Stress related illness

Stress related illness: The immune system
1. Acute stressors ­ examination stress
2. Chronic stressors ­ relationship stress
3. The effects of stress can enhance the immune system
4. Sergestrom and Miller meta-analysis

Acute stressors ­ examination stress:
Kiecolt-Glaser et al (1984):
Natural experiment looking at whether the stress of…

Looked at the activity of the antibody slgA which coats mucous of the lungs,
mouth and stomach and helps protect against infection
Arranged for students to give a talk in front of other student, this is mild
but acute stress
Students showed increased levels of slgA during the talk
slgA…

People who had high anger ratings were 250% (2.5 times more likely) more
likely to have a heart attack than those with lower ratings
Participants who scored a moderate on the scale were 35% more likely to
suffer from a coronary event
Increased anger can lead to increased risk of…

They found stressful life events were only associated with depression,
there is no evidence to suggest it causes any of the other disorders