EPISODE 80: STRESS RESPONSE & GENETICS

My DNA Coach Podcast I Jonny Deacon I Health I Fitness I DNA Testing I Blood Testing |A.I |DEXA I Kolbe A Index | Personal Training

STRESS RESPONSE & GENETICS

We all get stressed out once in awhile but not everyone responds to pressure in the same way. Our lives, upbringing and experiences can all have an impact but research has shown that certain genes can make us more sensitive to life’s stresses and strains.

Fight or flight

When we experience a shock or sense a threat, the body responds with a primitive reflex. Chemicals are released that are designed to help us to survive. These catecholamines (adrenaline, noradrenaline and dopamine) boost the heart rate, raise the blood pressure and improve respiratory function to help us fight harder and run faster. They also work to sharpen our vision, speed up our impulses and make us super-sensitive to any perceived threat.

As cavemen, whether we stayed to fight or ran to hide, the stress hormones would have been safely metabolized. In the modern world, with tension caused by traffic jams or computer failure, the body can be alerted to danger with no way of expending the pent up energy and aggression.

The genetic difference

For many individuals stress can be good, sharpening their focus and driving them to perform better. But other people just fall apart under the pressure. How can the same level of stress elicit such different physical, psychological and emotional responses?

The answer is down to genetics. We all have differing capabilities of breaking down and getting rid of dopamine, adrenaline and noradrenaline. This system is controlled by the COMT gene, which regulates the body’s metabolism and detoxification of these chemical transmitters. Some of us have COMT genes that clear the brain of dopamine rapidly and efficiently and others have a slower and more steady response.

Slow COMT genes

When people with slow COMT genes become overly stressed their bodies are unable to get rid of the catecholamines quickly enough. Dopamine can build up in the brain’s frontal lobe. This overload may cause the classic stress symptoms of anxiety, worry, panic attacks and insomnia. In severe cases it is thought to be associated with mental health problems including obsessive-compulsive disorder and schizophrenia.

Fast COMT genes

Individuals with fast acting COMT genes were able to clear the brain of stress chemicals quickly and efficiently and were shown in tests to be more adept at performing well and coping with pressure. However in low stress situations, the lack of stimulation meant that they could fail to get work done effectively.

What does this mean?

This can seem depressing if genetic testing shows that you have a slow COMT gene. But the good news is that you can alter the impact your genes have on your body.

Research conducted in Taiwan suggests that those with slow COMT genes performed significantly better than those with fast genes in cognitive tests. When they weren’t in very stressful situations they had bright, alert minds and better memories. So by learning to deal with stress, exercising regularly, reflecting positively on past successes you can start to see potential threats as challenges and cope better with the pressures of life.

Cortisol

Cortisol is a steroid hormone that is released into the bloodstream by the adrenal glands in a natural rhythm with our body’s sleep cycle. It peaks in the early morning helping us bounce out of bed and gradually falls, reaching a trough at 3 or 4 am when we should be soundly asleep.

What does it do?

Cortisol has a vital job as one of the body’s stress hormones, released as part of the fight-or-flight reflex. It shuts down less critical functions like reproduction and immunity to focus on fighting the immediate physical threat and breaks down tissue to provide the energy necessary.

The functions of cortisol are supposed to be immediate and short lived, enough to see off any physical challenge. This was great for cavemen fighting sabre-toothed tigers -but less ideal in modern lives when stress can be psychological and constant.

The good stuff:

Cortisol has a vital physiological role. By raising plasma glucose levels at times of stress, cortisol provides the body with the energy it needs to face bodily attacks from injury, illness or infection. It has potent anti-inflammatory effects easing irritation and pain.

The bad stuff:

Too much cortisol for too long can have serious, negative effects. The tissue breakdown, reduced protein synthesis and conversion of protein to glucose can decrease musculature and increase abdominal fat, not an ideal result! It also suppresses levels of growth hormone and sex hormones, which can reduce libido and fertility. It lessens glucose usage and increases blood levels potentially predisposing to diabetes and its effects on calcium can increase osteoporosis.

So it is clear that moderating cortisol levels is important for the maintenance of our health and wellbeing.

Exercise and Cortisol

Exercise is perceived by the body as a form of stress and stimulates the release of cortisol. In general, the more your fitness improves the better the body becomes at dealing with physical stress. This means that less cortisol will be released during exercise and also in response to emotional or psychological stresses.

However, research shows that the time and intensity of exercise can affect the level of cortisol release. When it comes to exercise, more may not be better. Training for more than 60 minutes, even at a low intensity will burn up the body’s glycogen stores and stimulate cortisol release. A study confirmed that long-term cortisol exposure was significantly higher in endurance athletes.

Short high intensity exercise such as sprints, HITT or weight training cause less of an increase in plasma cortisol concentrations. However, the levels tend to surge if rest periods are short and work levels are high. This is particularly significant if exercising when starved or nutritionally depleted and was also increased by training in the early morning when cortisol levels are naturally higher and the response to exercise can be more.

What can we do?

