The Dr. Josh Axe Show - The #1 Thing That Could Be Shortening Your Life—And How to Stop It

Starting point is 00:00:00 Are you tired of doctors dismissing your symptoms or worse, even making you feel crazy? Even if your blood work comes back normal, it doesn't mean your health is where it should be. Think of your blood like a delivery truck, carrying nutrients and hormones, but the real payoff happens when your cells open the package and use what's inside. If your cells are stuck in what's called cell danger response, triggered by stress, toxins, or infections, they go into protective mode. In this state, cells close off and don't properly take in or utilize the hormones or nutrients they need from the bloodstream. This makes the blood work often appear normal, so doctors often miss the deeper issue, leaving you feeling tired, gaining weight, experiencing mood swings, and dealing with other symptoms while other cells remain in a state of limbo. Visit Beyondbloodwork.com to learn how you can start changing this in as little as 30 days. Hey everyone, welcome the Dr. Josh Axe show.

Starting point is 00:01:00 I am your host, Dr. Axe. And each and every week on this show, we explore the science and principles behind how to grow in body, mind, and spirit and take your health and your life to the next level. Today, I'm going to be talking about something that really shocked me when I opened up my functional medicine practice many years ago. And that is the number one cause of health problems. And I'm talking about the number one cause of hypothyroidism, of low testosterone, of weight gain in a lot of people, number one cause of cancer. heart attacks and a whole lot more. And it has to do with how you deal with stress. Now, people hear the word stress and sometimes I've found people kind of tune out and think, well, you know, I want to hear more about vitamins and supplements and something maybe more exciting like a biohack, like

Starting point is 00:01:45 an infrared sauna or red light therapy. But the reality is this, if you don't take care of this very basic area of your health, it will destroy your health. And listen to this, I truly believe that emotional, spiritual, mental stress, not being able to deal with that well is more harmful to your health than eating a bad diet. I'll give you an example of this. If somebody is struggling with, now this isn't stress per se, but it is a type of stress, loneliness. That is the, we've seen the studies around that being the equivalent, if you struggle with loneliness, it's the equivalent of smoking about a pack of cigarettes a day, or at least 15 cigarettes a day. and so we see that different sort of mental, not having a purpose in life takes years off your life,

Starting point is 00:02:32 having mental health illness, having depression, anxiety, loneliness, but also the way you deal with relational stress absolutely can destroy your health. And I'm going to go through very practically how to reduce stress and live with a more powerful mindset today. You know, I can tell you from taking care of tens of thousands of patients. What will cause somebody who has inflammatory bowel disease to flare up their digestive issues just as much as if they went to ate ice cream and a pizza with gluten in it, if they were having an emotionally stressful week, they would have the very same symptoms of if they ate something

Starting point is 00:03:11 that was very toxic for them, like a food intolerance or food allergy, it's a very, very same or similar reaction. So you have to know that if you are going to heal and overcome any medical condition, or if you're going to promote longevity, lowering stress, and it's not just stress, it's not just lowering it. And I'm going to dive into this. It's how you perceive it and actually deal with it. That is the key to health and healing, because if you are, listen, we're meant to be stressed. Our muscles are meant to be stressed.

Starting point is 00:03:43 That's an example. Your muscles are an organ. Okay. So when you are lifting weights and if you're doing, let's say you get up and you're doing like 20, 25 pound dumbbells, you're curling those, you feel good with that. you try and do a 50, you can't do it. If you keep trying to do it over and over again, you're going to tear a muscle, you're going to hurt yourself. In a very similar way, your body is meant to deal with a certain amount of stress in a very specific way. Here's another thing to think about.

Starting point is 00:04:05 Let's say you have a 25-pound dumbbell and you try and curl it. Well, some of you might not be able to do that at all, but what if you were to squat with that weight? Well, you can typically squat, you know, probably, you know, probably five to ten times more weight than you can curl. So maybe there's a way you deal with the stress differently where now you can deal with a lot more stress in your life. I'll go through how to do that today as well. Before I dive in, though, make sure to subscribe to the channel and hit the notification bell so you don't miss a single thing. You know, there are a lot of people that aren't subscribed. Now, a lot of you are, but if not, you're missing out on a regular basis.

