Work Stress: A Potential Killer for Employees

Running head: STRESS IS A POTENTIAL KILLER
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Stress is a Killer
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Introduction
Having a job or source of income plays a critical role in improving people’s health as
well as shaping their attitude towards life. However, workers in various social constructions are
today faced with a new challenge that threatens their well-being, and that is stress. Workplace
stress has become a critical issue for many people to the extent that outweighs the possible
benefits and exposes individuals to various health challenges. As a consequence of stress,
workers can suffer injuries and poor health. A collective majority of the workers occasionally
report experiencing workplace stress, and that compromises their health and performance. While
stress levels may vary from workplace to another, it is imperative to underscore that some
employees are confronted with greater risks than the others. To this extent, therefore, it can be
stated that work stress is a potential killer.
Literature Review
Emotional and chronic psychosocial distress impacts the immune functions to a greater
extent. As a consequence, the alteration of the immune function increases the risk of contracting
diseases. Breen et al. (2016) argue that the recent estimates indicate that by 2030 the stress-
related diseases will be widespread and health challenges will be the new normal among the
working population. Chronic stress has both adverse and protective effects on individuals. For
instance, chronic stress can elevate the expression as well as the acquisition of immunoprotection
through the activation of the body defences before infection (Breen et al., 2016). Alternatively,
acute stress can induce immunopathology through the exacerbation of autoimmune
inflammation, with cardiovascular and respiratory consequences. One of the primary
mechanisms through which chronic psychological stress causes an immune response is by
provoking rapid alterations in the distribution of leukocyte (Bosch et al., 2005). Some scholars

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have established that chronic short-term stressors increase natural killer cell numbers as well as
subtype cell numbers (Breen et al., 2016). Additionally, acute stress in humans causes a
reduction in the proliferation of lymphocyte and increased pro-inflammatory cytokine
production. Therefore, it can be determined that work-related stress can have negative
implications for the health of an individual, especially when the immune functions are altered.
It has also been established that work-related stress causes hypertension. In a study
conducted by Babu et al. (2014), cohort and case-control studies indicated that there was a
positive correlation between job strain and hypertension. In 2010 there were increased cases of
circulatory and cardiovascular disorders. Prevalence of hypertension has increased globally, and
it is projected that by 2025 about 500 million people will have hypertension (Babu et al., 2014).
Evidence suggests that hypertension reduction reduces the chances of contracting communicable
diseases. According to Babu et al. (2014), environmental, psychological, social and potential
biological contributors are likely to impact the pathogenesis of hypertension. Previous studies
have demonstrated that there is a correlation between job strain and coronary diseases
(Netterstrom, 2014). Job strain has significant consequences on the well-being of a person to the
extent that they create conditions that cause heart diseases, leading to hypertension. The study
conducted by Babu et al. (2014) indicate that both home and work-related stress have the
potential of causing hypertension.
Work-related stress is also associated with coronary heart disease (CHD). Chandola et al.
(2008) conducted a study in London among civil servants with the aim of understanding the
correlation between coronary heart disease and work stress. The study established that work-
related stress can be a significant determinant of coronary heart disease (CHD), especially among
working populations. Today, strain in the workplace is related to increased heart complication