{"id":109788,"date":"2016-08-30T17:37:18","date_gmt":"2016-08-30T17:37:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/experts-reveal-how-worrying-is-wrecking-our-health\/"},"modified":"2016-08-30T17:37:18","modified_gmt":"2016-08-30T17:37:18","slug":"experts-reveal-how-worrying-is-wrecking-our-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/experts-reveal-how-worrying-is-wrecking-our-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Experts reveal how worrying is wrecking our health"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">Do you lie awake at night running through the day&#8217;s events in your mind?<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">Perhaps you toss and turn, fretting about\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"mol-style-bold\"><\/span><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">whether you&#8217;ll ever be promoted or get married.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">Experts warn we are<\/span><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">\u00a0in the midst of an epidemic of anxiety &#8211; with women in particular are racked with worry.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">Many females can&#8217;t stop binge-thinking &#8211; that is ruminating continuously over events and details, re-playing things in their minds.<\/span><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">Such behaviour can make us ill, leading to insomnia, fertility problems, adult acne and hair loss as well as depression and further anxiety.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">In an article for medical blogging site The Hippocratic Post<\/a>, experts discuss the explosion in angst, and recommend learning to live in the present.<\/span><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-2ec12ea046a800a9\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/16\/379B3D4600000578-0-We_are_in_the_midst_of_an_anxiety_epidemic_and_experts_say_women-a-5_1472224758716.jpg\" height=\"468\" width=\"634\" alt=\"We are in the midst of an anxiety epidemic - and women in particular are racked with worry. They cannot stop binge-thinking - ruminating over events and converations (file photo)\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">We are in the midst of an anxiety epidemic &#8211; and women in particular are racked with worry. They cannot stop binge-thinking &#8211; ruminating over events and converations (file photo)<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">No one is too beautiful and successful to be immune to worry.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">It doesn&#8217;t matter how many accolades you receive \u2013 you are still going to fret about failing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">A whole generation of women are losing sleep over worry, and it&#8217;s not even the major life issues like money and relationships which are interrupting\u00a0our nights.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;It&#8217;s minor niggles which are causing all the trouble. It&#8217;s almost as if we can&#8217;t turn off the worry button and we&#8217;re stuck on this perpetual wheel of angst,&#8217; says Gladeana McMahon, a fellow of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"rotator-panels link-bogr1 linkro-ccox\">\n<li>\n<p>          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/16\/3799B88A00000578-0-image-a-10_1472223950429.jpg\" width=\"62\" height=\"60\" \/><span>Other kids point and stare at him &#8211; but brave boy, 5, born&#8230;<\/span><br \/>\n        <\/a><\/p>\n<p>          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/13\/379965AB00000578-0-image-m-75_1472215688412.jpg\" width=\"62\" height=\"60\" \/><span>Young woman with agonising bowel condition is mortified to&#8230;<\/span><br \/>\n        <\/a><\/p>\n<p>          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/12\/37993D2C00000578-0-image-a-2_1472210156468.jpg\" width=\"62\" height=\"60\" \/><span>&#8216;It&#8217;s NOT contagious&#8217;: Psoriasis sufferer asked to leave a&#8230;<\/span><br \/>\n        <\/a><\/p>\n<p>          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/10\/3798A65B00000578-0-image-a-29_1472202054019.jpg\" width=\"62\" height=\"60\" \/><span>Soaring number of boys are being born with genital disorders&#8230;<\/span><br \/>\n        <\/a>\n      <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-large health-ccox\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">EPIDEMIC OF BINGE THINKING\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Past research has found that women are in the grip of a worry epidemic, caused by so-called &#8216;binge thinking&#8217;.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Yale University psychologist Professor Susan\u00a0Nolen-Hoeksema claims  73 per cent of adult women over the age of 25 are simply spending too much time going over things in their minds.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The\u00a0good news is that a worry shared, is really a worry halved.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Talking through your problems with others can actually create a &#8220;feel good&#8221; factor and help group bonding \u2013 as long as everyone remains supportive and non-judgemental&#8217;, Ms McMahon said.<\/p>\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-a09f3a5f04f8453d\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/16\/379B44EF00000578-0-Talking_through_your_problems_with_others_can_actually_create_a_-a-7_1472224843564.jpg\" height=\"446\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Talking through your problems with others can actually create a 'feel good' factor and help group bonding,\u00a0Gladeana McMahon, a lifecoach and fellow of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy said (file photo)\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Talking through your problems with others can actually create a &#8216;feel good&#8217; factor and help group bonding,\u00a0Gladeana McMahon, a lifecoach and fellow of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy said (file photo)<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Experts have a name for people who go over and over worries in their head \u2013 &#8216;ruminators&#8217; \u2013 so called because they chew on problems like a cow chews\u00a0on the cud.\u00a0Up to half of worriers are &#8216;ruminators&#8217;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;These are the people who keep chewing over and over again, even if they haven&#8217;t got anything to chew on,&#8217; said Dr Helen Nightingale, a chartered clinical psychologist.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;If there is nothing to worry about right now, they will still find something to regurgitate, and it could go back years.