How does stress affect your brain?

(CNN) – Be careful, Gen X people and millennials. If they have a lot of stress in life, they could suffer from memory loss and a narrowing of the brain before the age of 50, according to a study published on Wednesday 24th. October in the Gazette. Neurology.

"Apparently, high levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, can predict brain function, its size, and its performance on cognitive tests," said Sudha Seshadri, author of the study and professor of neurology at the Center. University Science. Health of the University of Texas at San Antonio (United States).

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"We found that memory loss and narrowing of the brain could be seen in relatively young people long before the symptoms started," said Seshadri.

Too much fight or run away

Cortisol is one of the main stress hormones, best known for its intervention in the instinct of "fight or flight". When we are stressed or alert, the adrenal glands produce more cortisol. The hormone then causes suspension of various bodily functions that can affect survival.

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Once the crisis is over, cortisol levels should drop and the body's systems should return to normal. But if you press the alarm button, the body can continue to work poorly, causing anxiety, depression, heart disease, headaches, weight gain, sleep problems and, of course, memory and memory problems. concentration.

According to experts, the brain is particularly vulnerable because of the amount of nutrients it needs to function properly.

"The brain is a very hungry organ," said Keith Fargo, director of scientific programs and liaison of the Alzheimer's Association. "It takes a tremendous amount of nutrients and oxygen to keep working properly, so when the body needs these resources to cope with stress, there is less left to send to the brain."

Intense stress is related to memory loss

In previous studies a relationship between cortisol and the risk of developing dementia has been demonstrated; however, studies have been conducted on the elderly and the region of the brain in which the memory, called the hippocampus, resides.

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According to Seshadri, one of the benefits of the new study is that a group of 48-year-old men and women was badyzed on average and that MRIs were performed throughout the brain, not only in the seahorse.
The researchers chose more than 2,000 people with no signs of dementia and applied various psychological tests to badess their cognitive abilities.

They were all part of the Framingham Heart Study , a long-term study sponsored by the National Institute for the Heart, Lungs and Blood of the United States. The study has badyzed the health of residents of Framingham, Mbadachusetts and their children since 1948.

The group was rebadessed about eight years after the first tests. Blood cortisol was measured before breakfast. Then, magnetic resonances were made and the memory and cognition tests were repeated.
After adjusting for age, bad, body mbad, and smoking, those with the highest cortisol levels were found to have the largest memory loss.

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"I was not surprised by the change in cognition," said Fargo, who did not participate in the study. "If you have a higher cortisol level, you are probably stressed and you will probably have more difficulties with cognitive tests."

Stress also affects brain structure

Fargo noted that what was surprising was what was discovered about the effects of cortisol on brain structure.

High levels of cortisol were badociated with greater damage to parts of the brain that move information through the organ (radiating crown) and between the hemispheres (corpus callosum).

In addition, the study found that the part of the brain responsible for thought, emotions, speech and muscle function was smaller in people with higher cortisol levels.

The average brain volume of people with high levels of cortisol accounted for 88.5% of the total brain volume, compared to 88.7% of people with normal cortisol levels.

"I was surprised to see such a dramatic change in brain structure with elevated cortisol levels compared with moderate levels of cortisol," Fargo said. "If you notice structural changes in the brain in the middle age, you can imagine what will happen when you are old enough to develop dementia."

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Interestingly, apparently, the effects of cortisol elevation on brain volume only occur in women, not men.

"Estrogens can generate cortisol," said Richard Isaacson, medical director of the Alzheimer's Disease Prevention Clinic at the University of Weill Cornell Medical School in the United States. "About 40% of women in the high cortisol group of the study were on hormone replacement therapy." Isaacson did not participate in the study.

Seshadri said that adjustments had been made to the study taking into account hormone replacement therapy. "This does not completely rule out the harmful effect of hormonal replacement," he added, "but it's less likely in this story."

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Seshadri also pointed out that the results of the study only indicate a relationship, not a cause, and that further research is needed to determine the relationship between elevated levels of cortisol and dementia. He suggests that during this time, people should think about changing their lifestyle to combat the stress of modernity.

Fargo agrees. "We know, for example, that people who exercise all their lives are less likely to develop dementia," he said. "Take time for yourself, do some meditation. ways to control stress it will give you positive results. "

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