Stress is an unavoidable fact of life that can cause a multitude of problems including weight gain. When most people consider the connection between stress and weight gain, emotional eating immediately comes to mind but stress affects your weight on a deeper level that could result in serious health problems.

Recent research findings suggest that women under high levels of stress were more likely to have extra fat around their midsections, which has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, and certain types of cancer. Apparently stress increases levels of a hormone called cortisol which stimulates deep abdominal fat cells to accept and store fat.

This is a chain reaction that is part of the flight or fight response which "worked fine for our ancestors, but the brain can't tell the difference between survival stress and chronic, daily stress. Thus, stressed-out folks are storing more fat than people who approach their day relaxed or in a better state of mind" says Pamela Peeke author of Fight Fat after Forty.

In a related study by Elissa Epel, PhD, a health psychology researcher at the University of California at San Francisco, women who had high levels of cortisol after a stressful event were more likely to consume more calories, especially of the sweet variety. So not only does stress make you eat more but what you do eat gets stored as deep intra-abdominal fat. Fortunately there is plenty you can do to neutralize the stress response, including:

Daily Physical Activity including walking, weightlifting, yoga, aerobics, or biking which releases endorphins that counteract the stress response.
Coping Skills such as stress reduction therapy, meditation, journaling, alternative therapy, calling a friend, or even a leisurely walk, can greatly improve your outlook and help you deal when things get tough.
Behavioral Skills like healthy snacking, preparing meals ahead of time, waiting 15 min. before giving in to cravings, are great ways to resist emotional eating.

Stress is obviously not something that people plan on but the more ways you have for handling those situations the more in control you are of how much fat your body stores. This makes your weightloss efforts that much easier and ensures a healthy future.

Recommended Reading: Pamela Peeke explains that "uncontrolled or toxic stress keeps the refueling appetite on, thus inducing stress eating and weight gain". She offers a nutritional plan tied to stressful times of the day and other ways of handling stress that will help you break the fat storage cycle.
Fight Fat After Forty