Alan Alda in Scientific American Frontier's Worried Sick
To Heal or Not to Heal
Most
people think a good marriage will make you happy. But can
a good marriage keep you healthy, as well? In "To Heal or
Not to Heal," researchers at Ohio State University explore
links between the psychological health of a marriage and the
physical health of the couple.
First
the scientists give their married subjects superficial skin
wounds on the arm—eight small blisters created with a
suction cup. Psychologist Tim Loving then asks the couples
to assess how much they agree or disagree on certain issues-in-laws,
finances, housework and so on. By measuring stress hormone
levels in the blood while monitoring how quickly the immune
systems mobilize to heal the blisters, the researchers can
determine if the psychological stress of marriage can affect
the immune system, and physical health in general. |
 | Researchers
asked married couples to squabble to measure the effects
of stress | |
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Small
differences in marital strife made big differnces in
the healing time.
| |
Meet
Eve and Bud, happily married for 13 years. In the lab, they're
asked to argue while their vital signs and stress hormone
levels are measured. Eve and Bud rehash a well-worn argument
over Bud's hearing aid, but anyone can tell they just aren't
that angry with each other. The argument elicits no stress
hormones in their blood streams, and their blisters heal quickly
and completely.
Deb
and Mike are relatively happily married, but the couple finds
it all too easy to argue over division of household responsibility.
This small amount of stress translates into a big delay in
healing. Deb and Mike's blisters remained unhealed at day
6, while at the same stage the blisters were nearly healed
in less stressed couples like Eve and Bud. So psychological
stress has a clear negative impact on physical health. |
What can be done? In another OSU study, researchers give 57
med students the same blisters they gave the married couples
and tracked the healing process the same way. The students
were divided into two groups; one group coped with their hectic
lives on their own, while the other group attended frequent
relaxation sessions. Just as with the less stressed married
couples, those in the second group healed faster. So even
though prolonged stress really can make us sick, simple relaxation
techniques can counteract its negative effects.
For more on this topic at the PBS site
see the feature:
What's Your Type? 
Beyond Stress
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