Stress May Stir Up Allergies

Let your worries go: Stress can make allergies worse, concludes a study from the Ohio State University College of Medicine.

Researchers subjected people to a stressful public-speaking situation and then pricked their skin with allergens.

Those who reported moderate anxiety developed allergic bumps that were 75 percent bigger than ones they developed when tested after calming situations.

Stress increases levels of inflammatory proteins, which may aggravate the allergic response, says principal investigator Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, Ph.D.