Stress Triggers Autoimmune Diseases: Fact or Fiction?

Key points

80% of patients with autoimmune disease link its onset to stress.

Increasing prevalence of autoimmune diseases is linked to increasing environmental exposures and stress.

Chronic stress impairs stress hormone receptors, blunting the anti-inflammatory effects of cortisol.

Engaging in the 7 domains of integrative health can help reduce stress and modulate autoimmune disease.

Young woman with hand pain from arthritis. Source: Yurii_Yarema/Shutterstock

Why do 80% of patients with autoimmune diseases, like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, thyroiditis and multiple sclerosis, report that their symptoms first appeared after a period of extreme stress? On first blush, this association seems counter intuitive. When one is stressed , large amounts of the stress hormone cortisol are p