Exposure to chronic stress is thought to be a primary driver of mood disorders. Exposure to chronic stress is thought to initiate the release of immune components including pro-inflammatory chemicals called cytokines. These cytokines are in turn then thought to cause the release of cortisol by activation of the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis. The anti-inflammatory effect of cortisol, which is released from the adrenal glands, then feeds back to inhibit the release of further cytokines and this process is thought to facilitate the adaptation of the person to the stressor. The immune system therefore is intricately linked to the hormonal system as cytokines from the immune system form a stress control loop with cortisol. However, when the stressor becomes chronic, there may be a breakdown in the fine tuning of this system, and this may result in the production of excessive amounts of inflammation due to an inability of cortisol to effectively suppress the pro-inflammatory cytokines.
Stress relief techniques such as yoga may cause improvements in mood and improvements in antioxidant status. This is because they may affect the cortisol cytokine control loop that is a pivotal factor in the development of mood disorders.
Chronic stress may cause a depletion in antioxidants, as inflammation generates free radicals. As oxidative stress proceeds tissue damage may occur to the neurones in the brain. A pivotal strategy to managing mood and mental health is therefore to eliminate or reduce all external forms of chronic stress that could potentially cause long term health problems. Strategies to reduce stress have been shown to improve antioxidant status and decrease anxiety. For example in one study, performing Yoga for 30 minutes daily over 7 weeks was observed to significantly reduce anxiety and stress in a group of individuals. Not only that but there were significant improvements in antioxidant status and a trend to reductions in oxidative stress. These results therefore suggest that stress reduction techniques may have beneficial effects on mood because they reduce stress, and this then in turn causes improvements in antioxidant status. During the study the researchers reported no major changes to the diets of the subjects.
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