Heart Disease and Stress Miller and Blackwell state: “Although people have long believed that certain thoughts and feelings are toxic to their health, only in the last 30 years has compelling evidence accumulated to support this view…specific cognitive and emotional processes contribute to the development and progression of the disease” (Miller & Blackwell, 2006, p. 269). Heart disease is a leading cause of death in the United States. Through numerous experiments, research has shown that stress increases health problems directly related to heart disease. Stress is part of everyday life, but individuals perceive and process it differently. StressStress is defined as “the process by which we perceive and respond to certain events, called stressors, that we consider threatening or challenging” (Myers, 2013, p. 487). When stressors arise in people's lives, the response can be positive and pose a challenge and make people more focused. If the stressor is perceived as threatening or negative, the person may become more distracted and stressed. From hurricanes and earthquakes, to driving on the road and being cut off, stressors can present themselves in many different ways and fall into three categories. The three main categories are disasters, significant life changes, and everyday problems, but they all play a vital role (Myers, 2013). Inflammation When the body processes stress, it is both a physiological and psychological process. External sources activate the immune response to inflammation which, if persistent, as studies have shown, develops symptoms of depression and progression to heart disease. Walter Cannon (1929) observed the stress hormones, epinephrine and norepinephrine, coming from the adrenal glands b... at the center of the article... which dealt with personality traits along with type A and type B reactions to stress, the scientific community can get closer to reducing chronic heart disease in patients affected by stressors. References Alfred B. Heilburn, J., & Friedberg, E. B. (1988). Type A Personality, self-control and vulnerability to stress. Journal of Personality Assessment, 420-424.Miller, G. E., & Blackwell, E. (2006). Turning up the heat. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 269-272.Myers, D. G. (2013). Psychology, tenth edition. New York: Worth.Neelakantan, S. (2013). Mind on the myocardium. Nature, S16-S17.Segerstrom, S.C., & Miller, G.E. (2004, July). Psychological stress and the human immune system: a meta-analytic study of 30 years of investigations. Retrieved from National Center for Biotechnology Information: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1361287/