GENDER . . . MEN LOSE STRESS TEST

Everyday stress causes men -- but not women -- to produce possibly harmful levels of adrenaline in their bodies, possibly explaining why men have higher rates of heart disease, Oxford University researchers said today. The British team followed 104 men and women for three days, asking them about stress and measuring their adrenaline levels. The result: in the same stressful situations, adrenaline levels rose only for men. The researchers say the findings suggest that either women "cope differently," or that female sex hormones buffer them from adrenaline's effects.