Chronic Stress: The Ultimate Junk Food for the Body

In today’s fast-paced world, chronic stress has become an epidemic, silently impacting our health in profound ways that often go unrecognized. As a leading functional medicine expert, Dr. Will Cole sheds light on how chronic stress acts as the ultimate junk food for the body, influencing not only our physical health but also our mental and emotional well-being. This article dives deep into the complex relationship between stress, food, and the body’s biochemistry, offering insights into healing the body and mind through a balanced approach to nutrition, mindset, and self-care.

The Complex Relationship Between Food, Stress, and Autoimmunity

One of the biggest challenges in healing chronic illnesses like autoimmunity is addressing not only the physical symptoms but also the emotional and psychological aspects tied to food. Many individuals with autoimmune or digestive issues experience stress and anxiety around eating, sometimes developing orthorexia—a disordered relationship with healthy eating. The stress surrounding food itself can trigger inflammatory responses, creating a vicious cycle where the nervous system becomes hypervigilant.

Healing, therefore, must involve more than just dietary adjustments; it requires rebuilding a healthy relationship with food and calming the nervous system. Dr. Cole emphasizes that the stress and anxiety related to food often cause reactions that may not be due to the food alone but to the body’s heightened stress response. This mind-body connection is a central theme in understanding chronic illness and healing.

Why Dr. Will Cole’s Approach is Unique and Needed

Dr. Cole’s latest book, Gut Feelings, stands out because it addresses the gaps in the health and wellness space by integrating physiological, psychological, and spiritual components of healing. Drawing from countless patient interactions and clinical experience, Dr. Cole highlights how complex biochemistry is influenced by not only what we eat but how we feel and think.

He points out the democratization of health information—while empowering—is also a double-edged sword. The abundance of conflicting advice online can overwhelm and confuse people, making it difficult to discern what truly works for their unique body. His book encourages readers to become their own “n=1” experiment, learning to listen to their bodies and honor their individual paths rather than blindly following one-size-fits-all protocols.

The Role of Bio-Individuality and Toxic Food Culture

A key concept Dr. Cole explores is bio-individuality—the understanding that each person’s body responds uniquely to food and lifestyle choices. This idea is crucial in a wellness culture often marked by rigid, dogmatic food ideologies. From veganism to carnivore diets, keto to fasting, many of these approaches have become tribalistic, fostering division and judgment rather than understanding.

Dr. Cole calls this “toxic food culture,” where both strict diet followers and anti-diet advocates can become intolerant and bullying, especially on social media. He advocates for a “third way” or a “path of food peace” where individuals can set healthy boundaries with food based on self-respect, not restriction or shame.

This nuanced perspective allows people to recognize that some foods genuinely do not serve them well, but choosing to eat them occasionally is not a moral failing. It’s about finding a balance that honors your body’s needs and your emotional well-being.

Inflammatory Foods: What to Limit or Avoid

Dr. Cole identifies several common foods and ingredients that, to varying degrees, do not support optimal health for most people. Importantly, he acknowledges bio-individuality means some people tolerate these better than others, but many with autoimmune or metabolic conditions need to be especially mindful.

1. Refined Sugar:

   Excessive processed sugar, especially fructose, is linked to insulin resistance, inflammation, and metabolic dysfunction. Dr. Cole encourages doing a “sugar audit” to become aware of added sugars and their many euphemisms like agave nectar.

2. Gluten-Containing Grains:

   While reactions vary, modern hybridized wheat and how grains are processed can provoke inflammation and digestive issues. Options like fermented sourdough and ancient grains may be easier to tolerate.

3. Industrial Seed Oils:

   Oils such as canola, soybean, and vegetable oil are high in omega-6 fatty acids, which, when consumed excessively, promote inflammation. Balancing omega-3 and omega-6 intake is vital for reducing chronic inflammation.

4. Dairy:

   Many people have sensitivities to dairy proteins, especially beta A1 casein from modern cows. Organic, grass-fed, fermented, or A2 milk may be better tolerated but still require individual consideration.

5. Alcohol:

   Although not a food, alcohol is a neurotoxin with no safe consumption level, contributing to inflammation and negatively affecting gut health and neurotransmitters.

For those who are metabolically healthy, occasional consumption of these foods might be tolerated, but for many, especially those with chronic health issues, limiting or avoiding these can be a crucial step toward healing.

