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Shocking News

Shocking News

The immune system was once considered an independent, self-regulated system.  But research over the past ten years has found that like most of the rest of the human body, it too is under the control of our nervous system.

 

Some of the early research in this regard was designed to understand why we seem more prone to get sick if we are under stress or depressed.  As it turns out the brain does have significant control over certain aspects of the immune system.  The brain uses the autonomic (also called automatic) nervous system to exert this influence.  One of the main autonomic nerves is the vagus.  Japanese scientists at Osaka University have discovered that using mild electrostimulation of the vagus nerve reduces immune mediated inflammation.  Preliminary studies in rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease have shown improvement in both diseases with this therapy.  Studies are also underway to determine benefit in reducing the inflammation that causes asthma.

 

One reason this research is so exciting is that unlike most anti-inflammatory drugs in current use, electrostimulation does not cause immune suppression and therefore avoids the increased risk of infection due to drug therapy.

Asthma, stress and depression in women studied

Asthma, stress and depression in women studied

Asthma worse? Being female and a list of other factors might be the cause — based on Columbia University’s recently published data on research about women and asthma. They found that a number of factors led to greater difficulty with asthma including: hormones, obesity, stress, depression and PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).

The researchers note that hormone levels (especially estrogen) impact the Th-2/ Th-1 balance that has been previously discussed in this newsletter. High estrogen leads to Th-2 predominance, which promotes allergy. Increased estrogen can come from the normal wax and wane of the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, hormone replacement or oral contraceptives.

Obesity is also pro-inflammatory via the Th-2 mechanism. Columbia found that as little as a 15pound weight loss by obese women asthmatics resulted in 20 percent improvement in their asthma.

The issue of stress and depression is a double bind. In general, women experience depression more frequently than men. The asthmatic condition itself can cause life stress and depression, but the opposite is also true: stress and depression cause worsening of asthma. The Columbia group found that upwards of 15 percent of women with poorly controlled asthma had unresolved issues from childhood sexual trauma. They consider this a form of PTSD.

Interestingly, they found strong correlation of PTSD and worsening asthma in military women who had service-related traumas. Stress, depression and PTSD all lead to a number of stress hormone changes by way of the adrenal glands, along with production of inflammatory molecules such as interleukins, substance-P, and natural killer-cell function.

African-American women seemed more prone to depression and PTSD than their Caucasian, Asian and Hispanic sisters. In yet another fallout from racial discrimination, Columbia found a strong correlation between African-American asthmatics who had experienced significant racial bias versus women who had not, in terms of severity of asthma and frequency of exacerbation.

The researchers’ take-home message is that both patients and doctors should be aware of the interplay and dynamic force of stress/depression and asthma.