The Cost of Stress: Health Effects, Workplace Hazards, Insurance Implications

[TheStatutoryApe]

It is undeniable that many people struggle desperately with addiction. I don't know how many people smoke or drink by choice as opposed to those who can't help themselves, but the fact is that addiction destroys lives every day. That is a tougher road to follow than is moving. You know that by smoking you are killing yourself, so why don't you quit? Isn't that a greater motivation to quit than is a tax?

Alot of things I enjoy are bad for my health. Smoking is certainly the worst. There's a lot that would go into the discussion on that point that is quite irrelevant to your thread though. My point is that I could do it more easily than moving to a nicer neighbourhood. If you think about it I am quite certain you will realize that for a poor person saying moving isn't so hard is about the same as saying that not smoking isn't so hard. Getting by in a poor neighbourhood is a struggle. People die daily because of where they live whether it be because of pollution, violence, or simply that people don't care. Do you know how many people die during the summer heat in L.A. because they have no air conditioning? Do know how many people live in homes that are death traps? that have abestos and black mold?
People are born into these places and only a small percentage escape. People are not born with a carton and a fifth in each hand.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

It is slow going getting original sources as there are so many quotes and websites. I will post relevant links as I find them.

In the past 20 years, many studies have looked at the relationship between
job stress and a variety of ailments. Mood and sleep disturbances, upset
stomach and headache, and disturbed relationships with family and friends
are examples of stress-related problems that are quick to develop and are
commonly seen in these studies. These early signs of job stress are usually
easy to recognize. But the effects of job stress on chronic diseases are more
difficult to see because chronic diseases take a long time to develop and can
be influenced by many factors other than stress. Nonetheless, evidence is
rapidly accumulating to suggest that stress plays an important role in
several types of chronic health problems—especially cardiovascular
disease, musculoskeletal disorders, and psychological disorders.
10
Health care expenditures are nearly 50% greater for workers who
report high levels of stress.
—Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/99-101/pdfs/99-101.pdf

One that I have no been able to confirm

In the article Stress and Health: How Stress Affects Your Body, and How You Can Stay Healthier, Elizabeth Scott, M.S., writes “it’s been estimated that as many as 90% of doctor’s visits are symptoms that are at least partially stress-related!”

http://sbgradmag.org/content/news/campus/2008/11/dealing-stress

This is ultimately attributed to the CDC but I haven't found the original document.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Alot of things I enjoy are bad for my health. Smoking is certainly the worst. There's a lot that would go into the discussion on that point that is quite irrelevant to your thread though. My point is that I could do it more easily than moving to a nicer neighbourhood.

Maybe that is true for you. That doesn't make it true for everyone. What you are arguing is that addiction is always a choice.

While this is an article specific to crack, it addresses addiction more generally as well.\

...How Do People Get Addicted to Crack?
Need Help?

Contact Narcotics Anonymous
http://www.na.org/
U.S. - (818) 773-9999
Europe - 32-2-646-6012
Cocaine is a highly addictive substance. People who take it can become physically and psychologically dependant upon it to the point where they can't control their cravings. Researchers have found that cocaine-addicted monkeys will press a bar more than 12,000 times to get a single dose of it. As soon as they get it, they will start pressing the bar for more.

Crack and other addictive drugs chemically alter a part of the brain called the reward system. As mentioned previously, when people smoke crack, the drug traps the chemical dopamine in the spaces between nerve cells. Dopamine creates the feelings of pleasure we get from enjoyable activities such as eating and having sex. But in crack users, dopamine keeps stimulating those cells, creating a "high" -- a euphoric feeling that lasts anywhere from five to 15 minutes. But then the drug begins to wear off, leaving the person feeling let-down and depressed, resulting in a desire to smoke more crack in order to feel good again.

The brain responds to the dopamine overload of the crack high by either destroying some of it, making less of it or shutting down its receptors. The result is that, after taking the drug for a while, crack users become less sensitive to it and find that they must take more and more of it to achieve the desired effect. Eventually, they cannot stop taking the drug because their brains have been "rewired" -- they actually need it in order to function. How long does it take to become addicted? That varies from person to person, and an exact number is difficult to pin down, especially when physical addiction is paired with psychological addition...

http://health.howstuffworks.com/crack5.htm

Based on the level of dependence, the most common measure for determining the addictiveness of a drug, the substances ranked as follows, from most to least addictive:
1.Nicotine
2.Heroin
3.Cocaine
4.Alcohol
5.Caffeine
6.Marijuana

http://www.drugrehabtreatment.com/most-addictive-drugs.html

Yes you are reading that correctly! Nicotine is considered to be more addictive than heroin or cocaine. What do you call it when you impose exorbitant taxes on poor people who can't help themselves? Extortion?

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

Maybe that is true for you. That doesn't make it true for everyone. What you are arguing is that addiction is always a choice.

I am arguing that addiction stems from choice. Once one is addicted the level of freedom of choice one has deminishes. But you make a choice to partake in the addictive substance.
And again my argument is also in regards to the level of choice compared to where one lives. Like I said you are born where you are born but you are not born with cigarettes in hand.

Yes you are reading that correctly! Nicotine is considered to be more addictive than heroin or cocaine. What do you call it when you impose exorbitant taxes on poor people who can't help themselves? Extortion?

I've heard it before and I think that this is propaganda. I can not argue with the cause that the propaganda supports but it is still propaganda. The primary reasons why cigarettes are considered so addictive is availability. I can walk to the corner and get a pack of smokes for five bucks or I can even bum one from someone I am around. Its incredibly easy to get your hands on and that is what makes it so difficult to kick. But you don't see people spending all of their money, stealing, selling their belongings, selling their children, or preforming sexual favours behind dumpsters just to get a nicotine fix. I doubt you ever would see such a thing except when it comes to crack, meth, and heroin. THAT is serious addiction and saying nicotine addiction is worse only deminishes the incredible severity of hard drug addiction. Ask anyone who has ever done hard drugs whether or not they would have been able to quit if their drug of choice was available in every corner store for under ten dollars and I will bet that you will get an unequivocal "No".