The Gut-Brain Connection: More Than Just Food as Fuel

Our gut is often called the “second brain” for good reason. Approximately 95% of serotonin (the “happy neurotransmitter”) and 50% of dopamine (the “pleasure neurotransmitter”) are produced in the gut. These neurotransmitters don’t cross the blood-brain barrier but affect gut motility and communicate via the vagus nerve, which connects the gut and brain.

Dr. Cole explains that the mindset and emotional state during meals profoundly impact digestion and overall health. Eating in a stressed, anxious state triggers a sympathetic nervous system response (fight or flight), impairing digestion and nutrient absorption. Conversely, eating in a calm, parasympathetic state (rest and digest) supports optimal digestion and healing.

Understanding the Autonomic Nervous System

The autonomic nervous system regulates involuntary bodily functions and has two main branches:

• Sympathetic Nervous System:

  Activates the fight or flight response during stress or danger. While essential for survival, chronic overactivation leads to health problems.

• Parasympathetic Nervous System:

  Governs rest, digestion, hormone balance, and healing. It is regulated largely by the vagus nerve.

Many people today live in a state of sympathetic dominance—hypervigilant, anxious, and exhausted (“wired and tired”)—with underactive parasympathetic function. This imbalance contributes to inflammation, hormonal disruption, digestive issues, and chronic disease.

Disautonomia vs. Poor Vagal Tone

Disautonomia is a diagnosable condition characterized by severe autonomic nervous system dysregulation, with symptoms such as panic attacks and heart palpitations. However, it exists on a spectrum. Many people suffer from poor vagal tone and sympathetic dominance without a formal diagnosis, experiencing symptoms like fatigue, anxiety, inflammation, and hormonal imbalances.

Improving vagal tone through lifestyle interventions can shift the nervous system balance toward parasympathetic dominance, improving digestion, mood, and resilience to stress.

Chronic Stress: The Ultimate Junk Food

Chronic stress is often normalized despite its detrimental effects on health. It is implicated in many major diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and autoimmune disorders. Dr. Cole describes chronic stress as “the ultimate junk food for the body” because it disrupts blood sugar, hormone balance, inflammation, and nervous system function.

Understanding and renegotiating one’s relationship with life stressors is essential. Dr. Cole encourages individuals to assess whether they can change, leave, or accept stressful situations—be it jobs, relationships, or habits—to reduce their stress load and improve biochemical health.

The Impact of Trauma and Adverse Childhood Events

Trauma, especially unresolved childhood trauma, plays a significant role in chronic illness. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) score is a tool used to assess trauma exposure, which research links to increased risk of autoimmune diseases, mental health disorders, chronic fatigue, and metabolic dysfunction.

Dr. Cole highlights that trauma is highly individual. Even “little t” traumas can have profound effects, and comparing one’s experiences to others can minimize the importance of one’s own trauma. The body acts as a cellular library, storing the cumulative impact of life’s stresses and traumas, which can lower resilience and trigger chronic illness when combined with other stressors.

Shame-Flammation: The Hidden Emotional Inflammation

Shame is a powerful, toxic emotional state that can fuel inflammation—what Dr. Cole terms “shame-flammation.” Drawing on research by Brené Brown and others, he explains that shame often arises from unresolved trauma and chronic stress, leading to poor self-care behaviors such as stress eating and social withdrawal.

Self-compassion is presented as a scientifically backed antidote to shame. Studies show that people who practice self-compassion have lower inflammation markers, such as interleukin-6, even under stress. Cultivating self-compassion and emotional healing is as critical as physical nutrition in managing chronic illness.

The 21-Day Gut Feelings Plan: Integrating Food and Feeling Tools

Dr. Cole’s approach combines clinical nutrition with “feeling tools” designed to improve nervous system regulation and emotional health. These tools include:

• Self-compassion exercises

• Breathwork and meditation

• Somatic practices

• Nature therapy like forest bathing

These practices strengthen the vagus nerve and promote parasympathetic activation, enhancing digestion, nutrient absorption, and overall well-being. The plan also includes 50+ recipes that focus on foods that “love you back,” encouraging flexible, personalized eating without dogma or restriction.

Dr. Cole stresses that while these feeling tools might seem “woo-woo” to some, they have tangible physiological benefits and are essential for healing the mind-body connection. The goal is to empower people to make mindful, compassionate choices about their food and lifestyle that support their unique biochemistry.

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