Most people list stress as the number one reason for unhealthy food choices and weight gain. Stress can come from a multitude of sources including your job or workplace, lack of sleep, family and home life, money and bills, or just the daily hassles of life. Sometimes stress can be a good thing – pushing us to meet deadlines and be productive. Other times, feeling constantly overwhelmed or anxious can lead to chronic stress that if left untreated, can affect your health. Many times people use food to cope with stress. The reason for this need to eat can be linked to our neuroendocrine system, effects of which date back to our ancestors in the Paleolithic period.

“Fight or Flight” or Feast?
Those ancestors of ours faced real physical stress — such as fighting off a wild animal — that would activate the “fight or flight” response. Whether they decided to fight or flee a stressful encounter, hormones released by the body during that response provided instant energy. Cortisol, another hormone connected to “fight or flight,” causes an increase in appetite, to provide nutrients to help us refuel our bodies after a stressful encounter. Cortisol’s effect on the body lingers after the stress has passed, ultimately driving us to eat more. Unfortunately, studies have shown that, when under stress, our bodies crave sugary or starchy foods, which are typically the foods that can get people in trouble on the scale.

Then and Now
In modern times, our stress seldom comes from physical demands or the danger of facing down a wooly mammoth, but more so from emotional or mental stress. However, our bodies still respond the same, which is often why many people use eating as a way to alleviate stress. Since our response to stress does not typically involve any kind of caloric expenditure, the calories you may consume can be in excess to what you need, leading to unwanted weight gain.

The day-in-and-day-out stress of work can result in “grazing” on sweet, salty, fattening or high calorie foods throughout the day. Even in small quantities (“bite-size” portions and 100-calorie packs) these incidental calories can add up.

Other times, people deal with stress by not eating, which can be just as bad. Not eating throughout the day causes your metabolism to slow down, putting your body into a semi-starvation mode. By the time you do eat, you are ravenous and more inclined to overeat.

More Meals for Less Stress
So how do you combat stress and our body’s primal hunger? By being prepared and practicing good nutrition! Follow these tips below to help keep your stress (and weight) in check!

Start off your day with a balanced breakfast (carbohydrate with a lean protein and/or healthy fat) and don’t skip meals or snacks! Eating every three to four hours is ideal.

Daily Meal Schedule
Breakfast
Snack
Lunch
Snack
Dinner
Snack (optional)

The Importance of Sleep
The quality of sleep has an enormous impact on daily life. Poor or disordered sleep can affect your work, concentration, and ability to interact with others — therefore inducing more unnecessary stress. During sleep, your body restores itself physically and mentally. This allows you to feel fresh and alert in the morning. Some studies suggest that sleep deprivation has direct effects on eating behavior. People who are continually sleep-deprived show increased appetite, particularly for high-carbohydrate, calorie-rich foods — similar to the types of foods we reach for when we are stressed. Sleep-deprived individuals also show increases in ghrelin (a hormone that increases our desire to eat) and decreases in leptin (a hormone that decreases hunger and the desire to eat).

Use these six tips to adjust your eating routine in a way that may help you get a better night’s sleep…and maintain low stress throughout your day.

1. Eating Too Much or Too Little Can Disrupt Sleep
   A light snack at bedtime can promote sleep, but too much food can cause digestive discomfort that leads to wakefulness.
2. Keep the Drinks to a Minimum
   While small amounts of alcohol can help you fall asleep, it might have the opposite effect as the night wears on. As the body metabolizes alcohol, sleep may become fragmented. Alcohol can worsen insomnia and also impair rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the time when the body is in its restorative phase. It can also dehydrate you, leaving you tired the next day.
3. Caffeine Can Disturb Sleep
   Caffeine is a stimulant, which is why so many of us reach for that cup of coffee in the morning to get us going. And it’s true that some individuals can drink caffeinated beverages all day long and still sleep soundly at night. Limiting your caffeine intake should be one of the first steps you try to help improve your sleep. Be aware that coffee is not the only source of caffeine. Many sodas and teas, chocolate, and some medications, especially those for headaches, also contain caffeine. Check labels to help eliminate such sources of stimulation.
4. Forget the Fat
   If you consume a high-fat meal in the evening or eat foods that you have found cause you indigestion and heartburn, your sleep can be disturbed and restless.
5. Do Not Eat Late at Night
   People who suffer from heartburn or acid reflux should avoid late, heavy meals that delay the emptying of the stomach. Lying down with a full stomach puts you at a gravitational disadvantage, encouraging acids and gastric juices to flow up into the esophagus, causing uncomfortable heartburn that will make sleep more challenging.
6. Drinking Fluids Too Close to Bedtime Can Cause Problems
   Drink the majority of your fluids for the day by the end of dinner. A full bladder may be cutting into your sleep time. Drink plenty of water throughout the day. Water is essential to healthy bodily functions. Shoot for eight glasses, or two quarts, per day. But be sure to drink the majority of your fluids before dinnertime so you won’t be making numerous trips to the bathroom during your sleeping hours.

The Bottom Line
Eating balanced small meals and snacks throughout the day has several benefits to reducing stress, anxiety, and promote better sleep. First, it helps maintain blood sugar levels which keeps energy levels stabilized over the course of the day. Eating frequently also keeps your metabolism running. It keeps you hungry/full instead of starving/stuffed, which decreases the chance for overeating and inducing anxiety because of those poor food choices. If you come to work prepared with healthy meals and snacks, it decreases the urge for stress-snacking during the day. Finally, it allows more opportunities to include fruits, vegetables, and fiber into your day, which we all need to make a point to do!

