Some Statistics on Stress in America

        Stress is an ever increasing problem in the United States today. Its affects are felt
every day by everyone. Stress crosses all ethnic lines, does not discriminate by age or sex,
and has no religious preference. Luckily our bodies are equipped to deal with stress. But
when stress becomes excessive our bodies cannot manage on their own. The affects of
stress are almost unbelievable. Everyday doctors, scientists, researchers, officials, and law
officers are stunned at what stress can lead one to do. Whether it be ones mother yelling at
them after a rough day or a stressed worker opening fire on his co-workers, stress is felt at
every level. Taken to the extreme stress can cause death. In the united states in 1995 stress
was an associated risk factor in three of the top ten causes of death in Americans. The
number one cause of death in America in 1995 was ‘diseases of the heart’. Unmanaged
stress has been found to be a major factor in the development of heart disease. The two
other causes of death (in the top ten) that cite stress as a risk factor were: cerebrovascular
disease and suicide. While it must be noted that there are other risk factors associated with
theses three causes of death , stress could have caused an amazingly high number of death
in 1995. In the United States in 1995 The National Center for Health Statistics and The
Department of Health and Human Services reports that 926,838 people lost their lives to a
diseases that is caused by unmanaged stress (http://www.youfirst.com/topten.htm ).
         V.F. Libassi says... “Stress! Its moving up in the ranks of crippling diseases. We're
all afflicted with it. There's no cure on the horizon, in fact, its self-perpetuating. Just
thinking about the amount of stress you'll probably have tomorrow, adds to your tension.
But something must be done about it! I don't want to stress you out with statistics, so I
won't tell you that half the men in America will eventually die of a heart attack. A major
contributing factor is cholesterol, so you've been watching what you eat, but look out,
stress affects cholesterol levels ten times more than dietary factors do. Calm down, you're
looking a little nervous, there. Its not all that bleak. All this stress is stressing you out, but
that's no reason to fly off the handle. There is hope.
(http://www.oz.net/veils/veilsv2n6/stress.html).
        And for some aromatherapy just might be that beacon of light that they have been looking
for.

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