BS: You're killing me!

Subject: BS: You're killing me!
From: beardedbruce
Date: 16 May 07 - 01:37 PM

Actually, YOU are not- but any comments on this study?





Unfair Treatment Can Harm the Heart Tue May 15, 11:46 PM ET



TUESDAY, May 15 (HealthDay News) -- A nagging sense of being unfairly treated at work or at home can raise a person's risk of heart attack, British researchers report.

Researchers at University College London analyzed responses from a few thousand senior civil servants working for the British government in London. On a scale of 1 to 6 (1 equals "strongly disagree" and 6 equals "strongly agree"), the workers were asked to rate their response to the statement: "I often have the feeling that I am being treated unfairly."


Scores of 1 or 2 were rated as low, scores of 3 or 4 were moderate, and those of 5 or 6 were high.


The workers were tracked for an average of 11 years. During that time, 64 of the 966 people in the low category had either a heart attack or experienced angina, compared with 98 of 1,368 in the moderate category and 51 of 567 in the high category.


People with the strongest feelings of being treated unfairly were 55 percent more likely than those in the moderate category and twice as likely as those in the low category to have serious heart disease, the study found.


Women and people with lower incomes and status were much more likely than others to feel they were being treated unfairly, the researchers added. Feelings of unfair treatment were also associated with higher levels of poor physical and mental health.


Fairness is an important factor in promoting a healthier society, the U.K. team concluded. They published their findings in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 16 May 07 - 01:42 PM

Well, of course a buildup of frustration, suppressed anger, humiliation, and other such negative feelings can impact the nervous system, harm the health, impair the efficiency of bodily processes, and damage the heart (and other parts of the body). Stress causes bodily breakdown over a period of time. This is not news.

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: MMario
Date: 16 May 07 - 01:43 PM

makes sense - stress, both physical and emotional, has long been associated with increased risk of heart disease and feeling that you are treated unfairly would be emotional stress.

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Amos
Date: 16 May 07 - 02:46 PM

It has to be noted, though, that the notion of "injustice" causes no impact on the body itself, until its owner gets pissed off. Then you see stress, which in turn impacts bodily function in well-documented ways. (MHO)

A

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Leadfingers
Date: 16 May 07 - 02:52 PM

I am still firmly convinced that IF I had not beem able to take the Early Retirement Option four years ago , I would have had some kind of breakdown ! It was a bit scary the number of people a month after retirement thought I looked a LOT Healthier !

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Donuel
Date: 16 May 07 - 02:53 PM

The 'slow eye effect' is well documented.

When this occurs on submarines it has been found that the stress can in fact become fatal. Being such a small space the submarine crew's effect on one particular person seems to be magnified.

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 16 May 07 - 04:13 PM

Good point, Amos. Stress occurs as a result of someone's emotional reactions to the situations around them. The degree to which they can control and master their own emotional reactions is a key ingredient. Given the fact that most of us are not too good, however, at controlling our emotional reactions, we are mostly pretty vulnerable to highly stressful situations, such as being treated unfairly.

There are better and worse ways of dealing with such circumstances, obviously.

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 16 May 07 - 04:30 PM

I wouldn't take those survey results at face value. Some people are never going to feel they've been treated fairly under any circumstances. Why? Because they're suffering from mental conditions characterized by depression, low self-esteem, and even paranoia. People with such conditions are far more prone to unhealthy behaviors such as drinking, smoking, drug abuse, overeating, and failure to exercise, all of which put them at higher risk for heart problems.

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Rapparee
Date: 16 May 07 - 06:42 PM

Well, I'd rather be the treater than the treatee....

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 16 May 07 - 06:51 PM

Donuel: What do you mean by "slow eye effect"? I Googled with that phrase and found nothing.

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 16 May 07 - 10:38 PM

Yes, Bee-dub, there are certainly cases like those you allude to.

I wondered about "slow eye effect" too. Never heard of it.

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 17 May 07 - 05:04 AM

I'm not sure I like this... I'm a Civil Servant working in the very building that UCL took its study group from.... and I've a history of heart trouble... should I be worried and should I start looking for retirement 12 years earlier than expected?!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: You're killing me!
From: Gurney
Date: 17 May 07 - 10:57 PM

Isn't it nice to see where your tax money is going?

They get money to research something so obvious as THAT?

Why not just ask their grandad? Or anyone else who's ever had a job.