Starting point is 00:04:41 We're not going to pop up in your feet on YouTube. So make sure you're subscribed so you don't miss a thing. For instance, I just did an amazing interview with Gillian Michaels. That'll come out here and just very, very soon. And it was an amazing interview. Like you don't want to miss it. If you're not subscribed, you're going to miss a lot of these interviews. They're not going to pop up.

Starting point is 00:04:59 You won't even know that they're out. And so don't miss it. Okay. So let's talk about stress. And there's a big difference between acute and chronic stress, right? And for a lot of us, you have the same stressors day after day after day. And it's because you have been, you've wired yourself in a certain way. Oftentimes we get sort of these wireers.

Starting point is 00:05:22 neurologically between the ages of zero and five years old. That's when we are most, we have the greatest level of sort of neurological wiring going on where we respond to things in very specific ways. And then oftentimes as well, from five to 18, you know, really through high school, we are really influenced in a major way as well. And then as time goes on, we tend to kind of have these neurological patterns of stress that we sort of live in constantly. And so for, For example, you know, you can have a child who maybe was, you know, got really scared at three years old. And maybe it was around certain types of, you know, animals. And it could be, you know, maybe they were at the petting zoo and they got bit by a sheep or goat, which is almost, it never really happens.

Starting point is 00:06:10 We were actually just at a zoo with my daughter, our four-year-old. And she was out. And she had like slobber of, you know, lambs and sheep and cows all over her. and they didn't bite her. But let's say it happened, okay? If that happens, well, then maybe some person develops a fear of animals, just in general. So anytime they're on animals in the future, any animal, even dogs, cats, they have this state of their nervous system without them even knowing.

Starting point is 00:06:35 Sort of gets in a heightened response. And now they're walking around sort of fearfully and afraid anytime there's an animal nearby. And oftentimes the person isn't even fully conscious of it or they are and they don't know how to overcome that. Well, there are specific ways to deal with that, by the way. And basically, the best type of therapy to overcome something you're afraid of is exposure therapy where you expose yourself in micro doses and prove to yourself, it's okay. It's not dangerous.

Starting point is 00:07:04 So, for instance, if I had somebody I was working with who had this sort of fear, what I would have them do is we would start off with like a puppy, okay, a puppy that doesn't bite, by the way. And we would kind of have them spend time around a puppy. And then maybe a kitten. And maybe the animal, as it sort of grows over time, that's more of a gentle animal. And so you do these micro exposure. And sometimes it's first just being in the same room as it, saying, okay, well, now we're going to do deep breathing exercises to help your nervous system regulate.

Starting point is 00:07:32 And this is not something a lot of people are aware of is how they act, that we have neurological wiring. And I'm curious for you, is there something that you have a fear of that when you get around maybe a certain type of person? a certain type of animal, certain situation in life, and it sort of strikes fear in you. Maybe something embarrassing happened to you as a kid, or maybe you had a parent or somebody who was very critical of you. So now when you get around those similar people, people that are overly critical, you're just

Starting point is 00:08:03 trying to avoid them at all costs. But because you try and avoid people that basically give a lot of feedback, now you can't grow in life because you become uncoachable and you're not willing to change. You see what I'm saying? Oftentimes we have these things happen in our life that lead a lot of. down a path that basically can disrupt our growth spiritually, mentally, physically as well. And these are all forms of stress. So my point is this, you could have one person in the room with a puppy.

Starting point is 00:08:33 And for them, it's a de-stressor. It's filling them with, you know, maybe they had a great experience as a child growing up with animals. Okay, like my wife, Chelsea is a great example of that. She's around dogs. She literally lights up inside. you could have somebody else who is deathly afraid of dogs. I had somebody the other day, they were around, and somebody had told me they're like,

Starting point is 00:08:54 that person is very afraid of dogs. And so being aware of that. But this happens with a lot of things in life is that we have these things that are causing a stress. And we know that different types of stress affect different organ systems. Now, the most common form of stress we typically relate to stress is stress, stress in the form of fear. Okay? That's when our body gets in a

Starting point is 00:09:19 fight or flight response. And that form of stress most impacts our adrenal glands and our body starts producing stress hormones like cortisol and other stress hormones noropenephrine, epinephrine, those sort of hormones. And when those get high over time, it starts to sink and tank our

