Health Consequences of Stress

Abstract

Stress is the naturally occurring mind-body response to demanding and/or emergency situations, either of a chronic or episodic nature. Properly monitored and managed, the stress response contributes to a state of optimum health and well being. When improperly managed, the stress response may lead to a variety of medical, psychological and behavioral health problems. These problems range from cigarette smoking, alcohol and drug abuse, violence, and family conflict to insomnia, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and ulcers. However, there are several stressful activities, including aerobic exercise, weight training, and flexibility training, which contribute to a number of health benefits. There are some individual differences in personality dimensions, sex, etc., which moderate the stress-health relationship.