Here is How Stress Interferes with Proper Blood Glucose Levels
Adrenal glands
Stress often results in elevated blood glucose levels because the adrenal glands trigger the release of glucose stored in different organs of our body when we are under stress.
Unfortunately, the energy released by the body to help us deal better with our environment, is no help for people with diabetes, who find harder than non-diabetics to regain proper blood glucose levels after an stress episode.
The body is a complex system in which nerve impulses and hormonal secretions regulate the way specialized cells work so the body can respond to dangers, real and imagined. We are all too familiar with what we call emotional stress, but stress can also be physical, nutritional, and chemical. In essence, stress can be considered anything that tends to change the control that we ordinarily have over our body and our emotions.
The forms of stress
The pressures of life that we perceive and encounter day in and day out can have an enormous impact in our health and long-term well-being. All living things respond to external stimuli and are prepared to react in a way that allows them to survive, but humans are unique in that they respond to intellectual dangers and social pressures such as the possibility of a business reversal, the consequences of being late for an appointment, the importance of a job interview, or family pressures.
A person sitting at a desk will experience the same increase in his or her heart rate and the attendant hormonal changes during an “important” business call as during a five-mile jog. From this alone, we may conclude that a life in which there are many intellectual pressures and urgency will be subjecting our body to a great deal of turmoil and activity, possibly to a degree for which it is not prepared.
Stress can take many forms. It can appear disguised as anxiety, worry, or depression. Or you can experience it as physical pain or illness. Situations such as a confrontation with another person or a near-miss accident can trigger the so called fight-or-flight response.
The Adrenal Glands
The alarm reaction originates in the hypothalamus area of the brain. The hypothalamus then sends a chemical signal to the adrenal glands which become enlarged and produce two hormones, epinephrine, also called adrenaline) and norepinephrine, which stimulate increased respiration and heart rate, increased blood pressure, and causes our muscles to become tense. The role of these hormones are as follows:
Epinephrine: This hormone is released into the blood in response to exercise, fright, exposure to cold temperatures, and low blood sugar levels. The hormone prepares the body for urgent action -the fight-or-flight response- by raising blood sugar, blood pressure, and heart rate. High levels of blood sugar trigger high insulin levels.
Norepinephrine: Along with epinephrine, it is released by the body during times of stress and anxiety. These two hormones help the body in preparation to either fight or flee. They speed up the heart and widen airways and blood vessels causing a rise in blood pressure. The main function of norepinephrine is to prevent blood pressure from dropping.
Another change, not so visible since it is internal, is an elevated blood sugar level. Epinephrine is in charge of converting glycogen, the glucose stored in muscle cells and liver, into glucose any time blood sugar levels drop so normal levels of blood glucose can be maintained.
But when we are under a stressful situation, stress says to the body: “We must prepare for a lot of physical action, so get your fuel (glucose) up”. Epinephrine acts as the stimulating substance for this conversion of glycogen to glucose. The elevation of blood pressure in turn, assures the distribution of oxygen and glucose to all parts of the body.
It is not difficult to see that repeated episodes of stress will cause serious internal changes, leaving the individual exhausted and unable to combat disease. Since epinephrine is such an important blood sugar regulating substance, serious changes in blood sugar levels can occur before the body can correct the situation. The adrenal glands, trying to compensate for the unbalance, rush epinephrine to readjust the blood sugar level toward normal, causing in turn blood sugar levels to drop which could result in hypoglycemia. Repeated stress episodes will cause adrenal fatigue leading to adrenal failure.
How to handle stress
I cannot emphise enough, especially if you have diabetes, the need to remove stress from your life. Determine what is causing the stress in your life and do everything you can to remove it. Failure to do so will not only create new problems, but could be serious enough to cause death as adrenal failure will result in failure to recover from stress.
A few things may help you prevent or control stress
Relaxing in the park
1. Recognize when you are tense. Shallow breathing and a fast pulse are often an indication that your body is going through stress.
2. Relax. Deep breathing is a natural relaxant. Try to take several deep breaths each hour.
3. Walk; it can reduce your tension and can be a great help to clear your mind. If you get angry walk around the block. It will help you dissipate those negative feelings.
4. Talk to other people. It can be a valuable way to deal with your problems.
5. Take any opportunity you can to small and laugh; it is therapeutic.
6. Keep up your hobbies.
7. Read a good book.
8. Take a hot bath.
9. Try to get out of the house regularly.
10. Take time to rest when you are tired.
11. Try a soothing massage.
12. Give a chance to meditation or yoga.
13. Your religious or spiritual beliefs can be a great support.
When things become so overwhelming that you can’t see a way out, try sitting down quietly somewhere, taking a few deep breaths and looking at things objectively:
- Look at all the different causes of your tension and identify one that you want to do something about.
- List all the possible options and solutions that you can think of. And remember that doing nothing can also be an option.
- Select one solution that is realistic and that you feel has a fair chance of succeeding and give it an honest try.
- After a reasonable period of time, sit back again and evaluate what happened.
Final thoughts
Let us remember that taking no action to stop stress is not an option. The various systems of the body operate in harmony with one another and prolonged stress can disrupt that balance and produce a cascading effect in our body organs causing them to behave chaotically. An example will be the excessive production of insulin in the pancreas in response to elevated glucose levels in the blood.
To your health!
Emilia Klapp, R.D., B.S.
www.TheDiabetesClub.com
Part 1 – Part 2
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