Rahul, 42, manages a bank branch in Pune. For eight months he has faced heavy targets, late hours and little help at home. His heart races and his blood pressure has gone up. He keeps forgetting figures he read a few minutes earlier, and he has made two wrong loan decisions that cost the bank money. At home he swings from anger to sadness and has begun avoiding his friends, which makes him feel less sure of himself. His doctor finds stomach ulcers and frequent headaches, and notes that Rahul now catches colds and infections far more often than before.
Rahul now catches colds and infections far more often than before. Which of the following best explains this rise in his chances of becoming ill?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Stress has produced changes in the working of his immune system
Option (1) Stress hormones have expanded the air passages in his lungs — Incorrect. Expansion of the air passages is a real physiological effect of stress. It readies the body for action; it does not lower the body's guard against germs.
Option (2) Stress has slowed down the working of his digestive system — Incorrect. A slower digestive system is also a physiological effect of stress. It may upset the stomach, but it does not explain why he catches more infections.
Option (3) His body has entered the resistance stage of the stress response — Incorrect. In the resistance stage of the General Adaptation Syndrome, the body uses its resources carefully and tries to cope with the threat. Greater risk of disease comes later, in the exhaustion stage.
Option (4) Stress has produced changes in the working of his immune system — Correct. The immune system guards the body against attackers such as viruses. Long stress weakens this guard, so Rahul falls ill with colds and infections more often.
NCERT (2026-27): “Stress and Health … “Stress can cause illness by impairing the workings of the immune system. The immune system guards the body against attackers, both from within and outside. Psychoneuroimmunology focuses on the links between the mind, the brain and the immune system. It studies the effects of stress on the immune system. How does the immune system work? The white blood cells (leucocytes) within the immune system identify and destroy foreign bodies (antigens) such as viruses. …” |