Your Eyes May Be the Window Into Your Stress

BOSTON (CBS) -- This is one of the busiest times of year as people are shopping, partying, parenting and working and all that multi-tasking can be stressful. Now researchers at the University of Missouri have identified an objective way to measure just how stressed you are and it's all about the eyes.

They simulated an oil and gas refinery control room and had participants monitor gauges on two screens while also reacting to unexpected changes, like alarms. Using eye-tracking technology, they found that as the participants became more taxed, their eye behaviors became more erratic and their pupils dilated abnormally.

They hope to use this finding to develop a tool that employers can use to assess stress and fatigue in their workers and help prevent future mistakes.