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Summary of Transcript:
In this episode of the Huberman Lab podcast, Dr. Andrew Huberman talks to Dr. Alyssa Eppel, who is a stress scientist and Director of the Center on Aging, Metabolism, and Emotions at the University of California San Francisco. They discuss stress and its impact on our biology and psychology. Dr. Eppel explains that stress has many dimensions, including good and bad stress, acute and chronic stress, and is anytime we feel overwhelmed by the demands placed on us. She further explains that stress can have negative impacts on our health, but it can also be beneficial when we can manage it effectively. Dr. Eppel also talks about the impacts of stress on telomeres, which are components of genetic machinery that impact aging, and how interventions like meditation and specific dietary interventions like omega-3 fatty acid intake can positively impact stress management. Finally, she explains how the effectiveness of stress interventions can vary depending on whether subjects are male or female and their social status.
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Summary of Description:
The episode features Dr. Elissa Epel, who is the vice chair of the department of psychiatry at the University of California San Francisco, discussing her new book, “The Stress Prescription.” She explains how stress impacts various aspects of health, including mental and physical health, aging, and eating behavior, and offers stress intervention tools such as radical acceptance, mindfulness, reframing, breathwork, exercise, and environmental shifts. Additionally, Dr. Epel provides science-based techniques to break stress-induced cycles of craving and overeating, improve insulin sensitivity and metabolic health, and tools to reduce stress and improve various aspects of health.
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Reducing Stress and Improving Health: Insights from Dr. Elissa Epel’s “The Stress Prescription”
Stress is ubiquitous, and its effects on the body and mind are well known. However, what is less well known is how to manage it effectively before it takes a toll on our health. Dr. Elissa Epel, professor and vice chair of the department of psychiatry at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) and the author of “The Stress Prescription,” is an expert in the field of stress and its impact on health. In this episode, Dr. Epel discusses her research on the effects of stress, the benefits of stress, and techniques to manage stress effectively.
The Effects of Stress on Body and Mind
Dr. Epel’s research shows that stress has significant impacts on mood, eating behavior, mental health, physical health, and aging. Stress can affect our behavior and hormones, leading to unhealthy habits such as overeating and food addiction. It can also cause negative effects on the immune system, impairing cognitive function and increase the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
Overcoming Stress with Top-Down Techniques and Body-Based Methods
To counteract the effects of stress, Dr. Epel recommends a range of tools including top-down techniques (e.g., radical acceptance, mindfulness, reframing) and body-based methods (e.g., breathwork). These include the Wim Hof method, meditation, exercise, body scans and environmental shifts. Dr. Epel emphasizes the importance of finding techniques that work best for each individual to manage stress effectively.
Breaking Stress-Induced Cycles of Craving and Overeating
Dr. Epel’s work also emphasizes the role of stress in craving and overeating. High levels of stress can make us more susceptible to unhealthy eating habits, and it can further damage our bodies by negatively affecting insulin sensitivity and metabolic health. To break these cycles of overeating, Dr. Epel recommends science-based techniques such as mindfulness to help individuals regain control and improve their metabolic health.
Chronic Stress and Radical Acceptance
One of the key ways to manage stress effectively is through radical acceptance. Dr. Epel defines radical acceptance as acknowledging and accepting the present moment without judgment, making it easier for people to manage the challenges they face in their daily lives. According to Dr. Epel, this is especially important when dealing with chronic stress, which can be difficult to manage without a solid foundation of radical acceptance.
Embodying Psychological Thriving
Dr. Epel also suggests that one way to increase psychological thriving is through physical thriving in response to stress. According to her research, brief, structured respiration practices and other mindfulness techniques can enhance mood and reduce physiological arousal. Although these practices require time and effort, they can lead to significant reductions in stress and improvements in overall health.
Final Thoughts
Dr. Elissa Epel’s work on the effects of stress on health offers valuable insights into techniques that can help protect our bodies and minds from the negative effects of stress. She presents a range of science-based techniques to manage stress effectively, including mindfulness, meditation, and exercise. While eliminating stress completely may not be possible, by utilizing these tools, we can improve our overall health and reduce the negative effects of stress on our bodies and minds.
