What Is Hormesis? Experts Unpack Hormetic Stressors and Benefits

High or prolonged doses of any of these behaviors or substances are not sustainable or robust (spend too much time in cool water and you’ll get hypothermia). But in miniature bursts, the little bit of irritation these stressors cause is sufficiently to jolt you out of comfortable homeostasis and activate a variety of cellular mechanisms and signaling pathways that raise resistance to stress, repair cellular damage (through processes like autophagy), repair DNA, combat oxidative stress, produce fresh mitochondria, reduce inflammation, aid in the elimination of toxins, improve blood sugar regulation, reduce the risk of cancer, and much more, Rountree explains.