Title: Effects of Stress on Memory and the Hippocampus | Sanesco Health
Headings: Effects of Stress on Memory and the Hippocampus
Effects of Stress on Memory and the Hippocampus
Stress and the HPA Axis
Effects of Stress on the Hippocampus
Effects of Stress on Memory and Damage to the Hippocampus
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Sophie Thompson
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Content: Our stressors are arguments, embarrassing social situations, deadlines at work, college course loads, and other situational factors we deal with daily. Although these stressors shouldn’t require us to prepare to sprint, our bodies still respond with a fight-or-flight activation of the HPA axis. 4 Stress can cause a cascade of problems in humans due to this unnecessary redirection of metabolism and excitation. Cortisol is the most notorious of the stress hormones and over-secretion of it can cause problems throughout the entire body. Effects of Stress on the Hippocampus
The HPA axis works in conjunction with many other areas of the brain and glands throughout the body. The hippocampus, located in the medial temporal lobe of the brain, is necessary for cognitive functions such as learning, memory, and regulation of behavior. 5 It plays a key role in gathering and encoding information and then later retrieving that information. 6
During times of stress, your brain needs to focus on sensory stimuli and quick problem-solving, so hippocampus function is altered. This is part of why upon unexpectedly seeing a romantic interest or giving a public speech we forget simple things like our address or what we had for breakfast. The hippocampus is less functional during times of both acute and chronic stress.