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Only Half of Worried Americans Try to Manage Their Stress

February 23, 2006

(USA TODAY) -- When it comes to dealing with stress, a number of Americans turn to unhealthy behaviors such as overeating and smoking for relief and don't exercise, according to a survey released today by the American Psychological Association (APA).

But those choices, researchers say, lead to increased health problems that ultimately make stress worse.

"What's surprising and alarming is the fact that too many people weren't taking active steps to do anything about the stress they're feeling," says Russ Newman of the APA. "People don't really appreciate how detrimental stress is, and the ways they're trying to manage stress can be as detrimental, if not more so."

Despite the numbers of adults who are very concerned about stress, only 55% are making an effort to manage it -- a trend that could have long-term consequences for the health of Americans, Newman says. Adults who experience stress were less likely to say they were in good health, and they reported higher rates of hypertension, depression and obesity.

The survey of about 2,000 adults showed that 47% of Americans said they were concerned about the levels of stress in their lives, though women were more likely than men to say they were affected by stress.

Women also responded differently, the survey shows. Women under stress were more likely than men to say they felt nervous, wanted to cry or had a lack of energy. Men said they had trouble sleeping and felt angry or irritable.

About one-quarter of Americans said they turn to food for comfort; about one in three women said they cope by eating. Those who reported turning to food were twice as likely as the average American to be diagnosed with obesity, researchers noted.

People who reported higher stress also were more likely to smoke and less likely to exercise. These behaviors lead to a "vicious cycle," Newman says, in which unhealthful habits might relieve stress in the short term but exacerbate it in the long run.

Such habits are hard to break, however. Rajita Sinha, director of the Research Program on Stress, Addiction and Psychopathology at Yale University School of Medicine, says that when a person is stressed, the need to feel better "takes precedence over impulse control."

"We tend to choose a response based on what we know, based on habit," Sinha says. "We will be looking for things that calm us down, but they may not be the best thing for us."

She recommends trying to start good habits early on and paying close attention to "why we do one thing over the other" to be more aware of long-term consequences.

Copyright 2006 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.

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