It’s been said that the only sure things in life are death and taxes, but in this modern world we can add a third sure thing we’re all likely to experience-stress. Stress is just a fact of life in modern society and it has a very negative impact on our health.
While we have all experienced stress, we may not be aware of what stress is from a biological standpoint, or what we can do to prevent it from damaging one’s health.
The body is programmed to survive. When something threatens a person’s survival there is a series of reactions in the body which prepare the body to cope with the threat. Dr. Hans Selye (1936), was the first researcher to document the effects of stress on health. He conducted experiments in laboratory animals and found that stress, coupled with nutritional deficiency, plays a role in the development of every disease.
As a result of the work of Dr. Selye and other researchers, we now have a very clear picture of what happens in the body when survival is threatened. When the mind perceives danger, a series of chemical reactions, sometimes called the fight or flight response, is triggered. The brain signals the hypothalamus to secrete the adrenocorticotrophic hormone releasing factor which travels to the pituitary where it stimulates the production of the adrenocorticotrophic stimulating hormone (ACTH). ACTH travels to the adrenals causing the increased production of epinephrine (adrenaline) and cortisol.
Epinephrine is both a hormone and a neurotransmitter in the sympathetic nervous system. It heightens physical alertness and activity. Cortisol is an anti-inflammatory hormone that suppresses the immune response. There are other changes in body biochemistry as well, including alterations in enzyme systems and prostaglandin production.
The net effect of all of these changes is to prepare the body for action. The body is “tweaked” physically to be able to fight the dangerous situation or escape from it. On the following page, you’ll find a list of some of the changes that take place in the body as a result of the release of these chemical messengers.
Following are some of the physical changes that take place in the body under stress, you can sew how this coping mechanism could help the body when the danger is real and physical, such as facing a bear or a mountain lion, or charging an enemy in battle. The body is operating at peak efficiency to defend itself or flee the situation.