Let’s talk about stress and cortisol. I’ve seen many people get on the right track with their diet and exercise—but they're still stuck in fight-or-flight mode.
Being in fight-or-flight mode, having elevated cortisol and adrenaline, for a long period isn’t healthy.
Chronic stress has been known to negatively affect the body in many ways, including:
• Shrinking your grey matter
• Shrinking your thymus gland
• Creating muscle atrophy
• Decreasing testosterone
• Running the body on sugar (even when you’re not eating sugar)
• Disrupting healthy digestion
• Reducing quality sleep
Chronic worry and stress can also lead to ulcers, inflammation, and disease.
An interesting study measured 39 people’s cortisol levels before and after a 45-minute art therapy session. This study found a significant reduction of cortisol in participants.
I have found that hobbies are a fantastic way to stop the fixation on stress and move your attention to something more positive.
DATA:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
