Does stress really cause gray hairs?
A recent study on mothers caring for children who had life-threatening diseases like cancer found an accelerated aging of the mothers DNA, so you may actually be right if you believe that excessive or prolonged emotional stress can give you more gray hairs or drive you to an early grave. Stress has a major impact on your circulatory system, and it plays a significant role in susceptibility to, progress in, and outcome of cardiovascular disease. Not all stress is bad, however–for example, temporary stress during an athletic event may improve your ability to perform both emotionally and physically–but emotional stress due to diabetes or other chronic illnesses is likely more detrimental than helpful. A case in point is the fact that any stress (even simply making it through the holiday season) can suppress your bodys immune function and increase your likelihood of getting sick–even with the common cold–by increasing your cortisol levels. Compound that level of stress day after day by
