When we’re feeling stressed, it’s not just our minds that feel the pressure. Turns out, our bones feel it too. How so?
Well, a group of scientists from Ulm University and its Medical Center, together with colleagues from Canada and Japan, found that big stresses in our lives can slow down how quickly our bones heal after they break.
So, if you’re a bit stressed about breaking a bone, it’s not just the pain that’s got you worried!
The Stress Connection: Unraveling the Ties
Here’s the scoop. When we’re really stressed, like if we’ve been through a scary event or if we’re dealing with a lot of worries, certain cells in our bodies respond by making a special enzyme.
This enzyme then makes our bodies produce stress hormones. Now, these aren’t the kind of hormones that make you feel all giddy when you see your crush.
Instead, these hormones can stop bone cells from growing, which slows down how quickly our bones can heal when they’re broken.
People like emergency workers, victims of violence, or those who’ve lived through natural disasters experience a lot of stress.
So, if these folks were to break a bone, this research suggests that their healing might take longer because of the high-stress situations they’ve been through.
Breaking it Down: How It All Works
In our bodies, there are special cells called neutrophil granulocytes. These cells are part of our immune system – you know, the group of cells and organs in our bodies that help us fight off sickness.
When we’re really stressed, these cells produce the enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase (TH for short). TH then triggers the production and release of stress hormones, like adrenaline, in the broken bone area.
When our bones are trying to heal, the cartilage cells – a type of cell in our body that’s kind of like a softer, more flexible bone – change into bone cells. But these stress hormones can slow down this process, making the bone take longer to heal.
Putting it to the Test: Checking Out the Theory
The team of scientists tested their idea by using special mice whose bodies didn’t produce TH. They found that these mice didn’t show slower bone healing when they were stressed.
They also looked at patients who had broken their ankles and found something interesting: those who felt more stressed or had more pain also had higher levels of TH in their broken bones. And as you might guess, their bones also took longer to heal.
What It Means: Looking Ahead
These findings could change how doctors treat patients with broken bones. It might mean doctors need to consider how stressed a patient is when deciding on a treatment plan.
Maybe patients who are more stressed might benefit from medications like beta blockers, which can reduce the effects of stress hormones on bone healing.
So, next time you’re feeling stressed, remember: it’s not just your mind that feels it, your bones do too. And if you break a bone, keep in mind that taking care of your stress might just help you heal a bit faster.
If you care about wellness, please read studies that vegetarian women have a higher risk of hip fracture, and these vitamins could help reduce bone fracture risk.
For more information about wellness, please see recent studies that Krill oil could improve muscle health in older people, and Jarlsberg cheese could help prevent bone-thinning disease.
The study was published in Nature Communications.
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