Hvordan påvirker stress immunsystemet?

Selvom stress påvirker immunforsvaret, er der mange, der enten ikke ved det eller ikke er klar over, hvor alvorligt det er. For det er svært at forestille sig, at nogen bevidst udsætter sig selv for stress. sundhed and life in danger. And that is exactly what happens when we ignore how important the effects of anxiety are to our immune system. Let’s start by outlining the stress response or “fight-or-flight” response.

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When you experience a physical or emotional “threat,” the hypothalamus, a very small area at the base of the mind, sets off an alarm system. A set of hormonal and nerve signals then prompt your adrenal glands. These are situated on top of your kidneys and they also release a surge of hormones; the most abundant being cortisol and adrenalin. Adrenaline increases your heart rate, elevates your blood pressure and boosts your energy levels. Cortisol increases sugars in the blood, enhances your brain’s utilization of glucose (sukker) and increases the availability of compounds that fix tissues.

Det er, når alt dette sker og i længere perioder, at de virkelige problemer begynder. Nutidens psykologiske farer får dit stressresponssystem til at arbejde på overtid. Det er designet til lejlighedsvise farer i livet. Men daglige stressfaktorer betyder, at kroppen bliver overeksponeret for kortisol og andre stresshormoner. Det kan forstyrre stort set alle kroppens processer.

Husk

This increases your risk of obesity, insomnia, digestive problems, cardiovascular sygdom, depression, memory impairment, physical disorders, and other ailments. Additionally, stress affects the immune system. During short bouts of anxiety, immune cells and cells travel faster in the spleen to where they are needed. This enhances your ability to resist disease or anything has hurt your body. Therefore, short-term stress (whatever the cause), activates protective biological mechanisms necessary for survival.

Immunsystemet blev udviklet, så det hurtigt kunne håndtere fysiske trusler. Men langvarig stress påvirker immunsystemet ved at svække det. Kortisol får f.eks. maskinen til at omprioritere sine egne opgaver. Lad os se nærmere på immunsystemet. Immunsystemet beskytter din krop mod sygdomsorganismer og andre fremmedlegemer, der kaldes antigener. Din første forsvarslinje omfatter hud og antistoffer. Hvis disse svigter, træder to yderligere immunresponser i kraft. Disse andre celler går ind og binder sig til antigenerne og efterlader dem inaktive.

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Den ene type er kendt som "CD8-celler" eller suppressorceller. Psykologiske stressfaktorer får faktisk CD8-cellerne til at dele sig. Det betyder, at der er flere af dem, og at immunforsvaret bliver hæmmet. Og stress får også katekolaminniveauet til at stige. Disse forbindelser virker ved nervepåvirkning. De vigtigste er dopamin, epinephrin og norepinephrin. Øgede niveauer af disse kemikalier har mange forskellige virkninger. Men det vigtigste er, at konsekvenserne omfatter undertrykkelse af immunforsvaret.

Taking all this a step further, what happens when your immune system is suppressed? Your risk of viral disease rises. Stress also results in the release of histamines which may trigger asthma attacks. And it raises the risk for diabetes mellitus, particularly in obese folks. This is because pressure affects insulin requirements. Psychological stress also changes acid koncentration in the stomach. This may result in peptic ulcers, stress ulcers, or ulcerative colitis. Kronisk stress can also cause plaque buildup in the blood vessels. And of course this is often responsible for angina or heart attacks. This is not a comprehensive list of the diseases connected with emotional stress but they are the most frequent ones.

Konklusion

The immune system is a delicate and complicated system which has the mighty task of protecting your body. But it needs your help because psychological stress affects the immune system. It can’t differentiate between a life threatening stressor and a non-life threatening one. It reacts the same to both. And when your system is continually responding to stress (and think again before you assume it is not ), all of the systems of your body are over-taxed. You pay a hefty price. Learn the symptoms of stress. Begin today to produce habits of normal stress management. You’ll reap the benefits because the physical effect of the stress may not appear for several years. But if you deal with stress effectively, you will improve your health and Livskvalitet now and always. You may break the negative cycle of how stress affects the immune system!