The start of the year is always a time to set goals and resolve to make positive changes, with your healthy lifestyle often topping the list. Without doubt, making your health the focus of your new year challenge will leave you feeling less lethargic and more energised; perfect to get you through the colder, dreary winter months. It can also support mental health by steadying stress levels.
Summary
This article highlights how ongoing stress can drain energy and drive chronic inflammation and free-radical activity, increasing long-term health risks. It recommends a predominantly plant-based, whole-food diet rich in antioxidants and healthy fats, while reducing refined sugars and processed foods, with optional antioxidant supplementation. Balanced daily movement, good sleep hygiene, and avoiding overtraining and screens before bed further help steady stress and support overall wellbeing.
Stress is one of the biggest factors that affect our wellbeing; do you find that:
- You’re unusually tired, most of the time?
- You have trouble waking and getting going for the day despite going to bed at a reasonable time?
- You are often under the weather and don’t recover quickly after being ill?
You crave sweet foods? - You tend to feel more energised towards the later part of the day, after around 6pm?
These symptoms of stress make our daily lives more difficult to deal with and furthermore can result in the inflammatory response.
In our busy lives, reducing inflammation is key and the essence of boosting your inner health, especially when chronic inflammation is allowed to persist.
Why is this?
Inflammation is the body’s natural defence and repair mechanism; if we injure ourselves, your body will react with swelling, redness and pain in the area of damage. This is natural response and should be short lived until the injury is healed. Whilst this is response is familiar for injuries on the outside of the body, it is also important to remember that this same process is taking place inside the body, where and inflammatory response to stress is similar. Modern living exposes us to constant stress, which in turn triggers the inflammatory response within the body and consequently the production of free radicals.
When the sympathetic nervous system is activated and the fight or flight response persists, the stress hormone cortisol and pro inflammatory cytokines can rise. Over time, this may impair blood flow, stiffen blood vessels, and contribute to high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and even increase the risk of a heart attack and some neurodegenerative diseases, alongside other health problems.
Unresolved or chronic inflammation will leave these free radicals to cause further free radical damage and harm.
So how can we reduce inflammation and limit free radical damage to ensure we look and feel our very best?
In the first instance, addressing your diet is very important.
- Eat more plant based foods which will provide good fibre to help support a healthy digestive system and remove toxins, as part of a plant based diet where appropriate.
- Reduce foods that contain refined sugars and carbohydrates such as pasta, bread, cakes, as these will cause a stress response as your blood sugar levels and consequently your insulin levels surge, which can undermine reducing stress type 2 diabetes risk over time.
- Consume more vegetables and fruits, aiming to reach 7 portions a day. This will provide plenty of vitamins, minerals and fibre to ensure your body processes are working optimally and efficiently. Choosing brightly coloured vegetables and fruits, such as carrots, blueberries and tomatoes that are rich in antioxidants will help to combat free radical damage.
- Eat whole foods and cook from scratch as far as possible.
- Increase sources of anti-inflammatory essential fats found in oily fish, flaxseed, nuts and seeds.
- Avoid processed foods that contain preservatives, colourings and perhaps unhealthy fats that your body will need to prioritise as part of the detoxification process.
- Consider a daily supplement that contains good quality antioxidants, alongside your daily food choices for an added boost. For example, Vitamin C, Grape Seed Extract and Green Tea extract are all powerful antioxidants that will combat the harmful effects of stress. (Take a look at the Totally Derma® Collagen Drink Supplement that works from the INSIDE to stimulate the body’s optimum production of collagen, elastin and hyaluronic acid, addressing both the aesthetic (physical) signs of ageing and the underlying physiological processes).
Taking a whole body approach, it is important to remember that factoring in physical activity and more movement on a daily basis, plus good sleep hygiene, are also key.
- Aim for a minimum of 30 mins of physical activity; a daily walk, exercise class or gym session but also habits like taking the stairs instead of the lift/escalator and parking further from your destination will also help to increase your daily activity levels and support healthy blood flow and blood vessels.
- Remember, over-exercising can also be a stressor, so avoid harsh training routines that will leave you exhausted and drained, as these can trigger a stress response.
- Avoid phones/tablets/laptops at least an hour before bedtime and consider a hot bath, a herbal tea and a book or magazine instead to support mental health.