Can Stress Cause Boils?

Due to the fact that some people develop boils when going through periods of high levels of stress, the question of whether or not stress can cause boils often comes into play.

The answer to this question isn’t as straightforward as a simple yes or no answer, and it requires first understanding the link between stress and the immune system, in order to properly understand the link between stress and developing boils.

In this article, we’ll cover how stress affects the immune system, and then reveal whether or not stress can result in boils, and how.

Stress And The Immune System

The immune system, like most other biological systems in the human body, is not immune to stress and its havoc-wreaking effects. In fact, the immune system is quite vulnerable to stress, particularly to chronic stress.

Chronic stress significantly hampers the effectiveness of the immune system, which leaves the body more vulnerable to infections, and the illnesses which may result from them.

The reason behind this is that stress leads to an increase in the level of cortisol present in the body. Cortisol, a stress hormone, has many side effects when present in the body in higher than normal amounts, and for extended time periods.

One of these side effects of high cortisol levels is the reduced number of natural killer cells, or leucocytes, which are the cells that help the body identify and kill viruses and bacteria.

In the absence of an adequate number of these killer cells, the body struggles to guard itself from infections, and to expunge them once they take hold.

This can lead to a very dangerous predicament, with deadly potential.

High levels of cortisol in the blood may also lead to a reduction in the body’s anti-inflammatory response, which can lead to continuous infections, repeatedly, alongside the negative effects of inflammation itself that results from infections.

Stress can also lead to an increase in red blood cells, or a decrease in these cells, both of which can lead to complications for the immune system.

Having understood this information, let’s now focus on answering the question in the title. Can stress cause boils, or can it not?

Can Stress Cause Boils?

The short answer is that, no, stress (by itself) does not (directly) cause boils to appear.

Stress does, however, hinder the body’s ability to defend itself from infections of all sorts, and some of these infections, depending on their type, can lead to the appearance of boils.

Thus, stress can be, albeit indirectly, responsible for boils appearing, by helping the infections have an easier time setting in, on account of the weakened immune system functionality which is often associated with stress.

Stress may also make it longer for the boils to go away, even after the infection is subdued, due to the lowered healing ability of the body during times of intense and/or chronic stress.

This is because, due to less nutrients making it to where they are needed due to stress, the body takes longer to heal itself from wounds in general, and this includes boils.

High stress levels can be quite dangerous to your body’s abilities to defend itself and heal itself. In addition, stress may make some people resort to unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as vaping, smoking or drinking, which in turn may lead to even lower immunity.

In regards to boils, here are some facts about how they occur and the most common direct cause behind them, which is aided by stress to bypass the immune system:

• Bacterial infection - The most common cause of boils appearing on the skin are bacterial infections, most common bacterial infection type, in turn, being staph infection. There are two types of staph infections: the regular type, and the antibiotic-resistant type (which is quite a bit harder to treat). Boils resulting from bacterial infection typically occur when the infection invades hair follicles.

• Skin abscess - A boil can be accurately described as an abscess underneath the skin, where pus gathers as a result of the bacterial infection. This abscess then becomes a hot pocket for the infectious bacteria to multiply itself.

• Contagious - The abscesses, or boils, serve both as an area for the bacteria to multiply itself in, as well as a vector of transmission. Being in close contact with a person with boils is likely to lead to you developing boils yourself, particularly likely in the case of an immune system weakened by stress.

• Recurring boils - In the instances where boils come and go repeatedly, the most likely cause behind it is usually an antibiotic resistant staph infection, which means that while the boil itself may have receded, the bacteria is still present in your organism, and it is only a matter of time before new boils appear.

• Skin perforation increases contracting risk - Having a laceration on your skin increases the risk of contracting a bacterial infection which can result in boils. The size of the lesion does not matter, in fact, something as small as an insect bite is sufficient for a bacteria such as staph to infect you, and result in developing boils.

• Complications - While most cases of boils do not reach severe levels, complications aren’t unheard of, either. Things such as large amounts of boils appearing all over the skin, or the appearance of large open wounds as a result of the boils, have been known to occur on occasion, and this may lead to requiring quick medical attention.

Conclusion

Stress, by itself, does not cause boils. It does, however, aid in the appearance of boils by hindering the body’s ability to protect itself from infections, some of which do indeed cause boils to appear.

Stress also makes it harder for the boils to go away, by hindering the body’s ability to heal itself, due to a drop in oxygen and nutrient supply to the areas requiring them. This can lead to the appearance of large, open wounds on the skin, even after the boils themselves go away.

It’s then quite important to manage your stress levels, in order to ensure a strong immune system, and overall good health.