Fatty foods can dent body's ability to fight stress: Study

Eating fatty foods during stressful periods can impair the bodys recovery from the effects of stress new research suggestsThe study published recently in Frontiers in Nutrition and Nutrients showed that consuming foods high in fat before a mentally stressful episode can reduce brain oxygenation and cause poorer vascular function in adultsResearchers from the University of Birmingham took a group of young healthy adults and gave them two butter croissants as breakfastThey then asked them to do mental math increasing in speed for eight minutes alerting them when they got an answer wrongThey could also see themselves on a screen while they did the exercise The experiment was designed to simulate everyday stress that we might have to deal with at work or at homeThe team found that eating highfat foods attenuated cerebral oxygenation in the prefrontal cortex with lower oxygen delivery 39 per cent reduction in oxygenated hemoglobin during stress compared to when participants consumed a lowfat mealFurthermore fat consumption had a negative effect on mood both during and after the stress episodeThe scientists were also still able to detect reduced arterial elasticity which is a measure of vascular function in participants up to 90 minutes after the stressful event was overWhen we get stressed different things happen in the body our heart rate and blood pressure go up our blood vessels dilate and blood flow to the brain increases We also know that the elasticity of our blood vessels declines following mental stress explained Rosalind Baynham doctoral researcher at the UniversityWe found that consuming fatty foods when mentally stressed reduced vascular function by 174 per cent as measured by Brachial Flowmediated dilatation FMDPrevious studies have shown that a 1 per cent reduction in vascular function leads to a 13 per cent increase in cardiovascular disease risk Importantly we show that this impairment in vascular function persisted for even longer when our participants had eaten the croissants Baynham saidFor people who already have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease the impacts could be even more serious the researchers saidWe all deal with stress all the time but especially for those of us in highstress jobs and at risk of cardiovascular disease these findings should be taken seriously said Jet Veldhuijzen van Zanten Professor of Biological Psychology at the UniversityThe research also suggested that by consuming lowfat food and drinks peoples recovery from stress is less affectedAfter eating a lowfat meal stress still had a negative effect on vascular function 118 per cent decrease in FMD but this decline returned to normal 90 minutes after the stressful eventFurther research has shown that by consuming healthier foods particularly those rich in polyphenols such as cocoa berries grapes apples and other fruits and vegetables this impairment in vascular function can be completely preventedThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever