“Excessive stress, either physical or mental, has a detrimental effect on the optimal functioning of the immune system. It is like the card that finally tips the balance on the house of cards, bringing everything crashing down.
An immune system that is in top operating order will only be minimally affected by small causes of stress, yet that same system can be toppled by a big causes of stress such as the death of a loved one. Conversely, even small causes of stress can be too much for a weakened immune system.” Patrick Bouic, Ph.D. "The Immune System Cure"
Stress has surpassed the common cold as the most common health problem in North America according to many physicians.
Causes of Stress Big and Small
Big causes of stress are pretty easy to recognize like job loss, illness and death of a loved one. But, smaller causes of stress accumulate and are things like noise, crowded cities, driving, school, feeling trapped, trying to be perfect, disliking your job, a bout of the flu; the list is almost endless. People feel stress differently. It’s very individual. What causes stress to one might not bother someone else at all. Stress has been called the number one universal health factor contributing to major disease.
Some Stress Indicators [according to Dr. Anthony Cichoke]
Smoking
Drinking soft drinks
Weak or shaky between meals
Difficulty sleeping
Weight problems
Muscle cramps
Need to be more assertive
On edge
Noise bothers
Depressed
Can’t make decisions
…and many others
Stress and Adrenals
What does stress actually do? Stress affects the adrenal glands among other things. In fact that is the purpose of adrenal glands; to help you deal with stress from every possible source (psychological, environmental, infectious, physical, emotional, etc) and survive. The adrenal glands produce a number of different hormones that influence virtually all of the major processes in the body.
The Importance Of Adrenal Gland Hormones
“They closely affect the utilization of carbohydrates and fats, the conversion of fats and proteins into energy, the distribution of stored fat (especially around your waist and at the sides of your face), normal blood sugar regulation, and proper cardiovascular and gastrointestinal function.
The protective activity of anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant hormones secreted by the adrenals helps to minimize negative and allergic reactions to alcohol, drugs, foods and environmental allergens.
After mid-life (menopause in women), the adrenal glands gradually become the major source of the sex hormones circulating throughout the body in both men and women…Every athlete knows that muscular strength and stamina are acutely affected by the adrenal hormones, more commonly known as steroids.” James Wilson, N.D., D.C., Ph.D.author of Adrenal Fatigue, The 21st Century Stress Syndrome
One Scenario
One scenario of what happens in an alarm stress “reaction” might be as follows:
Something happens; you’re attacked by an elephant, or almost hit by a truck, or your boss is angry. Your adrenals have an “alarm” reaction often called the “fight or flight” response. It’s your body’s response to challenge or danger. Increased adrenal hormones are released that cause your heart to beat faster, your breathing increases, your cortisol levels rise which gives you more energy, muscle tension increases, your digestion shuts down, and more.
This is great for situations that require a physical response, like lifting a car or jumping over small mountains. The response however gets stifled in the office where “fight or flight” wouldn’t be appropriate (this is a problem). The alarm stage is usually short lived lasting a few minutes to a few hours. Thereafter it could be followed by a recovery period lasting 24-48 hours.
During this period hormone levels drop, you feel tired and your body is less able to respond to stress. What if there are additional causes of stress lurking about? What if the stress doesn’t go away? Your body can continue to fight the stressor and others long after the initial effects. It could last for months or even years. The hormone largely responsible for it is cortisol produced by the adrenal glands.
Cortisol – Good and Bad – The Immune Suppressor
“Cortisol [made by adrenal glands] is a powerful anti-inflammatory hormone that, in small quantities, speeds tissue repair, but in larger quantities depresses your body’s immune defense system... Cortisol also reduces the rate at which lymphocytes [immune cells] multiply and accelerates their programmed cell death to further protect the body from this overreaction.
In fact, when cortisol is elevated during the alarm reaction there is almost a complete disappearance of lymphocytes from the blood. That is why your immune system is suppressed when your are under stress or taking corticosteroids. On the other hand when circulating cortisol is low, its moderating effect on immune reactions is lost and lymhocytes circulate in excess.” Dr. James Wilson This creates more inflammation.
Dr. Jesse Stoff also says increased cortisol levels depress immune function, “The part of the immune system most sensitive to the effects of cortisol are Natural Killer cells”. Immune system resistance plummets. A serious illness is often preceded by a major cause of stress.
Fatigued Adrenals
There are many other reactions as well including adrenal gland “fatigue”. When adrenals become “fatigued” after being stressed, too little cortisol and other hormones are produced bringing on its own set of problems one major symptom being fatigue.
Stress, Prostaglandins and Essential Fatty Acids
Essential fatty acids are the good fatty acids we need to get from food because we don’t make them ourselves. Hormone like cellular messengers called prostaglandins are derived from essential fatty acids. Cells respond to their environment through the action of prostaglandins.
Prostaglandins are short lived and very localized. Our diet is notably lacking in these good fats, especially since we decided sometime back that all fats were bad. Providing the raw materials, the fatty acids, in the first place is a nutritional issue. Most significant are the omega 3 fatty acids.
The Good, the Bad and Stress
Good prostaglandins inhibit “thick” blood, dilate blood vessels, are anti-inflammatory, control cell proliferation and enhance immune function. This positive action is inhibited by nutritional deficiencies, viruses, heavy metals, “bad” fats, and further inhibited by red meat and sugar.
“Bad” prostaglandins do the opposite as in they promote “thick” blood, constricting blood vessels, are pro inflammatory, promote cell proliferation and suppresses immune function.
“If you are having a heart attack, you are making more “bad” eicosanoids (that promote platelet aggregation and vasocontriction) and not enough “good” ones (that prevent platelet aggregation and promote vasodilation).
If you have high blood pressure, you are making more “bad” eicosanoids (vasoconstrictors) and not enough “good” ones (vascodilators). If you have arthritic pain, you are making more “bad” eicosanoids (pro-inflammatory) and less “good” ones (anti-inflammatory). If you have cancer, you are making more “bad” eicosanoids (immune supressing) and too few “good” ones (immune stimulating). “ Dr. Barry Sears, The Anti-Aging Zone
The EPA found in omega 3 marine lipid concentrate inhibits negative action and promotes the production of good prostaglandins.
Stress negatively affects prostaglandin production. Cortisol, produced by the adrenal glands when under stress, suppresses prostaglandin production. According to Dr. Barry Sears, “if you are overproducing corticosteroids, especially cortisol, you will bring all eicosanoid (prostaglandin) synthesis to a crashing halt – including the shut down of the immune system.”