But, the 50 degree mornings make for delightful snuggle time with my comfiest sweatshirt and fancy mug-o-coffee. A slight change in pace from 87 degrees before the sun comes up. Although the days are still somewhat stifling, it is now late October, football season is in full swing, and my slow cooker – my most favorite kitchen gadget for the fall season – has found a permanent spot on the kitchen island.

I am all about this comfortable cooler weather. I die for this time of year. As much as I love Christmas and Thanksgiving, and all that festivities that go with it, fall has to be my favorite. I think my love for this time of year really comes down to the simple fact that it brings me back to my fondest childhood memories. And chili.

My daddy makes a killer chili. Killer. His slow-cooker chili, Cowboys football, and a 12-year-old me with her very own sleeve of saltine crackers – sitting happy, and practically in his lap for Sunday in its entirety. Whether I'm 12 or 28, I'll still sit in his lap with those crackers and a bowl of his chili. Any day.

In Texas we have a certain way we make our chili. Defining what makes true "Texas chili" is no simple task. Everyone has a different version. The term "chili" comes from the Spanish chile con carne, which translates as "peppers with meat." And that is often at heart what I (or my daddy) make, with the addition of some spices and aromatics.

Time for a chili lesson: First and foremost, there are no beans or tomatoes in Texas chili. None. Not to say you can't ever add beans or tomatoes to your pot, but then it would no longer be "Texas chili." It would be what Texans call a "bowl o' red."

So what is Texas chili? Besides meat, the important component to Texas chili is the chilies. There are no requirements, per say, on the types of chilies you choose – just make sure they are in there and giving off some heat. Of course there are the select dried versions: anchos, pasilla, costeñas, guajillos, chipotle, and chiles de arbol.  Not to forget the more familiar (and some of my favorite) fresh chile varieties: poblano, New Mexico hatch, and jalapeño. The list go on depending on what is available in your particular market.

There is a simple toasting technique that I learned growing up for adding rich flavor to the peppers before adding them into your Texas chili. Start by preheating a dry skillet over medium heat for a few minutes. Add the dry peppers to the pan and cook peppers three to four minutes, turning occasionally, until toasted. Remove from heat and allow pan to cool briefly. Return skillet to stove and add about an inch of water. Bring water to boiling over high heat and add peppers. Remove skillet from heat, cover with lid, and allow to stand 20 minutes until peppers are softened. Once the peppers have softened, drain them, reserving about 1/3 cup of the cooking liquid. Remove stems from peppers and discard. Using a food processor or countertop blender, blend peppers until smooth adding reserved soaking liquid as needed to make a smooth puree.  Use as directed in recipe for Texas Red Chili. This chili puree is useful in other dishes, too! Try adding teaspoon of the pepper puree to your favorite guacamole or vegetable soup recipe, or you can also mix a teaspoon or two of the puree with a quarter cup of olive oil and brushing it over steaks or chicken breasts before grilling.

Now, my daddy makes a "bowl o' Red" just in time for the Cowboys kickoff every Sunday. But my Texas chili is somewhat different, and over the years this dietitian brain of mine has gotten the best of me to make it easier on not only my heart, but on my waistline, too. I think most of it is due to the fact that I can no way mimic the chili I grew up on. I try, many times I've been on the phone as I was preparing ingredients, but the end result is never the same. Just like my mom's eggs and potatoes. Two ingredients and I can never get it right. So, I leave the chili (and the eggs and potatoes) for eating when I go home. It leaves me something to look forward to when I visit. My parents don't even have to ask- I'll always accept.

True Texas chili or not, I've found a way to make a delicious chili healthier, but still with all the flavor of my daddy's original. I stick with similar seasonings, the dark beer for depth of flavor, and always, always add a couple varieties of peppers. My daddy uses the chili puree I described above, but my busy schedule doesn't always allow for the time it takes to make this puree. So, my go-to chili includes fresh peppers over the dried. I have mixed up my version in other ways too: with white meat over the beef, and added tomatoes for another layer of flavor.

So it's not quite "true Texas," but it is a chili that I can call my own. You can serve this chili alone with corn bread (or saltines!). Or, one of my favorite ways is to serve this chili over a small baked potato with all the fixings.

Slow-Cooker Beer Barrel Turkey Chili

Recipe by Amber Massey, RD, LD

Ingredients
Cooking Spray
8 ounces ground turkey breast
4 ounces turkey or chicken sausage, casings removed
1 (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, (don't discard liquid)
1 (12-ounce) bottle dark beer (such as Shiner Bock)
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
2 poblano peppers, ribs and seeds removed, chopped
2 jalapeño peppers, ribs and seeds removed, chopped
1/4 cup (4-ounces) chipotle chile sauce
3 tablespoons chili powder (chipotle chile powder for extra heat)
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 (6-ounce) baking potatoes
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Optional toppings: Fat-free sour cream, shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese, chopped cilantro, chopped green onions

Directions

1. Lightly spray slow cooker with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. In a large skillet (or, if you have a cast iron slow cooker, use that), cook the ground turkey and sausage for 3 minutes, or until no longer pink on the outside, stirring frequently. Transfer to the slow cooker.
3. Stir in the tomatoes, beer, onion, peppers, chipotle sauce and all remaining ingredients. Stir to combine. Cook, covered, on low setting for 7 1/2 to 8 hours, or on high for 4 hours.
4. One hour before chili is ready, preheat your oven to 400°. Place baking potatoes on a foil lined baking sheet (for easy clean-up). Pierce skin with a fork multiple times and brush each potato with olive oil and season with salt. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes, until skin is crispy and potatoes are soft when gently squeezed in the middle.
5. To serve, plate one baked potato, cut in half. Serve with about 1 1/2 cups chili over top. Add additional toppings as desired.