Don’t Let Stress Harm Your Health

Stress can raise blood sugar, worsen pain and impair memory – these steps can help:

High Blood Sugar: Blood sugar increases during physical and emotional stress. This response is dangerous when stress occurs daily.

What Helps: Get regular exercise to decrease stress hormone levels.

Pain: People who are stressed tend to be more sensitive to pain.

What Helps: Find a distraction. Read a book, paint or knit. This can help relieve the stress that may be causing the pain.

Impaired Memory: After a few weeks of stress, nerves in the brain associated with memory shrink and lose connections.

What Helps: Use memory tools to make your life easier. When you meet someone, repeat the person’s name out loud or put your keys in the same place every day.

Weight Gain: People who are stressed tend to eat more “comfort” foods resulting in weight gain.

What Helps: Keep a journal of what you eat and what you are feeling when you are eating to remind yourself that you may be stress-eating.

Source: Bottom Line Health