Is Worrying Ever Healthy?
Too much worry can be a bane for beauty—but a little bit can be a boon for health.
-Dr. Oz and Dr. Roizen, YouBeauty.com
When was the last time you felt no stress, no stress at all? Can’t remember? That’s right—the only time you have no stress is when you are lying quietly six feet under. Life comes with stress and we’re told over and over that stress is bad for us and that we should reduce our stress whenever possible (talk about stressful!). It’s easier said than done, we know. But stress is only bad when you make it so.
Worrying has evolutionary benefits; it signals a lack of confidence, knowledge or control and it makes us snap to attention when situations call for thought, planning and action. If you think about it, beauty is often about managing the different kinds of stress in our lives—and put to proper use, worrying can actually be good for you.
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Worry: The Good
Worrying can help us perform better. When our bodies are in a stressed state—say, due to a looming deadline, or important meeting—blood flow increases to our brain, which helps us think more clearly, and our mood becomes more serious, promoting increased concentration. A recent study from the University of Rochester Medical Center even found that people who consider themselves neurotic (you might call them worrywarts) and are also conscientious (organized and responsible) have lower levels of a protein called Interleukin 6, which, at higher concentrations, is associated with inflammatory precursors to conditions such as heart disease, stroke, asthma, diabetes and some cancers. And a long-term study conducted over 80 years found that people who always see the world through rose-colored glasses do not live as long as those who have a tendency to fret and fuss. A little worry goes a long way.
Worry: The Bad
Chronic stress—that is, not the acute stress you deal with when you have a project due and you get it done—brings with it a whole host of nasty side effects. It increases anxiety, causes headaches, hurts sleep, compromises your immune system and can lead to high blood pressure. It can also speed collagen breakdown, making your skin look older, can make acne and eczema flare up, and gives you dark under-eye circles. Unmanaged stress makes you crave sugar. Then eventually you start stressing even more because your jeans don’t fit!
Up next: How to deal with worry.