Study: Stress Ages Immune System in Older Adults
Suffering from things like discrimination, trauma and stress may not only affect the mind — they may affect the body's immune system too, according to a 2022 study.
Researchers in California reported that stressors like these could cause the body's immune system to age more quickly.
The study included more than 5,700 people over the age of 50 in the US.
They were asked questions about what the researchers called "social stress," which included stressful life events, long-term stress, life trauma, daily discrimination and long-term discrimination.
Stressful life events included things like losing a job and being a victim of a crime, while long-term stress included difficult relationships, health problems and problems with accommodation or money.
The life trauma questions asked about things like having a near-death experience, or the death of a loved one.
The researchers then looked at the participants' blood data to check the percentages of T cells in their blood.
T cells are a part of the immune system and help to protect a person from getting ill.
The team then compared the participants' answers with the T cells in their blood.
They found that people who reported higher social stress had a lower percentage of young, healthy T cells that are good at protecting the body, as well as higher percentages of older, less useful T cells.
According to the researchers, an aging immune system increases the risk of serious illnesses and can mean that some medicines do not work so well.
However, the team also found that when things like eating well and doing exercise were considered, the effect of social stressors on the immune system was smaller.
