1. Cardiac Complications
Experts suspect that stress is one of the prime reasons behind high blood pressure and heart conditions. It negatively impacts heart rate and blood flow that eventually releases triglycerides and cholesterol into the bloodstream. Stress also invokes harmful habits like smoking, directly linked to heart disorders. Moreover, chronic stress accelerates plaque build-up in the arteries, leading to atherosclerosis due to a high-fat diet and sedentary lifestyle.
However, the correlation between stress and psychiatric conditions overpowers the relation between stress and physical illness.
2. Anxiety and Depression
The strong bond between stress and psychiatric disorder severely impacts neuroses that lead to depression and, in worse cases, schizophrenia. Besides, unresolved tension makes a person vulnerable and manifests nervousness and fear, resulting in anxiety or panic attacks.
Note: Mental health is equally important as physical health. Therefore, these conditions should be brought to the attention of professionals at the earliest opportunity.
3. Asthma
Stress releases histamine that causes severe broncho-constriction and asthma. Further, mental pressure is unhealthy for individuals with asthma, especially if someone is exposed to air pollution.
4. Diabetes
People who overstress adopt unhealthy lifestyles, including excessive drinking, overeating, starving and others. These habits raise blood glucose levels, which is pernicious for type 2 diabetic patients. Additionally, as stress interrupts insulin needs, it increases the chances of diabetes mellitus among overweight individuals.
5. Obesity
Another disease caused by stress is obesity. When a person is under constant pressure, the hypothalamus sends a series of signals to secrete the cortisol hormone. High cortisol secretion leads to fat deposition in the abdomen, leading to obesity.
6. Migraine
Human bodies react to stressful events by releasing chemicals responsible for physical changes in the blood vessels. This reaction brings on migraine pain and severe headaches.
7. Alzheimer’s Disease
Researchers in Australia claim in a study that chronic stress is a potential reason behind Alzheimer’s disease. This could be to the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis response.
8. Gastrointestinal Complication
Some GI diseases caused by tension or stress are chronic heartburn or gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) due to alteration in stomach acid concentration.
9. Insomnia
Psychological stress interrupts sleep patterns and often causes insomnia, and by the same token, sleeplessness contributes to stress.
10. Tumour
Stress is also correlated with tumour development. It also suppresses natural killer (NK) cells that actively prevent metastasis by destroying small metastases.