Stress Related Medical Diseases

The Brain and Trauma الدماغ والصدما

Cardiovascular disease is probably the most serious health problem that can be linked to stress.
The most common cause of death in Britain and the USA.
The primary causes of heart disease include smoking and high-fat diets, but stress is a significant contributory factor.
Adrenal hormones act to increase blood pressure; frequent or perpetual state of high blood pressure can have a serious effect on health in the long term.
High blood pressure is linked with the development of arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries.
Eventually, an artery can become blocked, leading to angina, stroke, and heart failure.

The immune system protects the body from infection. It fights foreign invaders (such as viruses and harmful bacteria) and cancer.
Excessive stress can damage the immune system by affecting the thymus gland, which forms T-cells for regulating immunity and also produces various immune-related hormones.
The stress reaction diverts resources to the main parts of the body that need to deal with stress, mainly the brain, heart, and muscles.
Hormones produced by the adrenal glands can cause the thymus gland to shrink and also degrade the activity of white blood cells, causing damage to the body’s ability to fight infection.
As a result, high stress can result in reduced resistance to common infections, such as colds, influenza, and herpes (cold sores).

The release of adrenal hormones under stress can have a significant impact on blood-sugar levels.
Adrenaline causes sugar in the liver to be dumped into the bloodstream, and cortisol acts to reduce metabolism of glucose by cells.
Large amounts of cortisol act to decrease insulin sensitivity. High blood-sugar levels are not dangerous in normally healthy individuals, but chronic stress, combined with other factors such as obesity, act to increase the likelihood of developing diabetes.

Many problems with the digestive tract, such as constipation, diarrhea, and irritable bowel syndrome, are linked to stress.
Hormonal imbalances can cause alterations in intestinal function, such as spasms, constipation, and diarrhea.
Chronic stress tends to disturb the digestive system altogether, exacerbating intestinal problems.

Most headaches are caused not by disease but by fatigue, emotional disorders, or allergies.
Intermittent tension headaches are caused by worry, anxiety, overwork, or inadequate ventilation.
The most common type a chronic tension headache is often caused by depression.
Headaches brought on by muscle spasms are classified as tension headaches; almost 90 percent.
Tension headaches are often associated with poor sleep.

Stress has a debilitating effect on the nerves in general, and certain premenstrual symptoms may be aggravated by stress.
Many sufferers of PMS have abnormal levels of the adrenal hormone aldosterone which may account for some of the problems of excessive fluid retention and weight gain, breast tenderness, and abdominal bloating.
Further release of aldosterone caused by stress will exacerbate these problems.

Chronic stress can produce severe depression, because of its debilitating psychological effects.
The physiological changes produced by stress can also contribute to depression.
Adrenaline and noradrenaline are not only adrenal hormones but also chemical messengers in the brain.
Deficiencies of noradrenaline have been linked to depression in certain individuals.
Adrenal exhaustion through chronic long-term stress may be a contributory factor in depressive illness.