2009-01-31T00:09:00.000-08:00

How Does Stress Affect Health?

Before you know how does stress affect health, did you know what exactly is stress? This is important…

Stress is any event that a human being perceives as harmful or threatening. The body reacts to stress with ‘fight or flight’ response. Stress hormones like adrenalin, dopamine, cortisol, noradrenalin, and endorphins are released in the blood when one experiences stress. Stress becomes negative when a person faces continuous challenges without relief or relaxation between challenges. As a result, the person becomes overworked, and stress-related tension builds.

Under sudden stress, you will get a burst of exceptional strength and endurance, as your body pumps out stress hormones:

* Your heart speeds up

* Blood flow to your brain and muscles increases up to 400 percent

* Your digestion stops (so it doesn't use up energy that's needed elsewhere)

* Your muscle tension increases

* You breathe faster, to bring more oxygen to your muscles

Not all stress is bad. Sportspersons and other performers use stress to bring the best in them. No stress will lead one to be lazy and unproductive. A little stress makes one alert and focused. Stress is bad when one experiences it for a prolonged period.

How Stress Can Hurt Us

In today’s sedentary world there is more of mental and social stress than physical stress. Recent evidence indicates that the physical changes associated with stress may contribute to the leading causes of death - heart disease and cancer.

When faced with chronic stress and an overactivated autonomic nervous system, people begin to see physical symptomsWith more exposure to chronic stress, however, more serious health problems may develop. These stress-influenced conditions include, but are not limited to:

1.Stress can result in poor memory, concentration and irritability.

2.Stress may also cause poor appetite and digestion.

3.Long-term stress leads to reduced immunity of the body making one susceptible to various illnesses.

4.Stress is a major cause of depression, anxiety and panic attacks. It may trigger off major mental illnesses like schizophrenia or obsessive-compulsive disorder.

5. Stress can cause chronic fatigue, digestive upsets, headaches, and back pain.

6.Stress can affect the blood cells that help you fight off infection, so you are more likely to get colds and other diseases.

7.Constant stress can increase blood pressure and can increase the risk for stroke.

8.Stress can increase the danger of heart attacks, particularly if you are often angry and mistrustful.

9.Stress can make an asthma attack worse.

10.Stress triggers behaviors that contribute to death and disability, such as smoking, alcoholism, drug abuse, and overeating.

11.Stress can lead to diminished sexual desire and an inability to achieve orgasm.

12.Stress makes it harder to take other steps to improve health, such as giving up smoking or making changes in diet.

13. Increased eating caused by stress can lead to obesity, which greatly increases the risk of cardio-vascular disease.

14.Though stress does not cause ulcers it increases its risk. It may slow down the healing process of ulcers.

15.Stress causes high blood pressure that can damage blood vessels and internal organs.

16.Stress can also cause back pain.

17.Stress may lead to hair loss.

18.Stress has effects on fertility too. It can lead to poor sperm and egg production. There could be diminished libido and impotence.

19.To ward off stress people resort to smoking, consuming alcohol or drug abuse.

Stress that continues without relief can lead to a condition called distress—a negative stress reaction.
Stress also becomes harmful when people use alcohol, tobacco, or drugs to try to relieve their stress. Unfortunately, instead of relieving the stress and returning the body to a relaxed state, these substances tend to keep the body in a stressed state and cause more problems. Consider the following facts:

1.Forty-three percent of all adults suffer adverse health effects from stress.

2.Seventy-five to 90% of all doctor’s office visits are for stress-related ailments and complaints.

Stress is linked to six of the leading causes of death: heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, accidents, cirrhosis of the liver, and suicide.

How to Combat Stress?