Stress Kills

During my stay at the College of Engineering of the University of the Philippines, I became really familiar to the term STRESS. I got used to the idea that this word played two roles in my run in the university life.

First I would like to discuss this term's meaning which is applicable to most of us - stress as a state of mental or emotional strain or suspense. College life (well, life in general) is a great balancing act of studies and activities. I had a lot less things to juggle as I didn't have any membership to an organization but having to keep up with my academics is enough to keep my hands full. Engineering is really stressful! That's why I'm all praises to students who have extra-curricular activities or have jobs on the side and can still manage to get exceptional grades. Going back, nowadays lots of illnesses or fatalities occur due to stress. I came across a few stress facts that I would like to share that would support the title of this post.

• Life today is on average 44% more difficult than 30 years ago based on the number of significant life changes encountered
• A 14-year study of more than 12,500 Swedish concluded that those with little control over their work were 1.83 times more likely to develop heart disease, and those with low levels of support in their work were at even higher risk (2.62 times) to develop heart disease. In addition, depression has doubled with every generation since the 1920s
• A landmark 20-year study conducted by the University of London concluded that unmanaged reactions to stress were a more dangerous risk factor for cancer and heart disease than either cigarette smoking or high cholesterol foods

Also, there are numerous cases of work related stress all over the world:

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In 1991, a 35-year-old building worker employed in the construction of the football facilities for the 1992 World Cup in Livorno, Italy, suffered a heart attack and died.

The provincial occupational health service (USL) asked for a post mortem to be carried out. The investigation showed no adverse signs of disease in his heart or circulatory system.

However, it emerged the man, who was a migrant worker from Argentina, had been working days and nights for four weeks before his death. His living quarters were provided on the construction site.

The Labour Inspectorate enforced improvements in the facilities, but had no power over his working hours.

Workers' Health International Newsletter, No.44, Summer 1995
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On 8 March 1997, Carmelita Alzono, a sewing machinist at VT (Victorio Tan) Fashion Image Inc, died at the Andres Bonifacio Memorial Hospital in Cavite, the Philippines, after 11 days in hospital.

According to a statement released by her co-workers at VT Fashion: "Carmelita was killed by her 14 hour workday everyday plus overtime of eight hours every Sunday."

The workers denounced the system of quotas set by the company, that forced them to work 12 to 14 hours per day.

According to the Workers Assistance Center in Rosario, Carmelita - a 35-year-old mother of five - died because of the strict regime at the company that forces workers work the 14 hour shifts.

Following her death, VT Fashion made a donation of US$120 to the family.
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Add to these incidents the stories circulating regarding call center agent fatalities due to stress. Looking at these stories, surely stress alone can't kill, but it is the stressful working condition or state that drives these people to the edge. Some fall to illnesses due to the weakening of their immune systems and some have worse fates that drive them to suicide. There is a saying, "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" We have to take this seriously as not only Jack will be a dull boy, he'll be a dead boy. Give yourself a break from time to time! This will not only keep your edge to progress and work more productively, it will keep you alive.

The second meaning deals more with an engineering aspect - stress as a force acting on an area, also known as pressure. So, how does this fit to the title, stress kills? I was recently involved in a getting-stepped-on-the-toe-with-a-heeled-sandal incident, and man did it hurt! I was standing behind my girlfriend and she took a step back and the heel of her right sandal put a lot of painful stress on one of my right toes! Okay, so let's take a look back on the computation, stress = force/area. Stress is high when the force is high or the area is small. She doesn't weigh much therefore the force is not that large, so the culprit is the area! All that force over a tiny area is really painful! If the same amount of weight was spread over a bigger area (say, she was wearing flats), it would be easier to handle. I came across studies regarding stress and the deadly fashion culprit - the heeled footwear.

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To all those high heel admirers, do you know exactly how much pressure is under you foot? You would be surprised! Indeed you ladies wear these shoes for fashion's sake, but with the immense pressure under a high heel, you may as well use it as a weapon.

Pressure is defined as force over area. Pressure is directly proportional to the force and inversely proportional to area. This inverse relationship in an important concept when it concerns the immensity of pressure.

The significance of the high heel comes into play because it has such a minute area. Due to this fact, the pressure under that high heel is extremely large. "High-heeled shoes can cause tremendous pressure to be applied to a floor. Suppose the radius of a heel is 6.00 mm. At times during a normal walking motion, nearly the entire body weight acts perpendicular to the surface of such a heel. Find the pressure that is applied to the floor under the heel because of the weight of a 50.0 kg woman." (Cutnell, John D., & Kenneth W. Johnson. Physics. 4th ed. New York: Wiley, 1998. 338.)

Stress = Force/Area = (50 kg x 9.81 m/s²)/[π x (o.oo6)²] = 4330 kPa


This is approximately 40 atmospheric pressures. Now you realize the full potential of the high heel.

For comparison's sake, would you rather your hand be pummeled by a herd of elephants or a group of angry women wearing high heels? The more logical answer in this case, that is you would rather take your chances on the high heels, is the wrong assumption. Don't be intimidated by the enormous size of an elephant or fooled by the alluring high heel. The high heel can exert more than 15 times the pressure of an elephant's foot. These immense pressures can range from 10 - 100 atm. So, if you ever get the opportunity to choose, be very wary that you won't let the "pressure" get to you.

So, high heel admirers, when someone insults you, calls you as fat as an elephant perchance, teach them a lesson. Show them the true power of the almighty high heel.

Jack Green -- 2003
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"Now the pressure of her step is eight times as much, or 240 pounds per square inch instead of 30 pounds per square inch." (Under Pressure. Indiana University. 25 May 2003.) RESULT: 1700 kPa

"What exerts more pressure-per-square inch when walking a 100 lb woman in high heels or a 6,000 lb elephant in bare feet? [At the moment when only the heel rests on the ground.] Ask teams to tackle this challenge. (Stiletto heels have an area of about 1/16 of a square inch. Elephants, unlike humans, walk with two feet on the ground at a time. Each foot is about 40 square inches. Thus, the woman "wins" by far more than 1,500 psi versus 75 psi.)" (The Pressure's On! 25 May 2003.) RESULT: > 10000 kPa

"Humans will only have one foot on the ground while walking. Estimate that the area of the heel on a man's shoe is 10 in². When he walks, a 200 lb. man exerts 20 psi because the weight is supported momentarily by the heel. A 100 lb. woman exerts many more psi when she wears heels. Depending on the area of the heel, she can exert as much as 1600 psi under a 'stiletto heel' ¼ inch on a side. This explains why people with wood floors don't want women walking on them in high heels." (Bennett, Carole. Pressure Versus Force: Landing on Ice! [pdf] 25 May 2003.) RESULT: 11000 kPa
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It was really funny that even though the pain was excruciating, the engineering aspect of the comedic situation still ran through my mind. Looking at the results of studies, the title of this post really holds true... STRESS KILLS!!! =p