Anger is good for you, as lon g as you control it, according to new psychology research. A new study from Carnegie Mellon University shows anger may help people reduce the negative impacts of stress and help you become healthier. "Here getting emotional is not bad for you if you look at the case of anger," said Jennifer Lerner of Carnegie Mellon. "The more people display anger, the lower their stress responses." Lerner studied 92 UCLA students by asking them to count back from 6,200. They must say out loud every thirteenth number. Researchers disturbed them by asking them to count faster or ask them other questions. If they made any mistakes, they had  to restart from the very beginning. Many students felt depressed about making so many mistakes or got angry because the researchers were interrupting them. Lerner used a hidden video camera and recorded all their facial expressions during the test. The researchers describe their reactions as fear, anger and disgust. Other researchers recorded the students' blood pressure, pulse and production of a high-stress hormone   called cortisol. People whose faces showed more fear during th e experiment had higher blood pressure and higher levels of the hormone. Both can have lasting effects such as diabetes  , heart disease, depression and extra weight gain. When people feel fear, negative impacts increase, but when they get angry, those negatives go down, according to the study. "Having that sense of anger leads people to actually feel some power in what otherwise is maddening   situation," Lerner said. Lerner previously studied Americans' emotional response to the 911 terrorist attacks two months after the incident. She found people who reacted with anger were more optimistic. These people are healthier compared with those who were frightened during the event. So in maddening situations, anger is not a bad thing to have. It's a healthier response than fear. In what way can anger be beneficial to people?
By showing their optimistic side. By reducing their stress. By reducing high blood pressure. By taking the place of fear.