Stress can be spread like a cold?

American psychologists claim that we can "get" stressed by strangers because stress is also contagious like a cold.

A group of psychologists from Saint Louis University (USA) conducted a study to find out how strangers are sensitive to "indirect stress" . They asked a group of volunteers to do a speaking task or undergo a mental arithmetic test of the observations of many others.

According to researchers, stress can spread from one person to another.(Photo: Getty Images)

The researchers measured the amount of hormone cortisol and an enzyme related to stress in saliva of stressed speakers and observers. The results revealed, the stress response of witnesses is similar to those of speakers and not influenced by gender.

The team concluded that stress can spread through voice, facial expressions, posture and even scent.

"We have shown that stress can be easily transmitted from objects to observers. The discovery that the reaction occurs in some people, in certain time periods, only by sitting and observing someone who is stressed, it is extremely interesting and amazing, " said Professor Tony Buchanan, a research team member.

Mr. Buchanan and his colleagues stressed that, in certain situations, stress is contagious . However, it can also lead to heroic behavior in certain people.