Starting point is 00:09:35 melatonin levels. It also starts to impact our other hormones like thyroid hormone, testosterone. And if you live in that state of stress, where you're in that state of adrenal stress, that then is going to impact other organ systems over time. For instance, with a lot of women,

Starting point is 00:09:53 it's going to affect their thyroid. This is why a lot of women have hypothyroidism or Hashimoto's thyroiditis. In fact, I have rarely taken care of a, let me say rarely, most commonly when I take care of patients with hypothyroidism, which is I've taken care of thousands and thousands. Most of the time, the thyroid is not the primary issue. Most of the time, it is an adrenal issue, or secondarily, if it's autoimmune,

Starting point is 00:10:14 There's a microbiome issue. But that's the more of the primary issue. So there's a lot of women today who think, I've got a thyroid problem, maybe have a genetic issue. No, it's your adrenals. We have to heal your adrenal glands first and then support your thyroid as well. But it's not typically solely a thyroid issue. It tends to be tied to cortisol being released because you're getting too stressed due to

Starting point is 00:10:38 situations you oftentimes shouldn't be stressed in. And, you know, I can remember going back. to have patients come in. And by the way, I still have a virtual practice today where I have practitioners that I work with that see people. And if you're ever interested in getting care, it's called the Health Institute. And this is something that have practitioners that I've trained who help people actually use food as medicine, the right supplements, we lay out really specific plans for people. So my point is I've been doing this for years for people. And it's rarely, it's rarely an issue with the thyroid.

Starting point is 00:11:16 It tends to be related to emotional stress is a big culprit. Now, believe me, there are dietary issues. They're methylation issues where we need to make sure we're getting methylated B vitamins, certain probiotics. There's a number of other things. But stress is just as important. And I can remember when I used to have these patients come in, and even today when they come in, oftentimes they'll tell me, I said, well, what did your doctor,

Starting point is 00:11:41 tell you to do it. And there tends to be one thing they always tell them to do with hypothyroidism, and that's take synthroid or take level of thyrox and take some sort of thyroid medication. But the other thing they'll tell some people to do if the doctor tends to be maybe a little bit more naturally minded, they'll say, you need to reduce stress. And then I'll ask the patient, I'll say, well, what do they tell you to reduce stress? And they'll say, well, they didn't. They just told me I need to reduce it. I'm like, what kind of prescription is that, right? you're giving a diagnosis or saying this is a problem without giving a cure, without giving a solution. And so it's really important that you have a solution in order to heal.

Starting point is 00:12:19 And I'm going to get into that here in a few minutes. Now, I want to go back to this. Listen to this. 90% of doctor's visits are stress-related. Let me say that again. Up to 90% of doctors' visits today are stress-related. Chronic stress has been linked to headaches, muscle tension, fatigue, sleep disturbances, heart attacks, high blood pressure, numerous health issues.

Starting point is 00:12:47 It's also, you know, also we're looking at mental health here, as I mentioned earlier, anxiety, depression, loneliness, identity disorders, all these mental health disorders. Cardiovascular diseases we talked about as well is definitely related to stress. Heart disease, hypertension, stroke. These are conditions that are greatly impact by stress. bowel disease is another one. So we're seeing this with a lot of issues are stress-related. And of course, chronic fatigue syndrome, adrenal fatigue, hypothyroidism, these are all connected as well. Now, all of us experience stress during the year. But the most stressful time of year for most people, according to studies, is the holiday season. And there was a 2015 survey that health line. And they found that

Starting point is 00:13:32 62% of respondents described their stress levels as very or somewhat stressful elevated during the holiday. So it was higher than normal. And the American Psychological Association reported that nearly nine and 10 adults feel stressed during the holidays due to financial concerns, missing loved ones and family conflicts. I mean, I can tell you for myself, this is going to be the first Christmas, we will celebrate without my father-in-law. And we just, and also we did Thanksgiving without him. And it was hard. I mean, there were tears. and there were hugs and it was hard. And I know even harder for others like my mother-in-law.

