Stress Eats at you from the Inside-out
Hot off the press from Sixwise:
Worry and Anxiety May Harm Your Brain and Body,
Increase Dementia Risks
A study by researchers from the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center at Chicago’s Rush University found that people who are prone to “psychological distress” — negative emotions like worry and anxiety — are more likely to develop memory problems than those who adopt a more carefree existence, according to an analysis of two studies on aging that together included over 1,200 people.
In fact, study participants who experienced negative emotions most often were 40 percent more likely to develop mild cognitive impairment than those who experienced the least negativity.
Cognitive impairment involves mild memory or cognitive problems, and can be a stepping-stone to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. A past study by the same researchers also indicated that people who are easily distressed are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than those who are not.
Further, researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center have found a striking link between your nervous system and your immune system, revealing just how chronic stress may kill you.
The researchers found that the same part of your nervous system that is responsible for the fight-or-flight stress response (the sympathetic nervous system (SNS)) also controls regulatory T cells, which are used by your body to end an immune response once the threatening foreign invader has been destroyed.
Their new research on mice revealed that the sympathetic nervous system can negatively impact your immune system, and also shed some light on why stress often exacerbates autoimmune disorders like lupus, arthritis and eczema.
Chronic stress is known to actually intensify inflammation, according to the American Psychological Association (APA), which makes you more vulnerable to inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis.
You may also not have known that stress can actually accelerate aging. According to a 2006 study presented at the 114th Annual Convention of the APA, people with chronic stress are more likely to suffer from age-related diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, major depression, mental decline, osteoporosis and metabolic syndrome.
