Stressed, that might be the least of your worries if you dont get it sorted For the past years, scientists continue to link chronic stress with inflammation – the culprit behind many illnesses, including cancer. However, how exactly stress affects health is still a subject of investigation. Now, a new study found that chronic stress changes gene activity of the immune cells even before they reach the bloodstream, leading to an overabundance of inflammation. Researchers from Ohio State University discovered that repeated stress triggers the sympathetic nervous system, commonly known as the ‘fight-or-flight response’. Whilst it is vital for survival, its prolonged activation can have negative effects on health. They found that at this state, genes that lead to inflammation are expressed at higher-than-normal levels, whilst the activation of genes that may help suppress inflammation is diminished. The cells share many of the same characteristics in terms of their response to stress, said John Sheridan, co-lead author of the study and a professor of oral biology in the College of Dentistry and associate director of Ohio State’s Institute for Behavioural Medicine Research (IBMR). There is a stress-induced alteration in the bone marrow in both our mouse models and in chronically stressed humans that selects for a cell that’s going to be pro-inflammatory.” Their colleagues from other institutions conducted a similar study using blood samples from humans and found that similarly primed immune cells were present in chronically stressed individuals. So what this suggests is that if you’re working for a really bad boss over a long period of time, that experience may play out at the level of gene expression in your immune system. The researchers explained that under normal conditions, the bone marrow in animals and humans is producing and releasing billions of red blood cells every day, as well as a variety of white blood cells that constitute the immune system. According to Sheridan, stress undermines this process. As a result, the white blood cells produced in the bone marrow are more inflammatory than normal upon their release (ready to defend the body against external threats). Whilst inflammation is a normal response of the immune system against a pathogen or other foreign body, too much of it can lead to an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, obesity, and other health problems. Hypnotherapy is very effective in dealing with stress.
Posted on: Thu, 07 Nov 2013 17:27:19 +0000