Stressed out? Feeling down? Be prepared to get sick

You’re inches away from constant coughing and nasty nose blowing. Scrunched up, well-used tissues keep floating forward, in the direction of your lap. There are lots of mucous-filled, throat-clearing sounds. It’s going to be a long flight.

If you thought you might escape having a cold or the flu this season, it now seems you’re destined. And, if you’re already under stresses of some kind (maybe you’re on your way to a dying relative’s bedside, for example), you’re more susceptible to becoming ill. Some experts would say it’s almost assured that your own sniffling and sneezing will begin soon.

Have the tissues ready. Studies have found that people under stress are significantly more vulnerable to colds and flu, and their symptoms are more severe when they become ill.

But there’s something else going on here. The way you think about what’s likely to happen can affect what actually happens. Negative thoughts weaken your immune system.

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin have found that we may be able to "think around" bacteria or viruses. In a recently completed study, "activation of the brain regions associated with negative emotions appeared to weaken people’s immune response to flu vaccine."

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People whose brain function (the electrical activity in their brains) demonstrated that they tended to dwell on sadness, fear or anger were more at risk of getting the flu. People who were inclined to be positive — let’s call it "joyful" — stayed well.

According to a nationally known expert on stress and immunity, Dr. Janice Kiecolt-Glaser at Ohio State University College of Medicine, if you have "a negative response style," you have a much greater chance of getting a cold or the flu.

The findings of recent studies indicate that a person’s mood plays a substantial role and "ultimately affects susceptibility to illness." The power of positive thinking seems to have a health benefit.

But there’s more going on here than the suggestion that you can avoid a stay-at-home-and blow-your-nose-a-lot cold by maintaining an optimistic spirit. There’s a 30-year Mayo Clinic study that identifies optimists as having half the risk of early death. Additionally, the Mayo experts found that optimists have "fewer problems as they age — fewer limitations, less pain and more energy."

I’m starting to think about this as "the sunshine factor in disease management." Negative emotions and chronic pessimism are risk factors for many chronic diseases, and sunny dispositions are linked to good health and, not unexpectedly, healthy behaviors.

As you can see, these studies go beyond susceptibility to a bout with the flu or an irksome cold. There’s strong evidence that "well-adjusted, socially stable people have a lower risk of disease and premature death than loners and the chronically pessimistic." The connection between optimism and longevity is especially strong.

As reported in a current issue of the University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter, people over 50 who view aging as a positive experience live 7.5 years longer. Increasingly, it seems that optimism and sunny dispositions are tightly linked to good health and long life. Envision that.

Sharon Johnson is an assistant professor in family and community development at OSU Extension and a member of the Senior Advisory Council. Reach her at s.johnson@oregonstate.edu.