Starting point is 00:14:07 And so I really feel for anybody when you're going through it. And I, you know, my mom, who is best friends with her brother. And what's crazy about both these men died one at 59, one at 60 of heart attacks. And with my uncle, we really believe it was tied to a certain type of shot he got. we believe it was tied to myocarditis. And for him, my mom, it's been a few years now, even three years later now. And she still has a very hard time during Christmas around the day that he passed, which is the day after the 26th.

Starting point is 00:14:45 And so all that being said, like, I really feel and understand the stress around holidays due to the losses in my own family. And of course, it's hard for me, but it can be even harder to people who are even closerly, even more closely connected. Of course, there's family conflicts. I really see this in more in my extended family. You know, there are definitely a lot of conflicts going on and that's very hard. And of course, finances. I mean, there's a, and then sometimes is this, the busyness of, you know, especially when you're coming out of divorce family, you're, some people are doing four Christmases, which by the way is one of my top five Christmas movies. But, you know, some of people are,

Starting point is 00:15:23 you're traveling and you're going and, you know, almost any, almost any time that I've personally been sick, it's been due to I was traveling. I mean, traveling is so stressful on people's bodies we don't realize it. So there's a great amount of stress for some people. They're dealing with all of that. They're dealing with financial concerns. They're dealing with the travel. They're dealing with missing loved ones, family conflicts, just busyness. And all of that stress starts to build up on the person over time and it increases their likelihood of every disease you can imagine. And so what I want to say is, is that when you are going into one, the holidays, I think it's very important that you work on your mindset around the holidays and think about the reason for the season and find a way to make it enjoyable for everybody. And listen, I think there's always a balance in life. I think there's a balance of you're called to serve and love other people, right? We're called to love one another. We're called to love one another. We're called to treat our neighbor as ourselves.

Starting point is 00:16:25 So we're called to do those things. But we're also called to receive love and rest and take care of ourselves. You know, we've heard the example of if your plane is going down, you need to put on your oxygen max first and then those around you. And so it's important. I see this with a lot of moms especially. It's they nurture and nurture and nurture everyone else around them and they don't get nurture themselves. and you can't pour out to others if you're not being poured into. Okay.

Starting point is 00:16:55 And the number one place to be poured into is via God. Okay, him pouring into you and being able to connect and have that spiritual awareness, that spiritual strength, that living water inside of you. I mean, that is going to give you the mindset and the life around that. And so let me just say this, if you're going into a stressful situation around Christmas or Thanksgiving or any holiday in the future and you go in with the mindset of this is going to be really stressful. I'm going to have to deal with this person and this person and this person and I'm not going to be able to sleep as well.

Starting point is 00:17:28 And you're just and you're thinking about all the negatives around it. It is going to be even harder on your body than if you go into the mindset of saying, you know what? I'm going to do my best to care for other people. I'm not going to make four Christmases this year. We're just going to do two and we're going to alternate years. And so you're taking care of yourself. And then you're going and showing up and saying, you know what? You're openly communicating.

Starting point is 00:17:51 You're letting people know you love them. You're looking to be a peacemaker. You're looking to nurture other people there. And you're going in with that mind from, you know what? Christmas is such a blessing. There are people in Africa. There are people all around the world who don't get to celebrate Christmas, who aren't going to get a single gift.

Starting point is 00:18:08 And so when you go in with an attitude of gratitude and an attitude of being a peacemaker and just deciding, you know what, you're going to turn lemons into lemonade no matter what, the amount of stress that's actually built upon your body is maybe a quarter of what it would have been. So yes, there's stress happening. But the stress that's happening isn't going to break you. It's not going to ruin your health. And so that mindset you go into is so important when you go into holidays, when you go into the workplace, when you go into that difficult person, you have to deal with around the entire year when you're around your kids.

