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Eric Klopack, Postdoctoral Researcher in Gerontology, University of Southern California

Social stress can speed up immune system aging – new research

Immunosenescence, or immune aging, can lead to less effective responses to vaccines and greater vulnerability to invading pathogens. Kudryavtsev Pavel/iStock via Getty Images Plus

As people age, their immune systems naturally begin to decline. This aging of the immune system, called immunosenescence, may be an important part of such age-related health problems as cancer and cardiovascular disease, as well as older people’s less effective response to vaccines.

But not all immune systems age at the same rate. In our recently published study, my colleagues and I found that social stress is associated with signs of accelerated immune system aging.

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