When we hear the word stress, we normally think of it as a bad thing. That stress overwhelms and weakens the body, impairing health.

We’d probably think the same thing about ingesting or being exposed to toxins. Most people think that if you could choose to be exposed to these substances or avoid them entirely, it’s a no-brainer and you’d go for complete avoidance.

But there is a concept known as hormesis that turns some of these ideas on its head.

Hormesis is a biological phenomenon whereby a beneficial effect (improved health, stress tolerance, growth or longevity) results from exposure to low doses of substances or situations, which at higher doses are toxic or lethal.

Above you can see a graph that illustrates how this works. In small doses, a stressor is beneficial. When this dose becomes too large, this is when problems ensue.

A number of things that we think of as “healthy” actually derive their benefits through a hormetic effect on the body.

Exercise would be the most obvious example of this. It is a stress that is placed on the body that then causes it to make adaptions so that with time it can manage an even greater load.

And over time, not only does it allow you to do exercise at a higher level (whether that be for a longer time, more intensity, high amounts of weights etc) but it has a systemic positive impact in terms of reducing the likelihood of experiencing diseases like cardiovascular disease, depression, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and so on.

Interestingly, hormesis is actually part of the reason certain foods are healthy. Lots of the substances in plants that we think of as beneficial or we even label as “antioxidants” derive their health boosting characteristics because they are mild toxins and cause the body to adapt and respond.

Resveratrol found in red grapes and in wine, sulforaphane found in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables, and other polyphenols found in foods like green tea, curcumin, garlic, blueberries, citrus fruit, and dark chocolate.

When these compounds are talked about it is normally from the place that they are helpful because of what they give to the body. But the benefit that we derive from them is mostly due to them being mild toxins, encouraging the body to react and stimulating the body to improve.

And most of these aren’t antioxidants as normally quoted, but are actually pro-oxidants. They instead force the body to turn on its own antioxidants systems to deal with them and the long-term result is improved health.

Sunlight would be another example, especially when we are thinking about UV light. UV light exposes the body to radiation, which at high doses can be deadly. But when it is kept in low to moderate doses, it creates changes that lead to better health.

For example UV light stimulates vitamin D production. It also stimulates the production of cholesterol sulfate. Both are substances that are crucial for health, whether we’re talking about immune function, cardiovascular health or mental health.

These are only a few examples and actually the list of things that have a hormetic effect on the body continues to lengthen as more research is done. Some other forms of hormesis are:

• Cold (like cold showers or ice baths)
• Heat (like saunas or being in the dessert/hot climate)
• Hypoxia (from exercise or high altitude)
• Alcohol
• Caffeine
• Nicotine
• Aspirin
• Intermittent fasting
• Intermittent macronutrient restrictions (carbs/fats/protein)
• Methyl mercury
• Dioxins

As humans, our health is improved by being challenged. These challenges need to be appropriate for where we are at and what our body is able to healthily respond to.

The tendency for many is to sit too far along at either ends of the spectrum. Either rarely doing anything that is challenging and hormetic for the body or taking things to the extreme where the body passes the point of hormesis and just enters into a place of damage.

Health is about finding that balance. Challenging it in ways, but providing the rest and support it then needs to be able to adapt to these stresses.

The topic of hormesis is truly fascinating and is something I’m planning on doing a whole podcast on. But hopefully this short piece has given you a bit of an insight into it.

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