Stress Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Stress Management - Assignment Example In fact, Statistics from the American Institute of Stress cited by Seaward (2013) shows that approximately 43 percent of grown-ups experience unpleasant consequences in terms of their health owing to stress. This paper explicates the relationship between stress and nutrition. The phrase You are what you eat is a common slogan today. In laymans terms, this phrase denotes the fact that the health status of human beings is directly related to the quantity and quality of food they consume. In other words, consumption of insufficient amounts of food and of poor quality can affect the health of an individual. In reference to stress, food can either cause stress or can therapeutically alleviate and prevent stress from the body (Bargir, 2013). Obesity and overweight as explicated by Tomiyama et-al (2010) is a common problem particularly in developed countries such as the US. To support this postulation, Tomiyama et-al (2010) notes that approximately one-third of adult individuals in the US are struggling with obesity. Due to the health effects associated with overweight and obesity, a great proportion of these individuals are continuously trying to lose weight. A common trend to achieving this is depriving the body sufficient amounts of food in an effort to reduce caloric intake. Tomiyama et-al (2010) argues that withdrawal from a diet educes depressing feelings or sentiments. Subsequently, feelings of hopelessness, decreased levels of confidence, and a bad temper may also arise, and these are common indicators of stress. Withdrawal from a regular diet also elevates the production of a stress hormone referred to as cortisol in the body (Tomiyama et-al, 2010). Though there are issues relating to nutrition that can elevate stress levels, stress itself can conversely affect nutrition. The Stress Management Society and Bodychef (n.d) assert that stress can lead to poor food consumption practices. For instance, incidences of stress