Risk Factors

At some point in their lives virtually everyone will experience stressful events or situations that overwhelm their natural coping mechanisms. In one poll, 89% of respondents indicated that they had experienced serious stress in their lives. Some people are simply biologically prone to stress; many outside factors influence susceptibility as well.

Conditions Most Likely To Produce Stress-Related Health Problems. Conditions that are most likely to be associated with stress and negative physical effects include the following:

• An accumulation of persistent stressful situations, particularly those that a person cannot easily control (for example, high-pressured work plus an unhappy relationship).
• Persistent stress following a severe acute response to a traumatic event (such as an automobile accident).
• Acute stress accompanying serious illness, such as heart disease.

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Factors That Influence the Response to Stress. People respond to stress differently depending on different factors:

• Early nurturing. (Abusive behavior towards children may cause long-term abnormalities in the hypothalamus-pituitary system, which regulates stress.)
• Personality traits. Certain people have personality traits that cause them to over-respond to stressful events.
• Genetic factors. Some people have genetic factors that affect stress, such as having more or less efficient relaxation response. One 2001 study found a genetic abnormality in serotonin regulation that was associated with a heightened reactivity of the heart rates and blood pressure in response to stress. (Serotonin is a brain chemical involved with feelings of well being.)
• Immune regulated diseases. Certain diseases that are associated with immune abnormalities (such as rheumatoid arthritis or eczema) may actual impair a response to stress.
• The length and quality of stressors. Naturally the longer the duration and more intense the stressors, the more harmful the effects.