Fact or Myth? Stress increases your chances of getting a cold or the flu.
Answer: Undetermined
"This is a very good question and a question we don't know all the answers to," said Dr. Erica Brownfield, an associate professor of medicine at Emory University School of Medicine.
But while medicine may not be able to tell us if stress increases the risk of catching a cold or the flu, stress can make either of those conditions worse once you have it.
"What we do know is that those people who are under chronic stress are probably more likely to develop complications from a cold or the flu," said Brownfield.
While people may need to relax once they're sick, the anxiety of putting yourself at higher risk isn't worth adding to an already stressful lifestyle.
"For those individuals who have acute stress in their life, they shouldn't be concerned about developing more colds and flu under typical circumstances," said Brownfield.
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