LONDON and BRIGHTON, England, April 23 /PRNewswire/ --

- Stress is Life, and Life is Stress

We are all living in stressful, uncertain times, but it may be a surprise to you that the body has only one response to stress and that is to produce stress hormones. This is true whether:

- You are being chased down the road by a man with an axe - You owe the bank GBP750,000 pounds with no means to pay - You are just about to go out in front of an audience of 40,000 people to sing - You don't eat correctly to balance your blood sugar levels

There is no time like the present to protect yourself from the effects of stress that can be caused by modern living, especially in the current climate.

Mark Killick of MK Nutrition can help you to better understand your body's nutritional needs and how a nutritious diet could help to alleviate some of the symptoms caused by unwanted stress.

Stress hormones (adrenaline and cortisol) are secreted when our blood sugar drops too low, in order to allow the body to release sugar into the bloodstream to fulfil our energy requirements. The effect of this stress hormone induced release is to send our blood sugar levels sky high, and subsequently the body releases insulin to help transport sugar out of the blood vessels and into our cells.

With increased stress and poor eating habits we can initiate a rollercoaster effect of falling and rising blood sugar levels throughout the day, with the subsequent release of hormones to deal with this situation.

This can lead us to become resistant to the effects of insulin, which in turn can lead to chronic degenerative diseases such as type II diabetes and heart disease.

Cortisol also promotes the storage of fat around the middle of the body, and unless we deal with the effects of stress, we can find it very difficult to lose that spare tyre!

MK Nutrition's easy to follow nutritional programme can help you minimise hormonal release, enabling you to achieve and maintain ideal body composition, and reduce the risk of degenerative disease.

The Stress Cycle

Ongoing stress affects how the body produces hormones.

THE ALARM STAGE: The nervous system responds to stressors within seconds to shift the body into a fight or flight mode. Stress hormones are released from the adrenal glands to release sugar into the bloodstream.

THE RESISTANCE STAGE: Adaptation to sustained stress alters energy metabolism. Blood sugar levels are raised, muscle protein is broken down, and cortisol levels become elevated. The body becomes less sensitive to cortisol, and so more cortisol is produced. This leads to increases in insulin production, and we can become insulin resistant. More muscle protein is broken down and blood lipids increase, leading to fat accumulation around the middle. This can lead to increased cholesterol and blood pressure along with a tendency to obesity.

High cortisol levels suppress the immune system, which sets the stage for allergic responses, yeast overgrowth and chronic infections.

THE EXHAUSTION STAGE: The body's ability to produce cortisol declines, leading to adrenal exhaustion. Excessive fatigue, reduced ability to concentrate, alcohol intolerance, headache, menstrual irregularities and low blood pressure are all symptoms of this stage. Too little cortisol allows the body to become inflamed. This stage promotes chronic inflammation, tissue damage and degenerative disease.

With nutritional intervention, and help with managing stress, you can achieve the RECOVERY STAGE, when your body is back in balance and you are able to cope well with the everyday things in life.

For more tips and advice please visit the MK Nutrition's website at http://www.mknutrition.co.uk

Appointments: +44(0)1273-555111 or +44(0)207-351-3332

Appointments: +44(0)1273-555111 or +44(0)207-351-3332; Press Contact: Mr E Barrett, Agent +44(0)1273-302809 or +44(0)7900-881604; Interviews: Mark Killick of MK Nutritian +44(0)7768261989