Contact: Pam Willenz
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EMBARGO: NOT FOR RELEASE UNTIL 3:00 PM (EDT) AUGUST 9, 2003

REPERCUSSIONS OF STRESS OVERLOAD

Researcher Explains the Dangers of Allostasis, the Body’s Natural Way to Combat Emergencies

TORONTO — How our body copes with threats can ultimately ruin our health, according to internationally known researcher, Bruce S. McEwen, Ph.D., who recently published a book, Worried Sick. McEwen will discuss his thesis in an invited address at the 111th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association (APA) in Toronto.

In his address, McEwen will explain how allostasis – the body’s response to danger, real or perceived – is a complex interaction of the brain, endocrine system and immune system that readies people for a fight or flee response. The duration and intensity of this response, says McEwen, creates allostatic overload and can make one more susceptible to stress-related illnesses like infections, heart disease and even memory loss.

PRESENTATION: “End of Stress as We Know It” Session 3240, 3:00 – 3:50 PM, August 9, 2003, Metro Toronto Convention Centre, North Building, Lower Level, Reception Hall 104C

Contact information:

Bruce S. McEwen, PhD
Rockefeller University
(207) 729-0132

The American Psychological Association (APA), in Washington, DC, is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States and is the world’s largest association of psychologists. APA’s membership includes more than 150,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. Through its divisions in 53 subfields of psychology and affiliations with 60 state, territorial and Canadian provincial associations, APA works to advance psychology as a science, as a profession and as a means of promoting health, education and human welfare.

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