STRESS AFFECTS YOUR HEALTH

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Most people are already aware of how stress affects our emotional wellbeing. In this posting, we will examine the physical effects of stress on our physical health.

Conditions strongly linked to psychological stress:

Angina, Headaches, Asthma, Hypertension, Autoimmune diseases, Immune suppression, Cancer, Irritable bowel syndrome, Cardiovascular disease, Menstrual irregularities, Common cold, Premenstrual tension syndrome, Chronic pain exacerbations, Rheumatoid arthritis, Diabetes ( adult onset, Type II) Ulcerative colitis, Depression, Ulcers

The Fight or Flight Response

Hans Selye, an endocrinologist and one of the world’s leading researchers into the effect of stress on the body, stated his theory in The Stress of Life. When the brain perceives stress, either consciously or unconsciously, the message is transmitted to the hypothalamus. This switching station carries signals in and out of the brain. The hypothalamus sends impulses to the pituitary gland, the master endocrine gland. The pituitary releases hormones which stimulate other glands, which in turn release other hormones, such as adrenaline. These hormones were especially important in helping our ancient ancestors meet the challenges of more primitive times when human beings were hunters facing regular danger from wild beasts and predators. A life or death situation may trigger this response, but the brain may respond in a similar fashion to persistent lower levels of stress.

In our own day, emotional stresses have replaced physical ones. As a result, we can’t usually take the physical actions necessary to dissipate the stimulation of these hormones. So these powerful substances tend to “attack” the body instead of enabling it to deal better with outside forces. If a stress response is chronic, the constant presence of stress hormones begins to wear down the body’s immunological system, whatever part of the body is weakest will show signs of dysfunction first.

The Fight or Flight Response is appropriate if you are confronted by a life-threatening situation. But often this response, or some of the characteristics of it, is triggered inappropriately by a situation that is stressful, but not life-threatening. You may be suffering from a chronic stress response worrying about something. Stress responses can be triggered by emotions, ideas, memories, and expectations and pain.To treat medical problems caused by the body’s stress producing substances, a doctor may prescribe medication which partly blocks the effects of these hormones. But there is another way to achieve similar results: the Relaxation Response. - Herbert Benson, MD

The Fight or Flight Response: Physical Responses

The heart rate and force of contraction of the heart increases to provide blood to areas necessary for response to the stressful situation


· As the heart rate increases, the blood pressure rises.

· Adrenaline and other hormones are released into the blood.

· Blood is shunted away from the skin and internal organs, except the heart and lungs, while at the same time the amount of blood supplying needed oxygen and glucose to the muscles and brain is increased.

· Blood flow is constricted to the extremities, and the hands and feet become cold. This protects you from bleeding to death quickly if the hands or feet are injured in fight or flight, and allows blood to be directed to the most important parts of the body.

· The rate of breathing increases to supply necessary oxygen to the heart, brain and exercising muscle.

· Sweat production increases to eliminate toxic compounds produced by the body to lower body temperature.

· Production of digestive secretions is severely reduced since digestive activity is not necessary for counteracting stress.

· Blood sugar levels are increased dramatically as the liver dumps stored glucose into the bloodstream.

This next bit of infornation came from a site for fitness@valunet, Walnut Creek CA who create software products for cyclists, runners and walkers.

Americans Manage Stress in Many Ways

For most of us, stress is a fact of life. We don't have the option to escape from it and so we have learned to manage stress as best we can. According to one study, the techniques Americans use to manage stress are:

o Watch Television 82%

o Read or Listen to Music 76%

o Talk to a Spouse, Parent or Friend 69%

o Play Sports or Go for a Walk 68%

o Go Shopping 36%

o Smoke 22%

o Drink Alcohol 18%

Most use combinations of these techniques to manage stress. Yet, despite using these stress management techniques, 75% to 90% of all visits to primary care physicians are stress related.

As As noted by the folks at valuenet, despite these common approaches to stress management, we are not doing a very good job, . In our next post, we will explore a safe, effective, drug-free solution to managing stress. You will discover that it is also very effective for people with insomnia or other sleep problems. It is called The Profound Relaxation Response.Please send me your comments and suggestions for future topics by clicking on the comments section at the end of each posting. You can also e-mail me at: bruyoli@hotmail.com Also keep checking back to see how I have responded to your suggestion or question in future postings.posted by Bruce R. Fredenburg, M.S., L.M.F.T. @ 11:59 AM 0 comments Saturday, July 08, 2006