If you’re
stressed out from a divorce, a hard day at work or a fight
with your girlfriend it might be causing your brain to shrink.
A study
by Yale University researchers found that stressful life
events can reduce gray matter in regions of the brain that
regulate emotion and important physiological functions in
healthy people to brain structure changes associated with
psychiatric disorders, such as addiction depression and
anxiety.
Past
studies have only linked stress.
The
effects of stress on the brains of healthy individuals hasn’t
been clear.
The
researchers looked at MRIs of more than 100 healthy people.
They found the changes soon after stressful events occurred
and said the findings may serve as warning signals of future
psychiatric disorders and chronic diseases, such as diabetes
or hypertension.
The
study, which was published in the journal Biological
Psychiatry, was funded by the National Institutes of Health.