Immune response in obese individuals linked to psychological stress

A new scientific study has linked an immune response in overweight and obese individuals to psychological stress contributing to chronic and life-threatening diseases.

“We’ve known that overweight and obese individuals already have chronic, low grade inflammation,” said psychology professor Nicolas Rohleder, the study’s principal investigator. “Now, it seems that when you add stress to the mix, it’s a double hit.”

The study, published in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity, measured interleukin-6 (IL-6), an inflammatory agent linked to stress, to investigate the impact of inflammation levels in normal-weight and overweight individuals over the course of two psychological stress tests. The researchers classified …read more