Stress relief through mind-body interventions
Q: Lately my blood pressure has been really high, so I started taking medication, which seems to be working. But I think the cause is stress, since my diet is good and I work out regularly. What else can I do to lower my blood pressure and maybe even stop taking the meds? — Kevin H., Davenport, La.
A: Just recognizing that you need to take steps to reduce your stress response is really commendable. According to the American Psychological Association, around 24 per cent of adults say that they experience extreme stress and identify their main stressors as money and work; this year, family, personal health/health of a family member and the economy rounded out the top six triggers. Fortunately, there’s a lot you can do improve your stress responses.
If you’re open to new ideas, let us introduce you to some ancient arts that have astoundingly groundbreaking benefits: yoga, meditation and tai chi. You’ll love them.
An interesting new study analyzed how these sorts of mind-body interventions can change your stress response on a molecular level. The researchers, writing in Frontiers of Immunology, looked at 18 different studies that covered about 850 subjects over 11 years and found that mind-body interventions “reverse the molecular reactions in our DNA which cause illhealth and depression.”
Seems mind-body interventions are turning genes on and off (epigenetic changes), and that affects the biological makeup of the body, the brain and the immune system. It also reduces chronic inflammation associated with stress — inflammation that ups your risk for all kinds of diseases, from cancer to diabetes.
So if you want to reverse your feelings of stress, anger, insomnia, frustration and body-related discomfort like muscle- and headache, and undo the epigenetic changes that amp up your stress and increase your risk for a wide variety of health woes, check out the meditation guides at sharecare.com and find a local tai chi or yoga instructor.
Om-m-m my, you will see a difference in your outlook and your future. Mehmet oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. oz Show,” and Mike roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. Email your health and wellness questions to Dr. oz and Dr. roizen at youdocsdaily@sharecare.com.