Stress: The Cancer in Business
by James L. Wilson DC, ND, Ph.D.
#1 in the series
One of my chief concerns is the overall decline in health of the US population, and specifically the health of the owners, executives and managers of US companies. All too often, I have witnessed the detrimental effects of stress on the health and productivity of key company employees and leaders. The unnecessary waste of talent in American businesses due to health concerns caused by stress is costly and in epidemic proportions. Research shows that workplace accounts for about 75% of the stress in someone's life. We know that health care expenditures are nearly 50% greater for workers who report high levels of stress.(1)
Your body is designed to handle a certain amount of stress. In fact, a low level of stress appears to strengthen it and help keep it in good repair. However, when the total amount of stress is greater than your body can adequately compensate for, the signs and symptoms of stress begin to appear. Because stress includes all physical, emotional, mental, chemical, and biochemical deviations from homeostasis (physiological stability), many of the stresses your body handles on a day-to-day basis are imperceptible. They can be internal or external, imagined or real. Their effects can surface in your conscious or remain unconscious, but your body has to mediate every stress from every source in order for you to function properly and remain healthy.
It is important to remember that there is what I call a "cumulative stress load." This is the sum of the total number of stressors, times the severity of each stressor, times the length of time that stress as occurred. You may only be consciously aware of trying to get to work on time, but your body has to also compensate for the distresses of waking up before you are ready, skipping breakfast, frustration and impatience with traffic on the way to work, your unresolved argument with someone 12 days ago, the tight family finances, that chronic upset stomach, the upcoming report that is due, and your high blood pressure. If it is not able to physiologically compensate for all of these stresses, your body begins to break down. This deterioration usually begins slowly and innocuously, but can be reversed given the right conditions. However, if your body is over-stressed for long, the negative effects on your health and state of mind gradually become noticeable and begin to interfere with your ability to work and live life fully.
Stresses that are chronic or severe have a pervasive physiological impact that can negatively affect your physical and mental health, sometimes in surprising ways. To find out if stress is affecting your health, honestly answer the questions in the following short quiz:
- Are you tired for no reason?
- Are you having trouble getting up in the morning?
- Do you need coffee or colas to keep you going?
- Are you feeling run down and stressed?
- Do you crave salty or sweet snacks?
- Are you struggling to keep up with life's daily demands?
- Are you having difficulty bouncing back from stress or illness?
- Do you notice that you’re not having fun anymore?
- Are you experiencing decreased sex drive?
If you answered yes to even one of the above, stress may be silently undermining your health. The more yeses, the more likely it is that stress is seriously interfering with your ability to feel good and function at your best, and your defenses against metabolic and degenerative disorders like cardiovascular disease, diabetes and autoimmune problems that are gaining such prevalence in modern life.
In the next article we will begin to explore the signs and symptoms of adrenal fatigue, one of most common manifestations of too much stress. If you answered “yes” to any of the questions in the quiz above, or would like to know more about adrenal fatigue in advance, you can visit the website: www.adrenalfatigue.org and/or get a copy of my book Adrenal Fatigue: the 21st Century Stress Syndrome. 2001 Smart Publications, Reno NV ISBN: 10890572-15-2.($14.95).
*The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is the Federal agency created as part of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 to be responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injuries and illness. It is a regulatory agency located in the US department of Labor that has been directed by Congress to study the psychological aspects of occupational safety and health, including stress at work.
References
1. Goetzel RZ, et al. The relationship between modifiable health risk and health care expenditures: an analysis of the multiemployer HERO health risk and cost database. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. 1998: 40 (10); 843-54.
2. Anderson DR, Whitmer RW, Goetzel RZ, Ozminkowski RJ, Dunn RL, Wasserman J, Serxner S; Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO) Research Committee. The relationship between modifiable health risks and group-level health care expenditures. Am J Health Promot. 2000 Sep-Oct;15(1):45-52.