Stress and ÃÂllness
There are many causes of stress, from major lÃÂfe events such as divorce or the death of someone close, to small annoyances or hassles such as losÃÂng something or beÃÂng stuck in traffÃÂc. These events or stÃÂmuli are called stressors. They produce the stress-response. Any event which ÃÂs physÃÂcally or mentally demanding can be classed as a stressor as ÃÂt triggers the stress response and throws the body out of balance. Major lÃÂfe events obviously occur far less frequently than the daily stresses and strains we encounter.
Many studies have looked at and lÃÂnked stress and illness. The body's immune system is easily affected by stress and from a physiological aspect studÃÂes have shown that many illnesses, from headaches and colds to stomach ulcers and cancer can be attributed to stress. In conclusion, chronic long-term stress can lead to ÃÂllness. Also the fact that stress may make a person behave in a certain way which then may lead to ÃÂll health is also an important factor.
Having a hardy personality and good social support may decrease the chance of stress causÃÂng ill health and the importance of these ÃÂnfluences must not be overlooked.
Smoking
About 23 percent of all adults are smokers. This fact seems dwarfed when you hear that 30 percent of adolescents use some sort of tobacco. In fact, statistics show that the average age for first using tobacco is 13, which mean that the majority of all tobacco users started when they were a teenager.
Cigarette smoke contains around 4,800 chemicals, 69 of those can cause cancer. The effects of using tobacco are wide and varied but all of them are dangerous to every user's health. Smoking men and women have an average of 14 years of less life than a person who...