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-large health-ccox\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">LEARN TO LIVE IN THE PRESENT\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Ms McMahon says that a lot of the problem is down to our inability to live for the here and now.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Instead, we obsess about what happened in the past, and what is going to happen, or not, in the future.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Women do a lot of pre-emptive worrying, think about what could happen, but in all probability never will.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-e9f1e517d8def337\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/16\/379B3B2600000578-3760254-A_lot_of_the_problem_is_down_to_our_inability_to_live_for_the_he-a-23_1472225265736.jpg\" height=\"421\" width=\"634\" alt=\"A lot of the problem is down to our inability to live for the here and now - dwelling on the past and future instead, experts said (file photo)\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">A lot of the problem is down to our inability to live for the here and now &#8211; dwelling on the past and future instead, experts said (file photo)<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">We also tend to indulge in post mortem examinations, picking over the corpses of ancient history. Neither kind of worrying do us any good, Ms McMahon said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">All this angst could be an evolutionary sleight of hand.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;It&#8217;s this &#8220;porous&#8221; quality of the female psyche that allows us to be compassionate and understanding, but it also clogs up our ability to shake off minor worries,&#8217; Ms McMahon said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-large health-ccox\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">DO WOMEN WORRY MORE THAN MEN?\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Anecdotally, many experts agree that women do seem to worry more than men.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">We do know however that recorded rates of anxiety and depression are one and a half to two times higher in women than in men.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">We certainly worry differently to men. Dr Helen Nightingale says that, from her experience as a clinician, women are more likely to spend time in &#8216;unproductive&#8217; or irrational worrying that does not achieve anything.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-24b691da83ddc9c0\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/16\/379B422400000578-3760254-Women_are_more_likely_to_spend_time_in_irrational_worrying_that_-a-24_1472225304558.jpg\" height=\"293\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Women are more likely to spend time in  irrational worrying that does not achieve anything, while men\u00a0tend to worry about things they can do something about, an expert said (file photo)\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Women are more likely to spend time in  irrational worrying that does not achieve anything, while men\u00a0tend to worry about things they can do something about, an expert said (file photo)<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Men tend to worry about things they can do something about.<span class=\"mol-style-large health-ccox\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Women&#8217;s worries are also more likely to be focused on the health and wellbeing of the families.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Women are the nurturers, so this is understandable. Men, on the other hand, see themselves as the providers, obligated to make sure the needs of the family are taken care of and the mortgage is paid.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-large health-ccox\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">ARE FEMALES HARD WIRED TO WORRY?\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The reasons seem to be deep rooted and could be cultural, or more controversially,  hard wired into our brains.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Until eight weeks after conception, all foetal brains look the same.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">At this point, however, the testes in the male produce testosterone, flooding through the brain.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">This alters the male wiring, leading to unique male characteristics.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">For example, we know that the sexes use different sides of their brains to process and store long-term memories.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-792f472c2b14c907\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/16\/379B408D00000578-3760254-The_brains_of_females_are_wired_differently_in_men_and_women_Som-a-27_1472225386919.jpg\" height=\"525\" width=\"634\" alt=\"The brains of females are wired differently in men and women. Some scientists believe this explains why\u00a0emotions tend to make men act, while women internalise their angst\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">The brains of females are wired differently in men and women. Some scientists believe this explains why\u00a0emotions tend to make men act, while women internalise their angst<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Scientists have discovered that the amygdala, a cluster of neurons found on both sides of the brain and involved for both sexes in emotions and perception, hooks up to contrasting brain functions in men and women.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">For men, the amygdala sends out signals to brain regions such as the visual cortex and an area that coordinates motor actions.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">For women, the cluster communicates with brain regions that tune in to and regulate women&#8217;s hormones, heart rate, blood pressure, digestion and respiration.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The results are inconclusive, but one hypothesis is that could be an explanation why emotions tend to make men act, while women internalise their angst.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Dr Helen Nightingale said: &#8216;Every worry starts with a &#8220;what if?&#8221; We remember negative things that have happened in the past and predict they are going to happen again.&#8217;\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Interestingly, a study published in the journal Child Development looking at children aged three to six and adults of both genders found that females of all ages were more likely to believe that past negative experiences accurately forecast the future.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Males were much more likely to let bygones be bygones, taking the &#8216;what if?