Does stress age Poles? 40% of respondents see it as a factor that adds years.
Poles are living longer and longer, but 37% of us believe that stress makes us feel older than our age. Paradoxically, according to a nationwide survey commissioned by Multi.Life this feeling is more common among young people between 18 and 34 years of age. According to experts, the impact of stress on vitality is not only a matter of personal perception. Stress makes our body age faster and more susceptible to disease. Maintaining quality of life, as it increases in length, requires learning to manage stress. Employers clearly recognise this need.
Ageing accelerator?
As many as 54% of respondents admit that they experience stress at least once a week, including as many as 22% who feel stressed daily. The problem is not just about momentary tension. The Multi.Life survey shows that we are dealing with a chronic phenomenon that directly translates into a sense of “accelerated ageing,” which is noticed and confirmed by more than one third of the respondents. Paradoxically, the statement “I feel older than my age” is shared mainly by young people between 18 and 34 years of age. These are also those who experience stress most often.
– Stress affects more than just the subjective feeling of ageing. It accelerates biological and mental processes, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, sleep disorders, depression and cognitive decline. Living with chronic stress robs us of energy and a sense of agency. Ignoring stress shortens our time of healthy functioning. Therefore, prevention must combine individual (e.g. training in regulation techniques, sleep hygiene, exercise) and organisational (predictable work rituals, quick access to psychological support) actions. This is not an addition, but an investment in a real extension of the period of good functioning – comments Dr. Andrzej Silczuk, psychiatrist, Multi.Life expert.
What stresses out and ages us the most?
The Multi.Life survey shows that the sources of stress are deeply rooted in our everyday life. The most frequently mentioned factors include too many responsibilities and lack of time (48%), information overload and excessive stimuli (47%), pressure from family, professional and social obligations (45%) and constant worrying about health (42%). In addition, there are problems with sleep (35%), the need to make many decisions in a short time (36%) and an uncertain financial situation (33%). Although less frequently mentioned, conflicts at work (17%) and tensions in family relationships (21%) are also present.
At the same time, the results show that women are more vulnerable to the stress-related “ageing” mechanism. They experience it more often (40% compared to 34% of men) and indicate being overloaded with responsibilities (53% of women compared to 41% of men) or the pressure of obligations and expectations (50% compared to 40%). Women also tend to report information overload (54% compared to 39% of men), which shows that they are more likely to feel the effects of the constant barrage of stimuli and the need to make decisions in a short time.
The need for individual and systemic change
The survey clearly shows that stress is not an episodic experience but a permanent element of Poles’ everyday life. It influences our health, wellbeing and the way we perceive our own age. If stress is already robbing us of our youth, the future will depend on whether we learn to effectively reduce it and treat mental health prevention with the same seriousness as the prevention of somatic diseases. This is both an individual and a social challenge requiring lifestyle changes, but also an appropriate approach from employers and institutions.
– Today stress results from both personal and professional situations, as well as from the objective circumstances of a changing and dynamic reality over which we simply have no influence. That is why it is important to learn how to manage stress, because such a skill is an indispensable element of prevention both in terms of physical and mental health. Employers are increasingly recognising these connections and are closely monitoring the growing scale of sickness absence. As a result, some Polish companies are now taking comprehensive measures covering both the mental and somatic dimensions of employee wellbeing. New benefits – such as Multi.Life, a sister product of the iconic MultiSport card, which helps employees change their lifestyle to a healthier one and strengthen preventive measures – are also appearing on the market. Through the ability to monitor meals, sleep, activity, the help of dietitians and trainers, but also through building competences in the field of mental resilience through courses or consultations with an extensive group of professionals in the field of psychology – summarises Dr. Andrzej Silczuk.
According to a McKinsey report, 59% of employees expect their company to provide mental health support. The Willis Towers Watson’s “2024 Wellbeing Diagnostic Survey” shows that among all dimensions of wellbeing, companies around the world still prioritise employee physical health. However, as many as 66% of organisations consider emotional wellbeing a priority among their wellbeing activities and intend to expand their employee support offerings in this area by 2027. The younger generation requires particular attention. Statistics on sick leave indicate that mental problems most often affect people aged 30–39, and data from the Institute of Psychology of the Polish Academy of Sciences suggest that the situation may worsen with the entry into the labour market of people aged 18–24, who already assess their mental wellbeing as the worst.
About the survey: The survey was conducted on the Ariadna National Research Panel on a nationwide sample of N=1060 people using the CAWI method (August 2025).
Barbara Jastrzębska
Benefit Systems has been operating on the Polish market for over two decades and is one of the leaders in providing non-financial benefits that support employee wellbeing. The company is the creator of the MultiSport Programme, which enables physical activity in sports facilities throughout the country. Its portfolio also includes the MyBenefit cafeteria platform and the MultiLife wellbeing programme. For several years now, the company’s sports offer has been developed on foreign markets, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Croatia. The Benefit Systems Group also operates fitness clubs (in Poland it is responsible for Fabryka Formy, FitFabric, Fitness Academy, Good Luck, My Fitness Place, Saturn Fitness, StepONE, Total Fitness and Zdrofit networks). An important area of Benefit Systems activities is the promotion of an active lifestyle at every stage of life, which is why the company implements initiatives supporting physical activity of children, adults, and seniors, also as part of the MultiSport Foundation. Since 2018, Benefit Systems has been part of the global B Corp initiative, bringing together companies operating and engaging in solving the most important social problems. More information can be found at benefitsystems.pl/en.
