Psychosodal Influences on Immunity

and Infectious Disease in Humans

Sheldon Cohen

LINTRODUCTION
There is substantial evidence for the plausibility of psychosocial
influences on infectious disease in humans. We now have (1)
psychologically and biologically plausible explanations of psychosocial
influences on the pathogenesis of infectious agents; (2) substantial
evidence that stressors can alter both cellular and humoral immune
function; (3) evidence for a role of stress in determining susceptibility
for a small number of infectious agents; and (4) evidence for the role of
stress in activating latent viral (herpes) infections. However, we still
know little about the characteristics of psychosocial factors that
increase or decrease risk of disease onset and progression and of the
nature of immune changes that are responsible for psychosocial-induced
changes in disease risk. There are still no direct demonstrations that
proposed mechanisms link psychosocial factors to disease and hence
little real

Handbook of Human Stress and Immunity

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