 |
|
  Is It Really The Case That Stress Is Bad For Your Health?It has been known for years that stress can affect your health but we are just now beginning to fully understand precisely how stress affects the body. Several of the myths surrounding stress, like the fact that stress could produce ulcers, are finally being exposed and others are now being confirmed.Many of the more obvious affects of stress such as, headaches, high blood pressure, a rapid heartbeat, muscle tension and digestive problems are easily recognized and well known, however there are also a number of longer-term and potentially serious conditions that can be caused by persistent stress. Studies that have been undertaken at the National Institutes of Health and elsewhere for instance suggest strongly that stress affects the immune system. Interestingly these same studies show that the affect on the immune system can be both negative and positive. Given that one particular definition of stress is that it is simply a person's 'fight or flight' response to an apparent threat, it can clearly have a positive affect. It can, for instance, trigger the release of chemicals which assist in healing infections resulting from bites. That makes sense when you think about just how evolution may have tailored the immune system to cope with such problems. But, when this particular response lasts for a long period of time, the affects can be detrimental and one consequence is that the immune system reduces in effectiveness resulting in an increased susceptibility to infection and a lowered resistance to colds and other virus induced illnesses. Another consequence is an overall feeling of tiredness and sometimes depression. When a person suffers stress for long periods of time then a feedback loop develops between the cause of the stress (the clear belief that you cannot solve the problem that is causing the stress) and its affects. This creates a cycle in which the belief becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Chronic stress can also effect your health by compromising you circulatory system. When stress hormones which are released by the 'flight or fight' trigger are not depleted by {some form of physical activity such as fighting an infection|the physical activity of, for instance, fighting an infection then they can lead to actual physiological stress on the body. Hypertension hightens the tension on the walls of blood vessels which can lead to tiny tears arising in the blood vessels. When the body reacts to heal these micro-tears, scar tissue can be produced and this decreases the blood flow through these vessels. If stress levels reach extremely high levels or persist for long enough a heart attack can occur. The risk of heart attack is also higher in older individuals or in individuals who are carrying certain genetic characteristics. With narrowed blood vessels, the heart might not be able to deliver enough blood and oxygen at moments of high demand. It has also been known for some time that stress can exacerbate the affects of rheumatoid arthritis and this is also now explained by the affect which stress has on the immune system as there is a well documented and proven link between rheumatoid arthritis and the immune system. It is important for all of us to avoid stress to maintain good health and, happily, as we gain a better knowledge of stress we are also developing a variety of very helpful stress relief techniques. Free Article Source: http://www.za77.org About The Author: For more information about stress, including such things as stress symptoms and stress relief please visit Stress-Relief-And-Anxiety-Relievers.com |