A stress ball or hand exercise ball is a malleable toy, usually not more than 7 cm in diameter, which is squeezed in the hand and manipulated by the fingers, ostensibly to relieve

stress Stress may refer to: Science and medicine * Stress (biology), an organism's response to a stressor such as an environmental condition * Stress (linguistics), relative emphasis or prominence given to a syllable in a word, or to a word in a phrase ...

and muscle tension or to exercise the muscles of the hand. Patrick Hummel is widely understood to have created the stress ball in central Indiana in the mid-1980s. Despite the name, many stress balls are not spherical. Some are molded in amusing shapes, and pad- or transfer-printed with corporate logos. They may be presented to employees and clients of companies as

promotional gifts Promotional merchandise are products branded with a logo or slogan and distributed at little or no cost to promote a brand, corporate identity, or event. Such products, which are often informally called promo products, swag (mass nouns), tchotc ...

. Because of the many non-spherical shapes now available, stress balls are generically known as stress relievers.

Types

There are several different types of stress balls that originate from many different countries. The most common type of stress ball in America is the "

bean bag A bean bag (also beanbag) is a sealed bag containing dried beans, PVC pellets, expanded polystyrene, or expanded polypropylene. The bags are commonly used for throwing games, but they have various other applications. Furniture Designed by Pi ...

" type, commonly known as a "

Hacky Sack A footbag is a small, round bag usually filled with plastic pellets or sand, which is kicked into the air as part of a competitive game or as a display of dexterity. "Hacky Sack" is the name of a brand of footbag popular in the 1970s (currently o ...

". In Australia, most common are the foam type, which prevents stress through resistance from squeezing the ball. Chinese-form balls are known as the Baoding ball; unlike others, these are not squeezable as they are solid and come in pairs, allowing users to roll them together to make a soothing sound and a smooth sensation feeling in one's hands. They come in many cute shapes and sizes too. Football_stress_toy

Some stress relievers are made from closed-cell polyurethane

foam rubber Foam rubber (also known as cellular rubber, sponge rubber, or expanded rubber) refers to rubber that has been manufactured with a foaming agent to create an air-filled matrix structure. Commercial foam rubbers are generally made of synthetic rubb ...

. These are made by injecting the liquid components of the foam into a mold. The resulting chemical reaction creates

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...

bubbles as a byproduct, which in turn creates the foam. Stress balls, especially those used in

physical therapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is one of the allied health professions. It is provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through physical examination, diagnosis, management, prognosis, patient ...

, can also contain

gel A gel is a semi-solid that can have properties ranging from soft and weak to hard and tough. Gels are defined as a substantially dilute cross-linked system, which exhibits no flow when in the steady-state, although the liquid phase may still di ...

of different densities inside a rubber or cloth skin. Another type uses a thin rubber membrane surrounding a fine powder. The latter type can be made at home by filling a balloon with

baking soda Sodium bicarbonate (IUPAC name: sodium hydrogencarbonate), commonly known as baking soda or bicarbonate of soda, is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is a salt composed of a sodium cation ( Na+) and a bicarbonate anion ( HCO3−) ...

. Some balls similar to a

footbag A footbag is a small, round bag usually filled with plastic pellets or sand, which is kicked into the air as part of a competitive game or as a display of dexterity. "Hacky Sack" is the name of a brand of footbag popular in the 1970s (currently o ...

are marketed and used as stress balls.

References

Ergonomics Physical therapy Stress (biological and psychological) Balls Executive toys Rubber toys Sensory toys {{Toy-stub

Types

See also

References