Positive thinking could boost immune response to vaccines, say scientists | Health
Being optimistic can strengthen the immune system, according to research that points to a connection between the mind and our body’s natural defenses.
Scientists found that people who used positive thinking to increase activity in the brain’s reward system responded better to the vaccine, and their immune systems produced more antibodies than others after being vaccinated.
The study doesn’t mean that being hopeful can save people from illnesses; But it points to the potential of mental strategies to help the immune system fight infections and even attack tumors to keep them at bay.
“This is the first demonstration in humans, in a causal way, that if you learn how to engage your reward system in the brain, the effectiveness of immunization increases,” said Talma Hendler, a professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at Tel Aviv University.
Previous studies have shown that positive expectations can benefit patients with certain medical problems, as seen in the placebo effect. While animal studies suggest that activating the brain’s reward system may strengthen immune defenses, the picture in humans was less clear.
inside In the study, healthy volunteers participated in brain training sessions They tried different mental strategies to increase activity in certain parts of the brain. They knew how well they were doing thanks to real-time feedback in the form of scores that increased in line with brain activity.
After four training sessions, the volunteers were vaccinated against hepatitis B. They then gave blood, which researchers analyzed for antibodies against hepatitis two to four weeks later.
Scientists found that people who increased activity in a part of the brain’s reward system called the ventral tegmental area (VTA) had the strongest immune response to the vaccine. And those who promoted this most successfully did so through positive expectations, or by imagining that good things would happen.
The effect may be beneficial in boosting patients’ immune systems, but larger studies are needed to show whether there is a clear medical benefit. One of the co-authors of the study, Dr. Tamar Koren said the team is currently investigating whether other parts of the immune system, such as inflammation, are also affected.
One of the senior authors of the study, Dr. “The approach we tested was designed solely as a complementary tool that could increase the sensitivity of immunity to vaccination,” said Nitzan Lubianiker. “It is not a replacement for vaccines or standard medical care and is not designed for that purpose.”
Jonathan Kipnis, professor of pathology and immunology at Washington University in St. Louis, agrees. “It’s probably too early to draw conclusions about the degree of clinical relevance,” he said. “If such effects are shown to be clinically important in a larger clinical trial, they will likely complement established treatments.”
Jeremy Howick, professor of empathic healthcare at the University of Leicester, said the impact was small and said sick patients at the clinic may have responded differently but he still saw positive results. He said: “Given that healthcare professionals are allowed to say things that can create positive expectations without exaggeration, such as ‘We’ll do our best to take care of you’ or ‘I’ve seen this treatment work for people like you,’ this is a pretty solid signal that we need to do more.”
