Feeling Stressed? It’s Probably Harming Your Health: “If you believe stress is affecting your health, you are probably right, a new study concludes, and that perception may increase your risk for heart disease. Researchers studied 7,268 men and women, average age 50 at the start of the project, using periodic questionnaires. There were 352 heart attacks or deaths from coronary disease over the 18 years of the study. The participants rated the effect of stress on their health – none, a little, or a lot – and then researchers controlled for more than 20 variables, including actual stress as measured by psychological tests.