Stress and The Affects of Male vs Female

Ever wonder if stress affects a Female differently that it affects a Male human? We see in our everyday lives people going through stress, both male and female. We can probably conclude that sometimes the mood of the person can me different because they are male or female. Maybe the two different sex do handle stress differently and is affected differently, or maybe the affects and similar but the reaction is different. Maybe it all depends on the person. 

Looking from the outside I could conclude some differences between the two different sexes. One would be that women, when faced with a large amount of stress, seem to be more emotional where men are not. It was stated in “Men, women and stress”, “the stress levels felt by men and women in pharmacy are roughly the same, but they seem to deal with the pressures differently” (Men). This study says that the way we feel stress as a male or female is fairly similar but the way we deal with the pressures can also be similar. Then article then followed up with a statistic stating that men, when dealing with stress, are more likely to turn towards drinking alcohol causing them to gain weight. As for a female, they are more likely to gain weight by turning to food (Men). Women are also likely to be more supportive when going through stress and men are not. 

Most scientist use male or female mice to run test on and relate them to humans. The reason behind this is because mice are animals that are most similar to humans with reactions and behavior. In the article “Metabolic Consequences and Vulnerability to Diet-Induced Obesity in Male Mice under Chronic Social Stress” scientist use mice to run experiments on to examine the reaction of obesity in male mice when they produce stress on the mice. The article then goes on to say how the male mouse when under stress seemed to produce a weight gain over time. The mice seemed to have a larger appetite and would eat more times throughout the day then normal (Metabolic). They then continued to describe the consumption of food by the mice. Stating, “Food intake, the hedonic response to palatable food as well as the locomotor activity and the sympathetic activation within the adipose fat pads all represent causal factors explaining the different metabolic alterations observed” (Metabolic). The scientist then continued to test the mice with over days and noticed aggressive behavior. As the male mice began to stress more they then became more aggressive than what the scientist have noticed before.The scientist then continued by stating “In our experimental setup, body weight changes were associated with hyperphagia in Sub mice” (Metabolic). 

Stress can affect a female in different ways. “A woman’s hormone levels fluctuate during puberty, pregnancy, menopause and her monthly menstrual cycle. These hormonal changes leave women especially vulnerable to stress and its symptoms. Stress has been known to cause both heavy menstrual bleeding and lack of bleeding, endometriosis and fertility problems in women.” (LaMeaux). I believe that because the hormone levels in a female fluctuate that this is the reason why we see a different reaction out of a female human rather than a male human. Stress seems to affect the woman more than man. Stress seems to play a much tougher role in a females life. The article states “Heart disease is the number-one killer of American women and the most prevalent consequence of stress. Stress causes high blood pressure, which compels the heart to work double time, increasing the risk of strokes, heart attacks, kidney failure and diabetes.” (LaMeaux). This could be the reason why we see females being more emotional when dealing with stress. 

Males and females have similar stress levels when the occurrence of the same stressor is brought upon them. The way that they handle them is different and the way in effects the body is differently. The female will take upon stress and become emotional while some health issues may occur. All while the male would go through a stressful situation and possibly have anger issue, become a more aggressive person, and possibly become obese. 

-Chris Carter

Resources

LaMeaux, E.C. "How Stress Affects Women's Health." Healthy Green Living, Fitness & Sustainability. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Men, women and stress. (2010). Chemist & Druggist, , 5. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/324590137?accountid=12924It

"Metabolic Consequences and Vulnerability to Diet-Induced Obesity in Male Mice under Chronic Social Stress." Bartolomucci, Alessandro, Aderville Cabassi, Paolo Govoni, Graziano Ceresini, Cheryl Cero, Daniela Berra, Harold Dadomo, Paolo Franceschini, Giacomo Dell'Omo, Stefano Parmigiani, and Paola Palanza. National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 30 Jan. 2009. Web. 15 Apr. 2013.