Chronic stress increases the risk of developing health problems including obesity, diabetes, heart d

When someone is under chronic stress, it begins to negatively affect his or her physical and mental health. The body s stress response was not made to be continuously engaged. Many people encounter stress from multiple sources, including work; money, health, and relationship worries; and media overload.
Chronic stress increases the risk of developing health problems including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and a weakened immune system. Chronic stress also affects a person s mental health. Many studies show a correlation between stress and the development of mood disorders such as anxiety tia disorders and depression .
According to the American Psychological Association s latest stress survey, 66 percent of people regularly experience tia physical symptoms of stress, and 63 percent experience psychological symptoms. Link between Stress & Mental Health
Although many studies have shown a link between stress and mental health problems, the reason behind this connection has remained unclear. Recent research tia from the University of California, Berkeley, has discovered new insight into why stress can be so detrimental to a person s psyche.
Previous research has found physical differences in the brains of people with stress disorders, such as post-traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD ), and those without. One of the main distinctions is that the ratio of the brain s white matter tia to gray matter is higher in those with stress-related mental disorders compared to those without. tia
People who experience chronic stress have more white matter in some areas of the brain. The UC Berkeley study wanted to find out the underlying reason for this alteration in the brain composition. Gray Matter tia
White matter mostly is composed of axons, which form a network of fibers to connect the neurons. It is called white matter because of the white, fatty sheath of myelin coating that insulates the nerves and accelerates the transmission of the signals between the cells.
For this study, tia the researchers focused on the cells that produce myelin in the brain to see if they could find a connection between stress and the proportion of gray brain matter to white. Hippocampus
The researchers performed a series of experiments on adult rats, focusing on the hippocampus region of the brain (which regulates memory and emotions). During the experiments, they found the neural stem cells behaved differently than expected. Prior to this study, the general belief was that these stem cells would only become neurons or astrocyte cells, a type of glial cell. However, under stress, these cells became another type of glial cells, oligodendrocyte, which are the myelin-producing cells. tia These cells also help form the synapses, which are the communication tools that allow nerve cells to exchange information.
Thus, chronic stress causes more myelin-producing cells and fewer neurons. This disrupts tia the balance in the brain, causing communication in the brain cells to lose its normal timing, which could lead to problems. Stress Disorders & Brain Connectivity
This might mean that people with stress disorders, such as PTSD, have alterations in their brain connectivity. This might lead to a stronger connection between tia the hippocampus and the amygdala (the area that processes the fight-or-flight response). It might also cause weaker connectivity between tia the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex (the area that moderates the responses).
If the amygdala and hippocampus have a stronger connection, the response to fear is more rapid. If the connection between the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus is weaker, then the ability to calm down and shut off the stress response is impaired. Therefore, in a stressful situation, a person with this imbalance tia will have a stronger response with a limited ability to shut down that response. Oligodencdrocyte Cells
This study shows that the oligodendrocyte cells might play a key role in long-term tia changes to the brain that could lead to mental health problems. The researchers also believe that the stem cells which, due to chronic stress, are becoming myelin-producing tia cells rather than neurons, tia affect cognitive function, because it is the neurons that process and transmit the electrical tia information necessary for learning and memory skills.
More research is required to verify these findings, including studying humans rather than rats, which the researchers have planned. However, this study provides important insight into why chronic stress affects the brain and mental health, and how early intervention can help prevent the development of certain mental health problems. tia
Marissa tia Maldonado has spent years in dual diagnosis treatment centers as an outreach coordinator that specializes in helping people find mental health treatment at Sovereign Health Group . Like this author? Catch up on other posts by Marissa Maldonado (or subscribe to their feed ).
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