| Stress is a major problem in Western culture. The | | | | nicely. That's equivalent to your regular resting |
| British government estimated that stress cost the | | | | heart beat. |
| UK economy over £7 billion ($14 billion) in | | | | Now, put your foot flat to the floor and listen to |
| 2001. With up to 80% of all industrial accidents | | | | the noise of the engine. That's equivalent to your |
| due to stress, it's rapidly becoming a major | | | | racing heart beat. |
| problem that both industry and health care | | | | What do you think would happen to your engine if |
| companies want to tackle and reduce. | | | | you drove everywhere with it racing and making |
| When you get stressed a hormone known as | | | | that noise? How far would you get before the |
| Adrenocorticotrophic or ACTH is released in to | | | | engine exploded into pieces? |
| your bloodstream. This triggers the fight or flight | | | | The analogy shows you what you are doing to |
| mechanism, which translates to your heart rate | | | | your heart when you are continually stressed. |
| speeding up as blood is pumped more rapidly | | | | It is not coincidence that otherwise healthy people |
| around the body. | | | | who exercise, eat well and don't drink or smoke |
| Short term, this is fine as it works its way out of | | | | suddenly have heart attacks - it's from the build |
| your system. Long term though and it becomes a | | | | up of stress in their lives. |
| problem as it stays in your system wearing you | | | | In 2002 the British Medical Journal published the |
| down. Eventually it will damage your immune | | | | results of an experiment where they followed |
| system and possibly even cause a heart attack. | | | | hundreds of people for up to ten years and |
| Why? | | | | monitored their lives. What they discovered was |
| The human heart is designed to run steadily at a | | | | that people who felt they were over-whelmed by |
| certain rate with occasional bursts to a higher | | | | their work or who did mundane day to day |
| rate. When you get stressed, your heart rate | | | | activities with no chance of development or |
| increases and the more stressed you are during | | | | advancement were almost three times as likely |
| the day the more your heart beat stays at the | | | | to develop heart disease as those who didn't |
| higher rate. | | | | have these stresses. |
| Let's compare this to a car to give you a more | | | | They also discovered that these people suffering |
| visual idea of what we are talking about. Imagine | | | | from stress were two to three times more likely |
| you are in your car in a low (or first gear). | | | | to have a life ending heart attack. |
| Without your foot on the gas pedal, it ticks over | | | | And that's simply from stress. |