Starting point is 00:18:44 Right. So your mindset about stress is even more important than the stress itself. Now, here's some reasons why holidays can be so stressful. Number one, I mentioned financial pressure, buying gifts, hosting events, traveling, these all strain your budgets, time constraints, balancing work, your family life, social obligations can be overwhelming, especially for introverts. Family dynamics gathering may rekindle these unresolved conflicts or heightened losses. And their health habits, it disrupts your diet, your exercise routine, your sleeping routines can all be thrown off, especially around the holidays. Now, I want to be that doctor that gives you the practical tips of

Starting point is 00:19:24 what you can actually do to start to reduce stress in your life. Okay. So because many doctors are just telling you, you should reduce stress. Well, how do you actually do it? Number one, I want to share something that is used in religions around the world and very much talked about in the Bible, and that is meditation. Okay. Practicing mindfulness and meditation can significantly reduce stress. Now, here's how I do it, okay? I will go and I will take a Bible verse and I will meditate on that verse that's in relation to the situation. So if I'm going into, for instance, and I know, okay, there's going to be relational stress or there's loss, okay, I will go and meditate on the verse in the sermon on the Mount by Jesus that, you know, blessed of those who mourn for they will be comforted. And then I'll maybe go and look up another five or ten Bible verses and I will meditate on those verses.

Starting point is 00:20:18 And I'll just say, and I'll just say, Holy Spirit, thank you so much for your comfort. Thank you so much for your love. I pray that you'll just be with me in this situation right now. Okay. So I meditate very practically, not on nothingness, which is sort of a, you know, certain types of Eastern practices. I meditate on something that is truth, absolute truth that's in relation to the situation I'm about to enter into.

Starting point is 00:20:42 So meditation is probably the most powerful tool out there to negate. and reduce overall stress. Invite Jesus, invite the Holy Spirit into you as you do this and meditate on the Word of God. And it really just takes sometimes two minutes. It's just very, very quickly. You can look at one or two verses. And then what I found is really great to couple with meditation is breathing exercises. Okay. There are so many different breathing exercise techniques out there. Breathing exercises are amazing to couple with meditation. And I think, Also, there's really something interesting about, I mentioned earlier, this meditation inviting in the Holy Spirit, which can be oftentimes the same word for wind or breath, the breath of life. And there's something about breathing with it that I think is really spiritually relative.

Starting point is 00:21:34 So what I like to do is breathe. And listen, there are so many breathing techniques. I'm just going to give you a very simple one. Breathe in for five. Hold for one. Breathe out for five. So it's, and when you're doing this, you're breathing in with your nose. and you're breathing in your chest and your belly,

Starting point is 00:21:56 both you're breathing out as expansive as possible, and then you're blowing out and feeling it a little bit in your lower abdominal, almost breathing all the way out to where you're feeling it a little bit in kind of your lowest area of your abdominal wall. And when you do that, it's so beneficial. Do that, you know, the five and five, you know,

Starting point is 00:22:13 hold for one second and do it 10 times. Right after that meditation and then walk out with that new mindset you have, after meditation, and that is such a little bit of, an incredible way to distress. Hey everyone, Dr. Josh Axe here. Listen, if you're struggling with restless nights

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Starting point is 00:23:45 Soul-Tech Health, rest, recover, and rejuvenate. Now, there's a few other things you can do that can also help reduce stress, exercise, of course. I think walking in general, getting outside and walking, one of the things I always try and do around Thanksgiving and Christmas and just in general, my work day, if I am filming in the morning and I'm working on podcast episodes or writing my next book or in an intense team meeting, what I tend to do is lunch is I take it full hour for lunch. And I also tend right after I eat to go on a walk.

Starting point is 00:24:19 so I may eat for 40 minutes and relax and hang out, go on a quick, go on a 20-minute walk. And oftentimes I don't listen to anything. I'm either with somebody or by myself, and I just go on a walk. And it's incredibly powerful at reducing stress. So walking, of course, all forms of exercise, from weight training to cardiovascular exercise, to Pilates, to yoga, to bar. These are all great options. Now, in ancient Chinese medicine, they would use Tai Chi and Chi Gong. And what they're doing with that is they're coupling breath, breathing with exercise. And so you'll

Starting point is 00:24:54 kind of breathe in while moving your arms and doing different movements, moving your full body. And so that can be great as well. And those Eastern practices of exercise like yoga and Tai Chi do a really good example of this of sort of coupling your breath with the movement as well. And studies have shown these help release endorphins, which actually reduce stress when you're exercising. And there was a study on this published in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine and examined the effects of acute aerobic exercise on stress reactivity. And the majority of the studies utilized 20 to 30 minutes of exercise indicating that this duration effectively reduced stress. So again, it just takes around 20 to 30 minutes. And this could be going for a brisk walk outside. It could be jogging.

