Final answer:
Stress interacts with the immune, nervous, and endocrine systems, with short-term stress potentially enhancing immune responses and chronic stress suppressing them, a topic extensively studied in psychoneuroimmunology.
Step-by-step explanation:
How Stress Affects the Immune System
Stress has a profound impact on the immune system, which is intricately connected with the nervous and endocrine systems of the body. The field that studies these interactions is known as psychoneuroimmunology. Short-term stress can enhance innate immune responses, providing quick defense mechanisms. However, during chronic stress, both innate and adaptive immune responses can be suppressed, leading to a higher susceptibility to diseases. The stress response includes neuroendocrine and cytokine mediators that modulate immune function, affecting cytokine levels such as interleukin-6, which is associated with the experience of anger and may contribute to enhanced immune response during acute stress.
Short-Term vs. Chronic Stress Impacts on Immunity
While short-term stress does not necessarily impair the immune system in healthy individuals, chronic stress can have deleterious effects on immune function. Persistent stressors such as unemployment or bereavement can lead to significant inhibition of immune responses. This field of study holds potential for breakthroughs in our understanding of how the nervous, endocrine, and immune systems co-evolved and communicate.