Influence of Regular Physical Exercise on Increased Caloric Intake Triggered by Stressors

Abstract

Social distress may be a major source of allostatic load in contemporary life, contributing to the development of metabolicrelated diseases in industrial societies. Indeed, the standard signals for vigilance and hypo-satisfaction, e.g. cortisol, seem to affect the individual feeding behavior, increasing the preference for high-caloric food. However, this preference can surpass the stressful period itself and become a habit, leading to several negative metabolic implications such as the enhanced risk to develop metabolic syndrome. Therefore, it is important to find effective ways to offset the harmful consequences of allostatic load on feeding. In particular, physical exercise has proven to be capable of counteracting the negative effects of psychosocial stress on feeding behavior. Consequently, physical exercise may be used to prevent the development of metabolic-related diseases, thus reiterating its recommendation as a way of protecting the organism against the stress side effects. Here, we analyze the outcomes of stress on feeding behavior (namely the enhanced calories intake) and the effect of physical exercise practice on food intake, considering the underlying signaling processes involved.