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TOP 10 TAKEAWAY MESSAGES:
Obesity and Stress
1. Shorter-term "fight or flight" stress response increases adrenal
sympathomimetic activity.
2. Shorter-term adrenergic stress responses may improve
cognition, physiologic function, tolerance to pain, and immune
function.
3. Longer-term "submit and stay" stress may increase
hypothalamic corticotropic activity and worsen sleep patterns.
4. Longer-term hypothalamic stress responses may increase food
craving, increase blood pressure, worsen glucose metabolism,
promote pain intolerance, and dysregulate immune responses.
5. Chronic stress-induced adiposopathic responses may adversely
affect the limbic system.
6. Dysregulation of the mesolimbic system with chronic stress may
affect hunger, food choice, and emotional modulation of food
intake.
7. Dysregulation of the mesolimbic system with chronic stress may
affect reward-seeking behavior.
8. Mental stress may affect the cerebrum, which may contribute to
prioritization of personal, work, or other behaviors and activities,
with less prioritization of healthful behaviors and activities (i.e.,
healthful nutrition and regular physical activity).
9. Mental stress may impair self-regulation and promote choosing
unhealthful (immediately rewarding ultra-processed) foods over
more healthful (delayed-gratification unprocessed) foods.
10. Obesity and its adverse health complications may increase
mental stress, which may contribute to unhealthful behavior,
endocrinopathies and immunopathies, which in turn, may
further worsen obesity and its complications, resulting in an
adiposopathic stress cycle.
