Most people tends to talk about someone else’s private or personal business by bringing up an Idle talk of other people’s personal matters, especially someone not present.
Yes it might hurt the other person’s morale, image or legacy. So at times its meant to hurt the other party.
Research shows that gossipers hurt themselves more when they idle-talk about others.
How?
For one to gossip, they ought to hold a negative thought in their mind and as such, subjects the body to stress.
Stress triggers a combination of signals from both hormones and nerves. In the process of gossiping, there is a change in the biochemistry of the brain, which leads to a release of the stress hormone cortisol and as well including the Adrenaline, which leads to an increase in heart rate and energy.
How cortisol works:
Under stressful conditions, cortisol provides the body with glucose by tapping into protein stores via gluconeogenesis in the liver. This energy can help an individual fight or flee a stressor. However, elevated cortisol over the long term consistently produces glucose, leading to increased blood sugar levels. So over a long period of time actually putting gossip to practice, it acts as an inhibitor to health and mind.
How many gossipers do better than those they gossip about?
When gossiping is not addressed, it causes long-term physical and mental health issues including;
- Clinical depression
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Panic attacks: of course gossipers will always look out if there is any other person hearing what you have to say.
- Guilt
Suicide