How to Start the Year With Less Cortisol

We all know that imbalanced cortisol levels can wreak havoc on our health. So we do our best to mitigate the effects: We meditate, exercise, or keep a gratitude journal. But we often forget that our eating habits also affect cortisol. If you’re hoping to boost your cortisol levels in the new year, reevaluating your food choices can have a surprisingly big impact.

What and how we eat has a direct impact on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (the system that regulates the body’s stress response). “Sometimes we think stress only comes from what we eat, but many times it comes from the way we eat,” explains Ana Morales, a psychologist who specializes in obesity, bulimia and bulimia. “The way we eat can raise or lower cortisol as much as the dish itself.”

Cortisol and food

Many of us eat quickly, either standing or answering emails. The body interprets this as alarm mode. “The information the brain receives is No time to digest because I’m in danger,” says Morales. “When the body is in danger mode, cortisol is triggered, even if we are eating a delicious organic salad. “

Digestion becomes incomplete, leading to inflammation, fatigue, appetite, and elevated cortisol. “When we eat without our presence, we lose internal signals. We no longer distinguish whether we are hungry, full or tired. The brain goes into a loop where eating becomes automatic and stress multiplies,” Morales said. We should eat, not rush or look at our phones, he added.

Our beliefs about food can also affect how our bodies respond. “Many people have a history of diets, restrictions and rules, which can create stress even when we’re just thinking about ‘eating well,'” says nutritionist Toscana Vial. “If your brain has gone into control-restriction-guilt mode, your body will produce more cortisol, so working on that relationship is critical.”

When our eating patterns trigger cortisol

We all develop unhealthy habits that are built into the hard drive of our brains without us even realizing it. In many cases, childhood can be the culprit—especially if you grew up hearing phrases like “hurry up” or “eat everything on your plate” at mealtimes. “Your body knows that eating is a chore, not a time for self-care. The problem is, once we reach adulthood, the pace of our lives and a culture of excessive demands reinforce eating. When there’s no time to do anything else, food becomes the first thing to be sacrificed,” Morales says.