Must Read: Long-Term Stress Could Lead To OBESITY Study Warns!
A new study suggests that employees exposed to long-term work burden could gain more weight than their non-stressed counterparts. The stress hormone called cortisol when elevated cause people to undergo stress-eating.
People with high level of cortisol and intensely stress at work are more probably to develop fats around their waistlines. According to Daily Mail, researchers from University College London tested hair samples of 2,527 men and women.
All participants were more than 54 years of age, and were tracked for more than four-yeas. Researchers cut 2cm long hair sample from them, which is an equivalent to two months of growth.
Participants, who are obese also posses remarkably high levels of cortisol, the study published in the journal Obesity claimed. Accumulated leves of this hormone, which manages many variations within the body such as blood sugar levels, immune responses and inflammation was also obtained.
Researchers discovered that people with higher levels of hair cortisol have wider waist circumference measurements. They were, likewise, heavier and possess a higher body mass index.
"These results provide consistent evidence that chronic stress is associated with higher levels of obesity," study author Dr. Sarah Jackson said. Carrying an extra fat around the abdomen is a risk factor for heart disease, diabetes, and premature death. The participants were older, therefore, their hair cortisol levels may vary from younger adults.
The linked between high cortisol levels and obesity may be considered but, a proof of causation is still absent. Susan Fried, a professor and director of translational adipose biology and obesity at the Diabetes Metabolism Obesity Institute, said.
"As indicated on the paper, measurements of hair cortisol reflect exposure over the past several months." Fried, who was not part of the research team wrote this in an email, CNN reported.
The determined obesity of the participants probably developed earlier before the research was conducted on them, she added. Thus, these elevated hair cortisol levels might exhibit social or biological stress linked with being obese.