STRESS FROM ECONOMY AFFECTING HEALTH 2008-10-14 Several articles appeared in the news warning of the harmful health effects from the stress of the current economic conditions. One such article on October 8, 2008 from WebMD noted that a recent study showed that 80% of Americans said that the economy was a significant source of stress in September, up from just 66% in April of this same year. The article notes that the increased stress is taking its toll on everyone, but that older women seem to be affected the most. The studys executive summary, conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA), and published on October 7, 2008 states that, Nearly half of Americans report that their stress level has increased over the past year, with as many as 30 percent rating their average stress levels as extreme. Money and finances were the highest two concerns that the study showed were creating stress. Katherine Nordal, PhD, a psychologist and APAs executive director for professional practice, commented, With the deteriorating economy dominating the headlines, its easy to worry more about your finances than your health, but, stress over money and the economy is taking an emotional and physical toll on America, especially among women. Dr. Nordal went on to warn, Many say they are handling their stress well. Yet, people report more physical and emotional symptoms. If Americans continue to experience these high levels of stress for prolonged periods of time, they are at risk for developing serious illnesses. The study did note that Americans are aware of the dangers of stress, noting that 86 percent, recognize that stress increases their likelihood of becoming sick and has a very strong negative impact on a variety of conditions including depression, heart attack or stroke, high blood pressure, cancer, obesity and insomnia. Unfortunately, many people either do not know how to help their stress, think they are managing their stress well, or believe they have no control over it. Dr. John Maltby, president of the International Chiropractors Association noted that chiropractic is one of the more effective ways to deal with the stress created by these trying times. He commented, The most profound result of stress is the functional and physical effect it has on the nervous system. This is where chiropractic can play a key role. By removing physical irritation to the nervous system brought on by stress, the body is better able to cope on all levels. Stress is a cycle. It creates spinal and nerve system problems, and is made worse by the nerve system problem stress creates. The role of chiropractic is to break that cycle by correcting the physical component of this problem, known as subluxation.
Posted on: Sat, 09 Aug 2014 14:00:00 +0000
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