Relationship Between Stress and the Immune System Flashcards
What can weaken the body’s immune system?
Increased exposure to stressors
How does the body fight off foreign viruses?
Through the use of leucocytes (white blood cells) which produce antibodies to engulf and kill viruses
What is the immune system responsible for?
The inflammation that occurs after an injury the white blood cells can attack any invading bacteria
Why does the immune system become suppressed when we experience a stressor?
So the person can deal with a more immediate problem
What does too much cortisol interfere with?
The production of antibodies
What can long term stress risk?
Illness and the ability for the body to heal after injury
Who conducted several studies into the effects of stress in the immune system?
Kiecolt-Glaser
What did Kiecolt-Galser investigate in her first study?
Whether stress of important examinations has an effect on the functioning of the immune system
What was the procedure of Kiecolt-Glaser’s first study?
75 first year medial students took part in a natural experiment, stress levels were assessed using a questionnaire
How were the students tested for stress?
A blood test one month before the exam and then again immediately after the exam, it was tested for T-Cell count
What were the findings of Kiecolt-Glaser’s first study?
Significant decrease in the number of T-Cells during the exam period and was low for students who felt most lonely and depressed
What was Kiecolt-Glaser’s second study?
To investigate how quickly wounds would heal in a group of stressed women compared to non stressed women
What was the procedure of Kiecolt-Glaser’s second study?
26 participants recruited by a newspaper article, matched in terms of age and income into two groups, non carers and carers, given a cut below the elbow and filled in self report stress scale
What were the findings of Kiecolt-Glaser’s second study?
Wounds took an average 9 days longer to heal in the career group and they had the highest score on the scale
What are 4 evaluations of the FIRST study?
- Doesn’t show cause and effect
- Lacks population validity
- Self report scale
- Objective measures
