Question

What does stress mean in the biomedical context? How the action of HPA axis in the body is related to it?

Answer 1

‘Stress’ is an integral part of our current lifestyles & it has been dubbed as the “Health Epidemic” of present times. Different subjective definitions have been put forth to define it. Hans Selye who worked on biologic stress response defined stress in biomedical context as the “non-specific response of the body to any demand for change”. The generality of this definition has proved useful in the field and is very close to common person's perception of stress as body’s way of responding to any kind of threat or pressure.

The body's stress response is centrally coordinated by the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis, consisting of brain parts - the hypothalamus and the pituitary glands -and the adrenal (or suprarenal) glands. As the body faces stressors - physical, psychological etc., central HPA axis is activated. The resulting highly coordinated HPA axis response starts the processes that help return the body's disrupted homeostasis back to normal. 

Hans Selye defined stress in biomedical context as the “non-specific response of the body to any demand for change”. HPA Axis is involved in stress response.