Starting point is 00:25:40 It could be cycling. It could be swimming. It could be a group fitness class. It could be pickleball or tennis. but these forms of exercise where you're moving, they greatly reduce stress. Try and incorporate these in your daily rhythms, knowing these are going to help break up and reduce stress. And again, remember, listen, if you don't have, here's the thing. If you don't have an hour, do 45 minutes.

Starting point is 00:26:03 If you don't have 45, do 30. If you don't have 30, do 20. If you don't have 20, do 10. If you don't have 10, do two. Okay. But, you know, do whatever you can to keep your body moving. it's going to help you heal. It's going to help reduce stress. All the medical studies show this. Now, there's a few other forms of regenerative medicine and different therapies that I really like for

Starting point is 00:26:27 reducing stress. And one of those is regular infrared sauna sessions or regular sauna sessions. It's been shown to lower cortisol and promote relaxation. Sessions of 15 to 20 minutes in a regular sauna at 175 to 195 to 195 degrees, two to three times a week, have been shown to significantly reduce. cortisol levels and enhance relaxation. Also for additional benefits post-sana cooling like a cold shower or cold plunge enhances the stress resilience benefits. So doing both infrared sauna and cold plunge that's even greater. And then a solo study on cold plunging discovered that cold plunging between 50 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit for two to five minutes can improve stress management by stimulating the release of norapinephrine and endorphins, which we know lower stress.

Starting point is 00:27:17 There was also a 2018 study published in PLS-O-1 found that regular cold exposure improves stress resilience and mood among participants. And listen, if you've never cold plunge before, start with a cold shower for one minute or get in there for just one or two minutes. But I will tell you, I mean, any of you who have done cold plunge can testify, it is a mood changer. I mean, it really is. If you get in a cold plunge, there is a really significant endorphin release. And by the way, I think that we're going to see more studies in the future with certain people having even greater benefits. I have a friend of mine, Dine, who told me recently that he

Starting point is 00:27:57 saw his testosterone levels double. And the only thing he's done differently was started cold plunging. And it's doubled. I'm talking about what from like, actually more than doubled. He said it went from like 400 up to nearly a thousand. And so massive, massive difference. And so we know cold plunging can be beneficial. I do think you have to be conscious, though. And also, I really prefer people incorporate infrared sauna or hot bass or hot tub along with it at different times of the day or around it because I do think that if you get your core body

Starting point is 00:28:30 temperature too cold, especially with hypothyroidism and certain other medical issues, it might make that issue worse over time. But again, there are benefits there of that. Now, I also want to talk about infrared light therapy. And infrared sauna specifically provide deeper heat and penetration and may support relaxation by reducing oxidative stress. So infrared sonnas, the infrared light, while the sonnas don't get as hot as a regular sauna, the heat actually goes deeper into the body. And a study published in the Journal of Complementary Medicine noted the infrared sauna use over four weeks, significantly reduce fatigue and stress in participants with chronic fatigue syndrome. You know, I have a lot of patients I take care of with adrenal fatigue, hypothyroidism, Lyme

Starting point is 00:29:16 disease, a lot of, almost any infection. And I do everything I can to have them get an infrared sauna because the benefits are just tremendous for people with low body temperature or people fighting infection or people who are dealing with a lot of stress. So many benefits. And really, you can get in, you know, just even 15 to 30 minutes, you know, three times a week and the results are profound and amazing. So any of you who are thinking about or in the position in life financially to get an infrared sauna, it has so many benefits. Or maybe there's a health club you go to that might have it. But anyways, it's something that has great benefits for reducing stress. Now, I want to talk about the dietary approach to reduce stress. And it has to do with reducing

Starting point is 00:30:02 inflammation and supporting brain and neurological health. And cellular health. Omega-3 fatty acids are very important. They've been found in studies to support reducing stress, specifically those found in wild-caught fish like salmon. Also, walnuts and flax seeds and chia seeds can play a role. A 2011 study in the Journal of Brain and Behavior and Immunity studied students and those that consumed about 2,500 milligrams a day of omega-3 fatty acids,

Starting point is 00:30:32 experienced a 20% reduction in anxiety symptoms compared to the placebo group. And there are many studies showing that fish oil lowers the risk of heart attack, lowers blood pressure, and it extends lifespan. Also is good for depression, anxiety because of its anti-inflammatory benefits. And so it's probably the top supplement along with magnesium when it comes to reducing stress. And so if you want to know, hey, what supplement should I take for stress? Omega-3s and magnesium are the top two. After those two, I would say doing herbs like Ashwaganda and other herbals that are more relaxing.

