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In Good Health | written by: LINDA STEPHENS   photo courtesy: Linda Stephens The holidays are an amazing time of the year. Spending time with loved ones, connecting and feeling the joy of the season reduces cortisol levels (your stress hormone) and raises oxytocin levels (your happy hormone). The more you raise your oxytocin levels each day, the less chronic stress you will have. That being said, the holidays can also bring a decent wallop of stress, strife and feeling overwhelmed …and the one thing you don’t want to do when you’re stressed is EAT! In today’s fast-paced world, stress has become an inevitable part of our lives. As we know, it can get even worse during the holidays for a million different reasons. As we stress out, so do we seek comfort and relief, turning to various coping mechanisms. Chief among them? Stress eating. However, indulging in excessive food consumption under stress can have really bad effects on our bodies. Here’s why:  • Weight Gain One of the most apparent consequences of stress eating is weight gain. Because, when stress triggers the release of cortisol, it’s not veggies and healthy snacks we turn to. Rather, we tend to crave high-calorie, sugary, fatty foods. Over time, the excessive calorie intake that comes with them can add pounds and eventually contribute to obesity. Excess weight not only affects our physical appearance, it also increases the risk of developing health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and certain types of cancer. • Nutritional Imbalances Those high-calorie, sugary, fatty comfort foods we reach for when we’re stressed may provide temporary relief from the stress we feel, but it is phantom comfort because they lack the essential nutrients, vitamins, minerals and fiber we need to maintain optimal health. This can lead to nutritional imbalances and the weakened immune system and impaired cognitive function that accompany them. It can also increase our risk of chronic diseases su

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Come to Grove Street Plaza in downtown Darien for free and entertaining evenings of music. Live bands play Friday nights in the summer from 6:00 to 8:30pm.