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See Original Source
Source Description
In this episode, my guest is Elissa Epel, Ph.D., professor and vice chair of the department of psychiatry at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) and the author of a new book entitled “The Stress Prescription.” We discuss her work showing how stress impacts mood, eating behavior, mental health, physical health, and aging. She explains stress intervention tools using “top-down” techniques (e.g., radical acceptance, mindfulness, reframing), body-based methods (e.g., breathwork) including the Wim Hof Method, exercise, meditation, body scans, and environmental shifts proven to help people cease unhealthy rumination patterns. We discuss how stress can positively impact psychology and sense of purpose, how stress affects cellular aging, how our narratives of stressful events impact our mood and biology, and how to effectively reframe stress. She explains science-based techniques to break stress-induced cycles of craving and overeating and thereby improve insulin sensitivity and metabolic health. Dr. Epel provides a wide range of tools shown to be effective in reducing stress and improving various aspects of our health.
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Dr. Elissa Epel
UCSF profile: https://profiles.ucsf.edu/elissa.epel
Personal website: https://www.elissaepel.com
Lab Website (Aging, Metabolism & Emotion Center): https://amecenter.ucsf.edu
Twitter: https://twitter.com/dr_epel
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elissa.epel
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissa-epel
Articles
The geroscience agenda: Toxic stress, hormetic stress, and the rate of aging: https://bit.ly/3nAgNhD
THE IMPACT OF MEANINGFUL VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT IN AGING ADULTS: THE BALTIMORE EXPERIENCE CORPS TRIAL: https://bit.ly/3KpyJoa
Potential role for adult neurogenesis in the encoding of time in new memories: https://go.nature.com/3U0gwkl
The mindful moms training: development of a mindfulness-based intervention to reduce stress and overeating during pregnancy: https://bit.ly/3ZzueM3
Can Meditation Slow Rate of Cellular Aging? Cognitive Stress, Mindfulness, and Telomeres: https://bit.ly/3K4iF9Z
A Mitochondrial Health Index Sensitive to Mood and Caregiving Stress: https://bit.ly/3nKMeWo
Embodying Psychological Thriving: Physical Thriving in Response to Stress: https://bit.ly/3zrBnn5
Brief structured respiration practices enhance mood and reduce physiological arousal: https://bit.ly/3wEvGRf
Stress and telomere shortening: Insights from cellular mechanisms: https://bit.ly/40WYFwD
Neurogenesis in the adult human hippocampus: https://go.nature.com/3GdG7At
Impact of the Baltimore Experience Corps Trial on cortical and hippocampal volumes: https://bit.ly/3ZBoCkB
Effects of a Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Distress, Weight Gain, and Glucose Control for Pregnant Low-Income Women: A Quasi-Experimental Trial Using the ORBIT Model: https://bit.ly/3U6UBb7
Books
The Telomere Effect: A Revolutionary Approach to Living Younger, Healthier, Longer: https://amzn.to/3m2dHTa
The Stress Prescription: Seven Days to More Joy and Ease (The Seven Days Series): https://amzn.to/3m4zERB
Timestamps
00:00:00 Dr. Elissa Epel
00:02:17 Sponsors: Thesis, Eight Sleep, HVMN, Momentous
00:06:18 Stress; Effects on Body & Mind
00:12:50 Tools: Overthinking & Stress
00:15:37 Acute, Moderate & Chronic Stress, Breathing
00:21:23 Stress Benefits, Aging & Cognition; Stress Challenge Response
00:31:04 Sponsor: AG-1 (Athletic Greens)
00:32:19 Tool: Shifting Stress to Challenge Response, “Stress Shields”
00:37:40 Stress, Overeating, Craving & Opioid System
00:48:55 Tools: Breaking Overeating Cycles, Mindfulness
00:54:44 Soda & Sugary Drinks
01:00:51 Smoking, Processed Food & Rebellion
01:05:29 Sponsor: InsideTracker
01:06:47 Tools: Mindfulness, Pregnancy & Metabolic Health
01:14:11 Body Scan & Cravings
01:17:28 Tool: Meditation & Aging; Meditation Retreats
01:23:35 Meditation, Psychedelics & Neuroplasticity
01:26:02 Mitochondrial Health, Stress & Mood
01:29:49 Chronic Stress & Radical Acceptance, “Brick Wall”
01:37:57 Tool: Control, Uncertainty
01:45:25 Stress Management, “Skillful Surfing”
01:50:25 Narrative, Purpose & Stress
01:52:49 Breathwork, Wim Hof Method, Positivity & Cellular Aging
02:03:11 Zero-Cost Support, YouTube Feedback, Spotify & Apple Reviews, Sponsors, Momentous, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter
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