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Stress-related illness is costing Britain up to £3.75 billion a year and causing the annual loss of 6.5m working days, according a major new report published by the UK Government's Health and Safety Executive.

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One in five Britons, says the HSE, describe their work as very or extremely stressful, while some half-a-million Britons are suffering from work-related stress, anxiety or depression at levels that make them ill.

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Every year some 150,000 people in Britain take at least a month off for ailments caused by stress at work. Prolonged or intense stress, says the HSE, can lead to mental and physical ill-health, such as depression, back pain and heart disease.

 

Ask anybody how they are, chances are they will say busy, broke, don't have any time! This is often how people express that they are stressed.

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Stress causes a surge of hormones in your body. When your body detects stress, the hypothalamus reacts by stimulating the body to produce hormones that include adrenaline and cortisol.

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Some stress is important. It's called eustress:

These hormones help you to deal with any threats or pressure you are facing. Everyone needs a certain amount of stress or pressure to live. It's what gets you out of bed in the morning and motivates you throughout the day.

 

However, stress becomes problematic when there's too much or too little.

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Adrenaline increases your heart rate, raises your blood pressure and provides extra energy.

 

Cortisol, known as the stress hormone, also temporarily increases energy by triggering the release of glucose into the bloodstream, to help the person fight or run away. At the same time, other bodily functions which are not immediately needed, such as digestion, are suppressed.

 

The body's response to stress usually regulates itself. As your hormone levels fall, your heart and blood pressure will return to normal.

 

Lack of stress means your body is under-stimulated, stress that is too intense or over a long period of time, causes your body to release stress hormones over a long period. This increases the risk of a range of physical health problems including headaches, stomach ulcers / upsets and high blood pressure. It can even increase the risk of having a stroke or heart attack.

 

Stress often leads to psychological problems. It can make people feel distrust, anger, anxiety and fear, which in turn can destroy relationships at home and at work. Stress also plays a key role in the development of anxiety disorders and depression.

 

Long-term stress can play havoc on your immune system, studies suggests it raises the odds of developing viral infections such as cold and flu.

 

Research also found people who suffered from chronic stress at work were at greater risk of developing metabolic syndrome; a combination of diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity. Chronic stress can wreak havoc on your waistline by affecting appetite, food choices, eating behaviours, and even through biological processes-increasing the body's propensity to store belly fat.

 

Nearly everyone has experienced stress-induced eating, which usually involves high-sugar, high-fat foods. These comfort foods lead to strong rewarding effects and reinforce snacking and overeating. This pattern of emotional eating tends to lead to a negative, vicious cycle of overeating and weight gain, followed by restriction, which again leads to overeating and weight gain.

 

Too much ongoing stress can be damaging to your health in many ways. Stress can negatively affect:

• Mood and feelings of wellbeing

• Energy levels and focus

• Brain health and memory formation

• Sleep

• Immunity

• Digestion

• Cardiovascular function

• Carbohydrate management and metabolic function

• Skin

• Ageing

• Sexual function

• Over use of alcohol or drugs

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FURTHER INFORMATION

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Copies of Tackling Work-Related Stress a Managers' Guide To Improving And Maintaining Employee Health And Well-Being can be ordered online at www.books.hse.gov.uk, or are available from HSE Books, PO Box 1999, Sudbury, Suffolk, CO10 2WA.

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