Starting point is 00:31:15 Also considering a different, you know, I would also say vitamin D would be the next one in line in terms of a nutrient. But if you're wanting to know the top four, it's likely going to be omega-3s, magnesium, vitamin D, along with some Herbals that support relaxation, those typically adaptogens like an Ashwaganda or Romani or Shasandra are going to be great as well. Rishi mushrooms, another good one. Also, you want to get some more vegetables in your diet. We want to get some blueberries. We want to get healthy fats from things like avocados.

Starting point is 00:31:47 But the food that in particular is high in fat that probably has the most benefits is cacao powder, which is found in dark chocolate. So buying dark chocolate with 70% cacao. And also that has a natural form. of sugar in it is going to be great for reducing stress. I mentioned aschaganda there. There was a 2019 study that found that if you supplement with 600 milligrams daily of Ashwaganda, it lowered cortisol levels by 23% over eight weeks.

Starting point is 00:32:17 It really is amazing. So aschaganda is one of those top supplements you can be using. Another favorite of mine is Holy Basil. Holy Basil known as Tulsi was used in Ayurvedic medicine. There was a study published in an Ayurvedic medical journal. and found that Tulsi tea, which is holy basil tea, drinking that for six weeks, lowered stress and participants. And a few others here, Rodeola Rosea is an absolute favorite of mine,

Starting point is 00:32:41 especially for hypothyroidism, for mental stress issues, also for physical performance. There are 11 studies on rodeola rosea and its effects on supporting and helping mental fatigue. Sometimes the reason why people sort of crack or have issues with stress is they become mentally fatigued from dealing with the kids, dealing with work, dealing with the stress, all of it starts to build up. Well, rhodiola rosea helps with that. Also, it helps with mitochondrial function in cellular energy. So it's also going to give you an energy boost.

Starting point is 00:33:14 So loads and loads of benefits there of rodeola rosea specifically as an adaptogenic herb as well. And one more category, and this can also when you're traveling help you get better sleep, doing a lot of the floral supplements or teas like chamomile, linden, lavender, passion flour, hops. These are all very, very good for reducing stress, calming the nervous system as well and in helping you achieve better benefits. And again, getting better sleep is very important. I want to end with a couple things. And one of them being Bible verses. The Bible has so much wisdom.

Starting point is 00:33:54 and I think it's the greatest manual for reducing stress ever. It's God's word. And if you are dealing with stress in your life, turn to God and turn to His word. You know, 1st Peter 5.7 says, cast all your cares upon him because he cares for you. Cache your anxiety. Cast your fear. Cash your depression. Care all in him because he cares for you.

Starting point is 00:34:18 And so I think that there is something. And I would even encourage you to take a picture. think about what is that burden you're carrying that's not yours to bear i recently did this myself actually i wanted to go and uh i wanted to actually did something called heart sink i worked with this incredible man and i had a season in my life as you guys know i've shared before where i lost my health for for for years with with the spinal infection and not walking for the year and so i had sort of some loss there and not being able to spend time with my family we lost um both of our dogs. We lost the hardest loss of all, even more than my health was my father-in-law.

Starting point is 00:34:58 And I lost a business. I lost a lot of things a lot. And I realized also because of that, I was trying to gain it all back. I was trying to kind of through my own effort, gain some of it back. And I thought, I need to help somebody help me work through some of this. And so one of the things I did is I started to list out, what are all the burdens I was carrying? Well, I was carrying things like I had to care for not just my own family, but my extended family in meeting their, you know, and supporting them. And not just supporting them, doing it for them. I felt like I had to do. I was carrying, you know, this financial stress. I was carrying the stress of just a lot of things in life. And I went through that list and I actually pictured myself like in a box all of these cares that I had that were like,

Starting point is 00:35:44 literally, I pictured them. They were on my shoulders, weighing me down and taking them all off, putting them in a box. and then handing them to Jesus and him taking their way. And I really prayed through that. And there's something about the way that, especially the right hemisphere of our brain works and our spirit and soul, is that it works via pictures. It works via events and memories. And so being able to actually do that and create a picture of it is even more powerful sometimes in letting things go. And so remember that, First Peter 5'7, cast all your cares upon him because he cares for you. So that's a great one.

