Students aren't the only ones feeling the stress of crime in the University Heights. According to an ongoing study from the Department of Social and Preventative Medicine (DSPM), local police face the negative effects of stress as well.
John Violanti, Joan Dorn, and Jean Wactawski-Wende, professors in the DSPM, along with researchers from the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), are in the process of testing over 400 Buffalo Police Officers.
A $1.75 million contract from the NIOSH and $750,000 from the National Institute of Justice was given to the researchers to study the impact of job-related stress on police officers.
The officers are currently being tested in two phases: psychological and medical. Psychologically, officers are being screened for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Medically, blood pressure and the stress hormone cortisol are being tested. An insufficient amount of cortisol in a person's body can lead to a compromised immune system.
Researchers are also testing the thickness of the officers' carotid arteries and measuring the health of their cardiovascular system with a brachial artery reactivity test. To conduct this test, an ultrasound is used to measure blood flow through the brachial artery in the arm after it has been compressed.
So far, the study is finding the researchers' theories to be true.
"We have found that PTSD causes the arteries in officers to be less flexible and can cause irregularity of the stress hormone, which could lead to future heart disease," Violanti said.
Other findings have found evidence that female officers are being affected more than males with stress and artery flexibility.
A grant proposal was recently submitted to NIOSH requesting to do follow-up testing on the officers.
"It is more valid in an experiment to look at things over time rather than just at one point," Violanti said.
This extra testing will give the researchers an idea of how quickly the symptoms may be progressing and how serious of an effect the job has on an officer.
According to Violanti, there are ways to deal with stress that are very beneficial to one's health. For example, police officers could have access to wellness programs that include topics on diet, exercise, and sleep, which could increase their physical and emotional wellbeing.
He believes that this research will have a motivating effect on students interested in pursuing a career in criminal justice as opposed to discouraging them.
"Many people who deal with terrible things in their lives can come out a stronger, better person," Violanti said.
Researchers plan to have tested 500 officers by the time the study is completed in October 2009.
