Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers

Robert Sapolsky's acclaimed Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers combines cutting-edge research with a healthy dose of good humor and practical advice to explain how prolonged stress causes or intensifies a range of physical and mental afflictions, including depression, ulcers, colitis, heart disease, and more. When we worry or experiences stress, our body turns on the same physiology responses that an animal's body does, but we usually do not turn off the stress-response in the same way—through fighting, fleeing, or other quick actions. Over time, this chronic activation of the stress-response can make us literally sick.

This thoroughly updated third edition, which features new chapters on sleep disorders and addictions as well as new sections on gender differences, anxiety, weight gain, post-traumatic stress disorder, and stress management, is richer than ever with insights into how the nervous system responds and how stress responses can be controlled.