Stress and Health:Wear and Tear Takes Its Toll

It is widely recognized that increases in arousal tend to be associated with stress. A

formal distinction is made between a stressor and stress. A stressor refers to the

source, or cause, of stress. The loss of a job, an argument with a spouse, a conflict

situation, excessive cold or heat, and a physical threat are examples of stressors.

Stress refers to wear and tear on the body. Chronic stress takes a toll. The body

loses some of its resiliance, its ability to bounce back.

Let’s say that you take a small piece of metal and fold it back and forth. A crack

appears in the metal after a number of foldings. Each act of folding is a stressor.

The crack is the stress.

The Canadian researcher Hans Selye (1907–1982) did a substantial amount of research on stress. Rats were subjected to such stressors as excessive cold, excessive heat, and high-pitched whistles. Also, the stressors were chronic in nature. They became a constant part of the animal’s environment. Under such conditions, the organism is forced to adapt, and Selye developed a set of observations about the organism’s behavior under such conditions. This set of observations is called the general adaptation syndrome (GAS), a pattern that describes how an organism responds under conditions that induce chronic stress. There are three stages in the general adaptation syndrome: (1) The alarm reaction, (2) the stage of resistance, and (3) the stage of exhaustion.

The alarm reaction is characterized by an increase in arousal and general

alertness. The pulse and respiration rates increase and the blood vessels of the stri-

ated muscles narrow. The organism prepares itself to deal with a threat. The alarm

reaction is the individual’s response to a novel stressor.

The stage of resistance is characterized by reduced agitation and excite-

ment. This stage represents an organism’s response to a stressor that has become

chronic. The individual learns to live with the stressor. During the stage of resist-

ance, the organism seems to have adapted to adverse conditions. Learning and

reproduction are possible.

The stage of exhaustion is associated with illness and death. The death is a

premature one. Postmortem examinations of rats subjected to chronic stressors

revealed that their adrenal glands were swollen. They had adapted at great physio-

logical cost. During the stage of resistance, the adrenal glands had pumped out

excessive amounts of their hormones and had overtaxed themselves.

The importance of the general adaptation syndrome has not been lost on

physicians and psychologists. Research suggests that human beings, like Selye’s

rats, are also subject to the damaging effects of chronic stressors. Research on life

change units and Type A behavior reveal the important role that stress plays in

human illness.

Life change units (LCUs) refers to stressors arising from events in a per-

son’s life that require adaptation. The two researchers who pioneered the general

approach are R. H. Rahe and T. H. Holmes. Studying a large group of subjects,

they developed a measuring device called the Social Readjustment Rating

Scale (SRRS). The scale, based on the perceptions of subjects, assigns weighted

values to life changes. The maximum value is 100, and this is assigned to the

death of a spouse. Getting married has a value of 50. Loss of a job has a value of

47. Being given a traffic ticket has a value of 11. There are a number of similar

items on the scale. If a person collects 150 or more LCUs within a two-year

period, there is a high likelihood that he or she will experience a distinct health

problem.

The Type A behavior pattern is characterized by hostility and impatience.

Research conducted by the cardiologists Meyer Friedman and Ray H. Rosenman

strongly supports the hypothesis that individuals who display this pattern are more

prone than people in general to heart attacks and cardiovascular disease.

The contrasting pattern is called the Type B behavior pattern, and it is

characterized by an absence of general hostility and a willingness to allow events

to take place at their own rate.

The existence of the Type A pattern suggests that behavior can itself be a source

of stress. Human beings are capable of self-induced stress, wear and tear on the

body generated by their own thoughts, choices, attitudes, and actions. The Roman

philosopher Cicero, writing about two thousand years ago, foreshadowed modern

research on stress when he said, “To live long it is necessary to live slowly.”