Starting point is 00:36:21 And then my favorite of the Psalms, you know, I love Psalms 23. The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. And so being able to meditate on the Psalms, just reading those regularly is very healing. You know, Matthew 1128 says, come to me all of you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. And then I also love Matthew 5 and 6, really going through the sermon on the mouth and in reading those scriptures where God says, listen, I take care of the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. I clothe them. I feed them. of course I'm going to take care of you, right? And so I think if you're able to go and set aside,

Starting point is 00:36:54 sometimes just five minutes a day, read through those, meditate on those, breathe a little bit. What that's going to do, especially again, if you can wake up early, going to the bathroom if you have to, you know, your in-laws house or whatever, you know, during holidays or at work, you know, around lunch, whatever it is. But make it a habit. That's what I encourage you to do. Make it a habit. Because if you just say, I'm going to try and do it here and there and it doesn't happen, a lot of times it just it doesn't it's not as effective versus if you start doing it regularly it really creates a breakthrough it's going to create greater health it's going to reduce the stress in your life tremendously now because the holiday season is the most stressful season for most

Starting point is 00:37:34 people i want to share with you some things that you can think about as well uh when it comes to overcoming stress and the first one is this let go of perfection listen it's not going to be perfect Okay. You know, some people, you know, they want the kids to behave perfectly and everything to go is planned and it's just not life. So going in and saying, no matter what happens, even if it rains on my parade, I am going to make it the best parade ever. Okay. Focus on what truly matters. Like spending quality time with your loved ones. Embrace the beauty of imperfection, whether it's slightly burnt pie or mismatch holiday decor, whatever it is, say, hey, let's make this a memory. Okay. Let's the best of it. Let's turn lemons into lemonade. Number two, have a gratitude practice. Start each day with the three things you're grateful for. There was a study published in the journal of personality and they found that gratitude practice is reduced stress by 25%. So going in, you could do a gratitude journal or just say what you're grateful for. That's powerful. Number three, set realistic expectations. Avoid over committing to events or taking on too much responsibility.

Starting point is 00:38:43 I mean, this to me is one of the biggest things people do is they take on, they say, I'm going to make every meal and I'm going to go to three Thanksgiving's. And you're just end up being wore out. The holidays should be more about rest and relaxation or rejuvenation than it should be just, you know, just busyness. And so do your best in that way. Practice saying no to preserve your energy for meaningful activities. Number four, be present.

Starting point is 00:39:11 Limit screen time during the holidays. and focus on in-person interactions, being deeply concerned about the needs of others, and then supporting them in that. But screen time is going to actually increase your stress versus true personal connection. So here's a checklist. Number one, create those healthy habits. Reading the Bible, meditation, deep breathing, exercise, whatever you can't. And part of that is also planning ahead, right?

Starting point is 00:39:38 Plan ahead and create those healthy habits. Number two, prioritize sleep. Do your best to get able to. hours a night, hydration, make sure to also get plenty of water and then have a support system. You know, reach out to a trusted friend if stress becomes overwhelming, that can pray for you, that can talk to you about things, maybe give you some advice in those situations. The reality is this. Stress is one of the biggest killers in society today.

Starting point is 00:40:02 It's an even bigger killer than poor diet for most people. And the holiday season is an opportunity to embrace joy in connection and not let stress. overwhelm you. And if you can incorporate some of the things we talked about, you're going to see great results. Everything from adaptogenic herbs to regular exercise to sanas to a gratitude practice. Remember, if you can take care of yourself, you can take better care of others. And I want to say thanks so much for tuning in here to the Dr. Josh Act show. Remember each and every week we are diving deep into the science and principles behind how to heal and grow and body, mind, in spirit. Hey, make sure to subscribe, like, and share this episode. I'm so grateful for you being

Starting point is 00:40:45 on mission with me. I'll see you on the next episode.

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