How was life like before the modern age? Many of us would probably envision laid back lifestyles, people running free across sunny green fields of fresh green grass, that sort of thing.
That isn't to say that it was an easy life. I'm sure we have all had to grapple with hardships of some kind regardless of the period they live in. As a case in point, food acquisition was much more difficult in the past than in modern times. With primitive farming and hunting techniques, we had to work much longer and harder to get the same amount of food than the effort we put in today. Of course, this is something that most of us have probably forgotten given the easy availability of food today.
Technology, thus, has been an immense benefit to our lives. It has helped to make living much easier. Yet, we seem to be working harder than ever before. Our society moves at a much faster pace, especially in bustling mega-cities like New York, London and Singapore.
This fast-paced lifestyle that we are subjected to has also resulted in more people living stressful lives. A Jan 2008 article written for the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)'s International Magazine cites figures from the French Institute for action on stress that shows excess stress at work affects over 32 % of women and 20 % of men.
The article goes on to state that, "...if there’s one area where stress has its stronghold, it’s in the workplace." In Japan, death by overwork, which has its own official term - 'Karoshi', has now been recognized as an official occupational disease. That's saying something isn't it?
Furthermore, the article states that, "...many scientific studies have pointed to a direct link between heart disease or high blood pressure and overwork. Similarly, workers with heavy working constraints are more inclined to suffer from depression. Examples of workers who committed suicide at their workplace abound. They account for 3 to 5 % of total workplace fatalities, and this number is similar in the western countries where it was evaluated."
The United States' National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) also supports the view that stress has a negative impact on health. In a Jan 2007 article in its News in Health editorial, it states that, "it’s long been known that blood pressure and cholesterol levels go up in people who are stressed. Studies have now linked chronic stress with cardiovascular problems like hypertension, coronary heart disease and stroke."
The NIMH's view is also shared by the United States' National Cancer Institute (NCI). According to NCI, "stress that is chronic can increase the risk of obesity, heart disease, depression, and various other illnesses. Stress also can lead to unhealthy behaviors, such as overeating, smoking, or abusing drugs or alcohol, that may affect cancer risk."
The immune system is also affected by stress. A study performed at Ohio State University discovered that people under psychological stress have slower-healing wounds. The stress increases the levels of some hormones in the blood, which slow down the delivery of certain compounds to the site of the injury to start the healing process.
That's just a specific case of what could happen were our immune system affected by stress. The truth is that many more nasty things could occur. A weakened system for example, could mean a higher risk for getting cancer. NCI states that the results of some studies have "indicated a link between various psychological factors and an increased risk of developing cancer", though there is a "lack of a direct cause-and-effect relationship".
That being the case, there is more than enough evidence out there that tells us that too much stress is not good for our health.
Tips on how to combat stress coming in the next article... watch out for it!
http://www2.cnrs.fr/en/1070.htm
http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/ilwound.htm
http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2007/January/docs/01features_01.htm
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/stress
That isn't to say that it was an easy life. I'm sure we have all had to grapple with hardships of some kind regardless of the period they live in. As a case in point, food acquisition was much more difficult in the past than in modern times. With primitive farming and hunting techniques, we had to work much longer and harder to get the same amount of food than the effort we put in today. Of course, this is something that most of us have probably forgotten given the easy availability of food today.
Technology, thus, has been an immense benefit to our lives. It has helped to make living much easier. Yet, we seem to be working harder than ever before. Our society moves at a much faster pace, especially in bustling mega-cities like New York, London and Singapore.
This fast-paced lifestyle that we are subjected to has also resulted in more people living stressful lives. A Jan 2008 article written for the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)'s International Magazine cites figures from the French Institute for action on stress that shows excess stress at work affects over 32 % of women and 20 % of men.
The article goes on to state that, "...if there’s one area where stress has its stronghold, it’s in the workplace." In Japan, death by overwork, which has its own official term - 'Karoshi', has now been recognized as an official occupational disease. That's saying something isn't it?
Furthermore, the article states that, "...many scientific studies have pointed to a direct link between heart disease or high blood pressure and overwork. Similarly, workers with heavy working constraints are more inclined to suffer from depression. Examples of workers who committed suicide at their workplace abound. They account for 3 to 5 % of total workplace fatalities, and this number is similar in the western countries where it was evaluated."
The United States' National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) also supports the view that stress has a negative impact on health. In a Jan 2007 article in its News in Health editorial, it states that, "it’s long been known that blood pressure and cholesterol levels go up in people who are stressed. Studies have now linked chronic stress with cardiovascular problems like hypertension, coronary heart disease and stroke."
The NIMH's view is also shared by the United States' National Cancer Institute (NCI). According to NCI, "stress that is chronic can increase the risk of obesity, heart disease, depression, and various other illnesses. Stress also can lead to unhealthy behaviors, such as overeating, smoking, or abusing drugs or alcohol, that may affect cancer risk."
The immune system is also affected by stress. A study performed at Ohio State University discovered that people under psychological stress have slower-healing wounds. The stress increases the levels of some hormones in the blood, which slow down the delivery of certain compounds to the site of the injury to start the healing process.
That's just a specific case of what could happen were our immune system affected by stress. The truth is that many more nasty things could occur. A weakened system for example, could mean a higher risk for getting cancer. NCI states that the results of some studies have "indicated a link between various psychological factors and an increased risk of developing cancer", though there is a "lack of a direct cause-and-effect relationship".
That being the case, there is more than enough evidence out there that tells us that too much stress is not good for our health.
Tips on how to combat stress coming in the next article... watch out for it!
http://www2.cnrs.fr/en/1070.htm
http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/ilwound.htm
http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2007/January/docs/01features_01.htm
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/stress
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