It is possible to enjoy the undeniable benefits of exercise while minimising the impact on cortisol concentrations:

• Don’t overdo it. Take regular breaks from intense training and listen to your body.
• Leave intense sessions to later in the day, when cortisol levels are lower.
• Eat right to fuel your body and make sure you consume carbohydrates and protein after exercise to decrease the cortisol response.
• Consider adaptogens to improve your body’s response to stress.
• Check out our stressbusting article (coming on Friday!) for ways to cope with life’s stresses and strains.

We all have to face life’s stresses and strains. How we cope with these is affected by our genes, our experiences and our upbringing. The good news is that you can learn to deal with stress and stay healthy and happy no matter what your genetic make up.

Work it out

Exercise is the best stress-buster there is, acting in a number of different ways to protect our bodies and minds from the negative impact of stress:

Sport can provide a time of release from the tensions of the day, the focus needed can be a welcome distraction from work or home problems and a time to heal.

Research shows that physical fitness also appears to protect us against stress and stress-related chronic diseases. Exercise can dissipate the biochemical and physical changes caused by the release of stress hormones. This can decrease the blood pressure and ease muscular tension. Activity can also stimulate the release of feel-good hormones, endorphins, which decrease pain, give a sense of wellbeing and help us get the sleep we need.

Finally exercise appears to improve the brain’s ability to adapt to changes throughout life, which can improve mood and cognitive function.

In periods of tension, those who exercised less frequently reported over a third more stress symptoms than those who exercised regularly.

Eat right

When we’re stressed it’s easy to reach for the food we crave instead of the nutrition we need. But sugar, caffeine and fast-food highs disappear quickly, leaving our blood sugars, mood and resilience to stress low. Choose complex slow release carbs, plenty of fruit and leafy green vegetables and healthy fats from fish, avocado and nuts to nourish your body.

Rest and relax

Take time to rest and switch off, you will return to your work with renewed vigour. Effective relaxation techniques include deep abdominal breathing, focusing on a soothing word and calming exercise options like yoga and tai chi.

Mindfulness meditation

Scientific studies suggest that mindfulness meditation can help ease psychological stress. It is a simple form of meditation in which you focus your full attention on your breathing following the air in and out, this allows you to dispassionately observe any negative thoughts and eventually let them go. Find out more here.

Don’t rely on substances

When you’re under pressure it can be tempting to rely on coffee, cigarettes or booze to keep going. But caffeine and nicotine are stimulants that can actually increase the stress response and leave you feeling anxious and twitchy. Alcohol may seem to soothe but it is a depressant, which may leave you crying into your beer glass, so drink in moderation only. Eating a healthy balanced diet, exercising regularly and getting sufficient sleep will keep your body fit enough to cope with the problems that life throws at it.

Practical Stress-busting

It’s impossible to get rid of all the stresses in your life but you can make changes to decrease the pressures you face so that they’re easier to deal with:

Manage your time: It’s easy to waste time doing easy, unimportant tasks or engaging in social media. Write a list and prioritize the vital jobs, procrastination only ramps up the stress levels.

Know your triggers

Think about what stresses you out and control its impact. If being late or traffic jams send your blood pressure soaring, leave earlier so that you have time to spare.

Learn to say no

Overloading yourself with commitments at home, work or play can increase tension. Learn to delegate and have the confidence to say no to tasks when you need to.

----

Time Stamped Show Notes

• 0:43 – Listeners are being invited to apply to MyDNA Academy
• 01:05 – Jonny opens the show
• 02:16 – Jonny discusses body’s natural “fight or flight” stress response
• 03:15 – Jonny begins discussion on how genetics plays a part in whether a person responds appropriately to stress or collapses under the pressure
• 03:44 – COMT gene determines how quickly dopamine is removed from the system
  • 04:01 – Effect of slow COMT genes
  • 04:25 – Effect of fast COMT genes
• 04:59 – A Taiwanese study shows that you can alter the effects your genetics have on your stress response
• 05:28 – Jonny discusses cortisol and its impacts on the body
  • 06:21 – positive effects
  • 06:40 – negative effects
• 07:25 – Jonny discusses the relationship between exercise and cortisol levels
• 08:44 – Jonny gives practical tips for training while minimizing the effects of cortisol on the body
• 09:40 – Jonny discusses ways to deal with stress
  • 10:00 – exercise
  • 10:57 – eat right
  • 11:25 – take time to rest
  • 11:59 – practice mindfulness meditation
  • 12:54 – avoid coffee, cigarettes, and alcohol
  • 13:30 – manage your time appropriately
  • 14:34 – know when to say no to commitments
• 16:01 – Jonny challenges us to pick a few ways we can reduce stress and give them a try in our lives
• 16:42 – Stress is always going to be with us, but the meaning you attach to that stress can change everything

Resources Mentioned:

• http://en.ntnu.edu.tw/news-show.php?id=11842
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18787373
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21944954
• https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article-lookup/doi/10.1210/jcem.86.6.7566
• http://rsfs.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/4/5/20140040
• http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1809754