Norma Kastien and Margarita Suarez, elders;

Beth Williams, deacons' moderator;

Barbara Carlsen, representing the Presbyterian Women;

Jan Cox, who also works with the Health Care Team (they published the monthly Healthcare Team article in this newsletter); and

Penny Hickman, Priscilla Stephenson and Natalie Sarantos.  

Alice Winters' Bake Sale, March 11

Our Presbyterian Women invite you to donate your baked goods to benefit both Alice Winters' Retirement Fund and our Hospitality House. We have appreciated your generous support for the Reverend Alice Winters and her work with the people in Colombia, South America. She is currently in Louisville, Kentucky and will be in transition as she gets necessary medical attention and listens to God's call for her future.

You can bring your donations to the Fellowship Hall before worship on March 11, when we will celebrate "Gifts of Women Sunday." During the worship service, we will honor two Lake Burien Presbyterian Women who have served our church faithfully for many years. Our Coordinating Team is very grateful for your kind donations. 

Presbyterian Women Spring Gathering on March 31

All Presbyterian Women in the Seattle Presbytery will be gathering at Lake Burien Presbyterian Church on Saturday, March 31 for their annual Spring Gathering. Registration and coffee begins at 9:30 a.m.

We are hosting this Gathering and need some help in serving the luncheon. Please call Lucille Wheeler or Gail Lane. The theme for the Gathering is: "Blessed are Those Who Hunger & Thirst for Justice." Matthew 5:6

A short note from Joan Wilson, Moderator of the Presbyterian Women in our Seattle Presbytery:

*"Did you know that there are Presbyterian Villages in Shillong, India?

*Did you know that American Presbyterian mission in South Asia began in November 1834? Attend the Spring Gathering and learn more about India & what we can do.

*Special guest Kathy Matlin was one of 23 Presbyterian Women and 4 PW & PC(USA) staff to visit northern India last Fall on the 2011 Global Exchange. Kathy represented the Synod of Alaska NW and wishes to share her story and many pictures with us.

*Kathy and her husband reside in Ellensburg where they are members of the First Presbyterian Church. The journey to India was an awesome experience for Kathy and she is anxious to tell her story."

Look in our Church Library for the Jan/Feb 2012 issue of the Horizon Magazine. There are articles on the Global Exchange along with Kathy's photo next to a young girl and her even younger charge on page 48.

In addition to Kathy's presentation on India, we will also sing, worship with a devotional from Tobin, take an offering for Orphan Relief and Rescue and have the opportunity to buy items from India from SERRV (a non-profit fair trade and development organization whose mission is to eradicate poverty wherever it resides). Mother's Day Cards will also be available to support mothers and children around the world. Registration is $5, which pays for your lunch.

There will be a short business meeting including some reports and the day also will include election and installation of a few new leaders. There will also be a commissioning of those of you who are attending the Presbyterian Women Churchwide Gathering in Orlando, Florida, from July 18-22.

All women are invited to attend. Come for an inspirational day of music, devotion, fellowship and mission.  

From the Health Care Team 

How stress can make us overeat 

It's been another hectic day. On impulse, you grab an extra-large candy bar during your afternoon break. You plan to take just a few bites. But before you know it, you've polished off the whole thing - and, at least temporarily, you may feel better. 

Rest assured you're not alone. Stress, the hormones it unleashes, and the effects of high-fat, sugary "comfort foods" push people toward overeating. 

Effects on appetite 

In the short term, stress can shut down appetite. A structure in the brain called the hypothalamus releases corticotrophin-releasing hormone, which suppresses appetite. The brain also sends messages to the adrenal glands atop the kidneys to pump out the hormone epinephrine (also known as adrenaline). Epinephrine helps trigger the body's fight-or-flight response, a revved-up physiological state that temporarily puts eating on hold.

But if stress persists - or is perceived as persisting - it's a different story. The adrenal glands release another hormone called cortisol, and cortisol increases appetite and may also ramp up motivation in general, including the motivation to eat. Once a stressful episode is over, cortisol levels should fall, but if the stress doesn't go away - or if a person's stress response gets stuck in the "on" position - cortisol may stay elevated. 

Fat and sugar cravings

Stress also seems to affect food preferences. Numerous studies - granted, many of them in animals - have shown that physical or emotional distress increases the intake of food high in fat, sugar, or both. High cortisol levels, in combination with high insulin levels, may be responsible. Other research suggests that ghrelin, a "hunger hormone," may have a role. 

Once ingested, fat- and sugar-filled foods seem to have a feedback effect that inhibits activity in the parts of the brain that produce and process stress and related emotions. So part of our stress-induced craving for those foods may be that they counteract stress.

Of course, overeating isn't the only stress-related behavior that can add pounds. Stressed people lose sleep, exercise less, and drink more alcohol, all of which can contribute to becoming overweight. 

Different responses 

Some research suggests a gender difference in stress-coping behavior, with women being more likely to turn to food and men to alcohol or smoking. A Finnish study that included over 5,000 men and women showed that obesity was associated with stress-related eating in women but not in men. Other research has shown that high stress levels lead to weight gain in both women and men, but the effect is typically greater in men.

Harvard researchers have reported that stress from work and other sorts of problems correlates with weight gain, but only in those who were overweight at the beginning of the study period. One explanation: overweight people have elevated insulin levels, and stress-related weight gain is more likely to occur in the presence of high insulin.

How much cortisol people produce in response to stress may also factor into the stress-weight gain equation. Several years ago, British researchers designed an ingenious study that showed that people who responded to stress with high cortisol levels in a experimental setting were more likely to snack in response to daily hassles in their regular lives than low-cortisol responders. 

Steps you can take

Stress reduction is a growth industry these days. There are dozens of things to try. Here are three suggestions: 

• Meditate. Countless studies show that meditation reduces stress, although much of the research has focused on high blood pressure and heart disease. Meditation may also help you be more mindful of food choices. With practice, a person may be able to pay better attention to the impulse to grab a fat- and sugar-loaded comfort food and inhibit the impulses.
• Exercise more. Intense exercise increases cortisol levels temporarily, but low-intensity exercise seems to reduce them. University of California researchers reported results in 2010 that exercise - and this was vigorous exercise - may blunt some of the negative effects of stress. Some activities, such as yoga and tai chi, have elements of both exercise and meditation.

Visit with friends. Social support seems to have a buffering effect on the stress people experience. For example, researchers have found that the mental health of people working in stressful situations, like hospital emergency departments, is better if they receive it. But even those of us who live and work in situations where the stakes aren't as high will, as Lennon and McCartney suggested, be better off if we get a little help from our friends. 

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