Let's continue to talk about different ways stress effects your body.

Oxidative Stress: Chronic stress can also lead to an increase in oxidative stress in the body. Oxidative stress occurs when there is an imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species (free radicals) and the body's ability to neutralize them with antioxidants. This imbalance can damage cells and tissues, leading to inflammation. We've heard of this before. This is where our vitamin and mineral supplementation comes in.

Microbiome Disruption: Stress can alter the composition of the gut microbiome, the community of microorganisms that reside in the digestive tract. Disruption of the microbiome can lead to increased permeability of the intestinal lining (leaky gut), allowing harmful substances to enter the bloodstream and trigger an immune response, leading to inflammation.

This slow leak is why you may have dairy on tuesday and then thurday evening you feel icky for "no reason".
 

Once the intestinal lining is broken down, it takes less and less of a forbidden food to make you feel poopy. 

Behavioral Factors: Chronic stress often leads to unhealthy behaviors such as poor diet, lack of exercise, and inadequate sleep, which can further exacerbate inflammation in the body. For example, a diet high in processed foods and sugar can promote inflammation, while regular exercise and sufficient sleep have anti-inflammatory effects. Consider the ratio of inflammatory to anti-inflammatory behaviors you engage in during the day.

Next we will dive deeper into inflammatory foods and why they effect us the way they do.