Stress is the brain’s reaction to life’s constant demands and changes. While stress can be widely viewed as a purely mental or emotional reaction, it can significantly affect your physical health. 60% to 80% of visits to primary care physicians are due to stress-related health issues as stress affects the body in many different areas.
Nervous System: “Fight or Flight” Response
When the body is stressed, the hypothalamus in the brain signals the autonomic nervous system to produce the stress hormones cortisol and epinephrine. These hormones help the body produce extra glucose for extra energy in stressful situations so that you can actually “fight or flight”. If the body cannot return to its normal state before producing the extra hormones, your stress may become chronic stress. Chronic stress may cause anxiety, depression, poor dieting, and alcohol or drug abuse.
Muscular System: Muscle Tension
The physical response to stress is often muscle tension. Long periods of stress can result in a two symptoms, tension-type headaches and migraines. Tension-type headaches are described as short-term pains around the neck, head, or shoulders before or during stress. Migraines can reach disabling, severe pain which occurs after a stressful situation. The effect of stress on the muscular system can lead to more problems like fibromyalgia, a chronic disorder that causes pain and fatigue in the muscles.
Cardiovascular System: Heart Disease
Stress leads to inflammation of the coronary arteries and blocks blood flow, leading to heart attacks. Acute stress, or short-term stress, releases hormones like adrenaline, noradrenaline and cortisol. These hormones increase heart rate and the strength of heart muscle contractions. The heart’s blood vessels and large muscles then dilate and increase the amount of blood pumped as well as the blood pressure levels. This is also an effect of the “fight or flight” reaction. Chronic stress is long-term stress that includes the constant elevation of blood pressure, which can scar your blood vessels and allow cholesterol plaque to get caught in the scarred tissue. Blood vessels also become inflamed which causes blood clots in the narrow arteries that lead to a heart attack.
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Digestive System: Type 2 Diabetes
When you are stressed, your liver produces more glucose for extra energy during a “fight or flight” response. If the extra glucose is not used up during the stressful situation, it may put you at risk for Type 2 Diabetes. Type 2 Diabetes is more likely to develop if you already have chronic stress. Stressed people also tend to consume fatty foods, alcohol, and drugs, which can lead to acid reflux or heartburn. Stress also makes your brain more alert to nausea, or pain in your stomach. Chronic stress can even cause remaining ulcers to act up.
It is important to know how stress affects the body, so that you can ultimately prevent stress’s negative health consequences. Chronic stress is a real health factor that should never be overlooked!
