debi Silber MS, RD, WHC, The Mojo Coach®
Read more: http://prn.fm/2012/12/18/the-natural-nurse-and-dr-z-get-your-mojo-back-121812/#ixzz2FigrSFAi. Under Creative Commons License: Attribution
4. Read more tips from my previous blogs on this site at: https://www.saratoga.com/living-well/2012/11/emotional-medicine.html and last year’s series on easing into health for the holidays on my homepage at https://dr-lobisco.com/easing-into-health-for-the-holidays-starting-off-with-a-clean-plate/.