&#8217; out of the equation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-large health-ccox\"><span class=\"mol-style-bold\">WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE WORRY TOO MUCH?\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Worry is the main factor in breakdowns and depression,&#8217; says Dr Helen Nightingale.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;It also intrudes into your sleep, causing psychological wellbeing to deteriorate rapidly.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Insomnia is becoming a national epidemic, and some estimates now suggest that up to 40 per cent of adults suffer from sleeplessness, and is even more common in women.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Physical health is also affected. Worrying causes the body to release the hormone adrenaline which can be converted into cholesterol by the body, leading to increased risk of heart disease.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-f7f958a16fed7f0c\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/16\/379B3E8600000578-3760254-Worry_intrudes_into_sleep_causing_psychological_wellbeing_to_det-a-28_1472225533846.jpg\" height=\"465\" width=\"634\" alt=\"Worry intrudes into  sleep, causing psychological wellbeing to deteriorate rapidly, experts warn. Some estimates now suggest 40 per cent of adults suffer from sleeplessness (file photo)\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Worry intrudes into  sleep, causing psychological wellbeing to deteriorate rapidly, experts warn. Some estimates now suggest 40 per cent of adults suffer from sleeplessness (file photo)<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">It could even be helping to make women infertile.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">In a  study published in the journal Current Anthropology, Professor Elizabeth Cashdan, an anthropologist at the University of Utah, found that career women were more likely to be straight up and down, instead of curvy with a high waist to hip ratio.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Their masculine shape reflected the fact that their lifestyle was causing a shift in their hormone balance.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">The &#8216;male&#8217; hormones, associated with stamina and competitiveness, are gaining ground over oestrogen, which is a key factor in fertility.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">There has also been a rapid rise in the number of women suffering from adult acne, and it is now estimated that up to 50 per cent of women have been affected by the condition.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" id=\"i-da2e19d7a55e2858\" src=\"http:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2016\/08\/26\/16\/379B3FD000000578-3760254-Dr_Philip_Kingsley_a_consultant_trichologist_says_he_has_seen_a_-a-29_1472225673909.jpg\" height=\"463\" width=\"306\" alt=\"Dr Philip Kingsley, a consultant trichologist, says he has seen a rise in hair loss due to stress and worry (file photo)\u00a0\" class=\"blkBorder img-share\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p class=\"imageCaption\">Dr Philip Kingsley, a consultant trichologist, says he has seen a rise in hair loss due to stress and worry (file photo)\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Dr Nick Lowe, consultant dermatologist at the Cranley Clinic in London says he has seen a dramatic rise in the number of patients coming to see him with this problem.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;I would say it has gone up 25 per cent in the last five years, and a large majority of these women are successful women.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Cortisone, a hormone released by the body during times of anxiety, is an acne trigger.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;When we look at populations under stress, perhaps students taking exams, we find that there is a big increase in acne breakouts during exam periods.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Stress hormones are also responsible for another unpleasant side effect \u2013 female hair loss.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Through a series of chemical reactions in the body, adrenaline is converted to cholesterol, which can then be converted to testosterone, and finally to dihydrotestosterone (DHT) \u2013 the baddy when it comes to hair loss.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">Dr Philip Kingsley, a consultant trichologist with clinics in London and New York, says that he has noticed a big rise in the number of women coming to him with hair loss problems.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;I am definitely seeing a lot more women with conditions like alopecia areata, when the hair is lost in clumps usually because of stress, and generalised hair loss.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">&#8216;Many are high achievers who are used to perfection, and some of them are in the public eye. The loss of their hair is another cause for worry.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\"><span class=\"mol-style-medium mol-style-bold\">This article has been reproduced with the permission of <\/span><span class=\"mol-style-bold\"><span class=\"mol-style-large\"><span class=\"mol-style-medium\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"mol-style-bold\"><span class=\"mol-style-large\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><span class=\"mol-style-medium\"><\/span><\/a>The Hippocratic Post<\/a><span class=\"mol-style-bold mol-style-large\"><span class=\"mol-style-large\"><span class=\"mol-style-medium\">.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mol-para-with-font\">\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Do you lie awake at night running through the day&#8217;s events in your mind? Perhaps you toss and turn, fretting about\u00a0whether you&#8217;ll ever be promoted or get married. Experts warn we are\u00a0in the midst of an epidemic of anxiety &#8211; with women in particular are racked with worry. Many females can&#8217;t stop binge-thinking &#8211; that <a class=\"read-more-link\" href=\"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/experts-reveal-how-worrying-is-wrecking-our-health\/\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-109788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=109788"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109788\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=109788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=109788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/healthmedicinet.com\/i\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=109788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}