Sunday, October 2, 2011

Stress And Your Health 101

It is a normal thing for us to feel stressed out whenever we are trying to push ourselves to achieve hard tasks. Stress is the natural reaction that our body emits, perhaps as a way to letting us know that it is about time we slow down and take a break. Sadly most of us do not know when to stop and so we experience some of the negative effects of stress. It is therefore a necessity that we learn the natural stress relief activities that can help us control it.

There are a few repeating life occurrences that we just have to deal with whether it is related to our jobs or our families. There are deadlines we need to meet. There are personal problems and conflicts we need to fix.

When we are stressed often it is our body that takes much of the beating. Often the result is that certain body functions would be negatively affected. But that is in general. To be more specific, here are some of these negative effects of stress:

Heart Disease and Stroke - Stress affects the heart and the circulatory system. It causes increased heartbeat rate and restriction of the arteries. Cardiac occurrences such as heart attack may result from these actions over time.

Gastrointestinal Disorders - Irritable bowel syndrome, ulcers, and inflammatory bowel diseases include the gastrointestinal orders caused by prolonged stress. On a minor level, stomach discomforts, lowered metabolism, nausea, constipation or diarrhea afflict people under stress.

Digestive System Syndromes - Increased acidity, stomach upsets and poor digestion are the activities of a digestive system interfered with stress.

Immune System Infections - Stress impairs the immune system, making the body susceptible to colds and flu.

Skin Problems - Have you seen a friend who has been dealing with much stress? Look closely at his or her skin and you will certainly find some skin problems starting to appear.

Tooth and Gum Diseases - These problems are not directly caused by stress but by certain activities people commit when they are under stress. These are drinking too much alcohol and smoking. The latter has the worse effects on our teeth.

The other negative effects of stress on the body include migraines and headaches, mood swings, irritability, fatigue, muscle pains and tensions, sexual dysfunctions, baldness and concentration and memory lose. Moreover, stress can also lead to psychological problems like anxiety and distress.

Sleeping Problems - We tend to lose sleep when we are busy thinking of our problems or anything that causes our stress. While this is normal, however, it is not a healthy thing to do. Our mind and body need to feel rested. When we start to lose sleep our mind will not be working at its fullest.

There are many other negative effects of stress in our lives but the top ones I have already mentioned in this short article. Just keep in mind that if you want to control the amount of stress you are dealing with, then you should learn about the important stress management activities today.