stress (4)

In today’s era, stress has become a permanent issue in our lives. During stressful situations, like a tough work meeting or a challenging personal situation, the body experiences a specific biological response. This response is characterised by the release of hormones and chemicals like cortisol and adrenaline.

Stress also triggers a fight-or-flight response which would either help you to face the situation or run from the stressor. After the bodily response occurs, your body begins to relax, leading your breathing and heart rate to slow down. If you experience frequent and long periods of stress, it can take a toll on your health.

What does stress do to your body?

When you face a dangerous situation, it leads the base of your brain or the hypothalamus to react. The hypothalamus sends hormone and nerve signals to the adrenal gland, which releases certain hormones.

These hormones help prepare you to deal with danger and enhance your survival skills. Two hormones - adrenaline and cortisol - help fight stressful situations. Nevertheless, a frequent surge in these hormones can be harmful.

Constant adrenaline rush may cause troubles like:

• Damage to blood vessels
• High risk of stroke and heart attack
• Hypertension or high blood pressure
• Anxiety
• Headaches
• Insomnia 
• Unintentional weight gain

On the other hand, if the cortisol is at an all-time high, it can lead to complications like:

• High blood pressure
• Unintentional weight gain
• Loss of energy
• Sleeping troubles
• Osteoporosis
• Type 2 diabetes
• Weak immunity
• Brain fog and memory problems

What kinds of stress tests are available?

There are three kinds of stress:

• Acute stress: Everybody experiences acute stress when they are faced with a challenging situation. Acute stress is the body's instant response to an immediate perceived threat, either physical, emotional or psychological.
• Chronic stress: If you have alleviated stress levels for prolonged periods, it can cause chronic stress. It may lead to depression, anxiety, high blood pressure, cardiovascular problems, etc.
• Episodic acute stress: If you experience acute stress too often, it is called episodic acute stress. If left untreated, it can lead to relationship problems, unintended hostility and irritability.

It is essential to know what kind of stress you suffer from and what it can lead to. For the same, Apollo 24|7 offers an extensive range of stress tests that would help keep an eye on your stress levels:

• Lipoprotein A (LP-A): This test is prescribed to check for risk of stroke, heart attack or other heart-related conditions only if you have certain risk factors, such as a family history of heart disease.
• Triglycerides - Serum: This test is normally prescribed for patients with hypertension, obesity, heart diseases, etc to ascertain their risk levels.

These tests will help you keep an eye on your health graph and prevent any sudden health scare that may inadvertently keep your stress from rising, causing any fatal health outcome.