Child Abuse May Compromise Immune System, Shorten Life

RedTracker| Abusing your kids may shorten their lives, baed on a new study out of Ohio State University. Scientists understand even better the extent to which the emotional pains we suffer in childhood can elad to weakened immune systems later in life. For some children who experienced serious abuse or adversity as children, the shortened lifespan could be seven to 15 years.

Although the study of 132 people is small, it confirms the current hypothesis about child abuse and a compromised adult immune system. Researchers looked for two cytokines known to be stress markers — interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) — in blood samples.

In several measures, researchers studying the one-third of participants who reported being abused, documented significant longevity-shortening markers, indicating an already compromised immune system. Read on at Science Daily.

Update on Mon, August 16, 2010 by Anne

In a 20-year study of 4,000 people, half with Parkinson’s disease, researchers found a positive link between a compromised immune system and Parkinson’s disease. via BBC News Aug. 15, 2010.