According to research by the Department of Medicine at Stanford University in the U.S., stress can cause you to gain weight because of the changes it creates in your cells.
Published in the medical journal named Cell Metabolism on Thursday, the research revealed that chronic stress is a reason for the emergence of new fat cells.
A hormone called glucocorticoid, which is secreted when we are stressed, can lead us to put on weight, turning some specific cells into fat cells.
Therefore, it has been found that not only the food we consume when we are stressed, but also high-stress levels for a period of time can cause weight gain.
Up until now, it was believed that the cause of gaining weight was the increasing appetite as a result of cortisol, the stressed hormone. Researchers from Stanford University decided to examine the effects of glucocorticoid on mice.
It was seen that a high level of glucocorticoid causes fat cells to appear in the examinations made with microscopes.
However, changes in the level of this hormone had no effect on cells. It was even observed there was no effect when glucocorticoid continued at very high levels for a limited period.
The fat rate was doubled in mice that were exposed to a high level of the stress hormone for 24 hours.
This is why Mary Teruel, who is the head of the research project, says that the emergence of fat is not related to food intake but to the period of stress.
Teruel suggested that the research can have different effects on people even if it was conducted in a laboratory environment and more tests should be done.
Teruel explained that stress can be managed during the day but it can be dangerous if it continues at night, according to the research results.
