FOR decades doctors have warned us to cut down our stress. Now experts on ageing say seeking out stress may actually help you stay young, beautiful and healthy.

This weekend two pieces of research presented to a conference claim that stress therapy is the new R&R. They are urging patients to seek out more stress to help them live longer.

One expert, Dr Marios Kyriazis, medical director of the British Longevity Society and a private anti-ageing doctor, told the 2nd Anti-Ageing Conference in London that his patients look and feel younger after he has set them a series of stressful tasks.

Kyriazis prescribes mild doses of frantic activity to his patients such as redecorating their front room over a weekend or packing in a hurry to reach the airport on time.

The experts claim the right type of stress can bolster our natural defences to protect us from illnesses such as Alzheimer’s, arthritis and heart disease.

They believe mild to moderate stress can increase the production of the proteins that help to repair the body’s cells, including brain cells, enabling them to work at peak capacity.

When we have to run for a bus or finish a work assignment, cells in the body or the brain are put under stress and start to break down. The cells’ own repair mechanism then kicks in, producing proteins that repair the damage, strengthen the cells and remove harmful chemicals that can gradually cause disease.

The body’s response is greater than is needed to repair the damage and actually makes the cells stronger than they were before. This process is called hormesis.

“As the body ages — most noticeably from the age of about 35 — this self-repair mechanism starts to slow down,” said Kyriazis. “The best way to keep the process working efficiently is to ‘exercise’ it, in the same way you would exercise your muscles to keep them strong.

“That means you have to seek out stress in order for the body to keep responding to it.”

But only the right type and amount of stress is beneficial. Good stress is short-term, mildly stimulating, varied and gives a sense of achievement.

Other stressful challenges prescribed by Kyriazis include shopping for a dinner party during your lunch break or learning to set the video recorder by following the instruction manual.

He also recommends periods of food or sleep deprivation.

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