Anxiety may cause inflammation?

Anxiety is your body’s natural response to stress, thus most people feels anxious nowadays. But if the feeling of anxiety lasts long and are frequent it can be detected as anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders are the most common form of emotional disorder and can affect anyone at any age.

According to the American Psychiatric Association, women are more likely than men to be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. WHO estimated 3.6% of the population had anxiety disorder i.e. 264 million people.

The exact cause of anxiety is still not known but some of the factors of its foundation can be trauma, genetics, overactivity in brain cells, personality traits etc.

Covid have somewhere placed a role in increasing of number of people going through anxiety. Staying at home not being able to interact with friends made people feel isolated and lonely. Scientists are on working to come across the role of inflammation in causing of anxiety disorders.

Inflammation is a process by which your body’s WBC’s and the things they make to protect you from infection from outside invaders, such as viruses and bacteria. It is a natural and beneficial reaction to harmful stimuli, such as irritants and pathogens. However if it continues it can damage the cell and tissues which it is supposed to protect.

Inflammation are may be protective but researchers are curious to find out wether chronic inflammation results in developing mental disorders.

Linking Anxiety and Inflammation

Research has examined that the link between anxiety and inflammation is not proved properly as very less evidence have been found supporting the subject. On the other hand there is good evidence present to link depression and inflammation. Scientists are trying to build up evidence for anxiety and inflammation.

Anxiety can be related with increased risk of coronary heart disease, atherosclerosis and metabolic disorders. These conditions involve low grade systematic inflammation and as depression comes hand in hand with anxiety, inflammation can therefore play a role in anxiety disorders.